: discourses spoken by Christ in that language; or rather the few of them that have been preserved for, in accordance with the statement in the last chapter of John itself; it cannot be doubted that the recorded utterances of our Lord, in both the languages He used, form but a small proportion of the addresses He delivered. The conditions at Jerusalem, after our Lord's departure, were not favourable to the publication of the Gospel; but it need not be assumed that the preparation of the work was wholly neglected until the late date at which it appears to have been given to the world. It is likely that John revised. his manuscripts as soon as his onerous duties in the Church would permit ; though probably he finally redacted them, when, in the comparative quiet of his Ephesian episcopacy, he found opportunity, in the industrial resources of that great commercial centre, to put the book in circulation. Even the Prologue (i. 1-18) was probably written long before the time of the Book's publication; that is, if the publication was really delayed as long as is commonly supposed. And, if its publication was so delayed, there is no reason for thinking that the Book itself lay hidden away from the light, or that copies were not made for private use. It should be observed that Papias is silent with reference to John's Gospel; and the puerile tales about John told by Irenæus, Clement and others prove the utter worthlessness of the traditions. We have therefore nothing to guide us in forming our opinions on this subject but internal evidence and external probability. Part VII DETAILED APPLICATION OF THE FOREGOING PRINCIPLES TO THE NARRATIVES AVING described the manner in which, as I am convinced, the four Gospels came into being, and stated in general terms the reasons for the conclusions I have reached on this subject, the important question has now to be faced, Will these conclusions bear detailed application to the narratives themselves? It is one thing to propound a theory and to support it by argument: it is quite another thing to show that the theory coincides with facts. Many theories have already been put forth on the subject before us; the misfortune is that every one of them breaks down when it is attempted to fit it in to the literary works whose origin it claims to account for. Are the principles laid down in this book better able to bear the test? To settle this question it is necessary to go right through the course of the Gospel history and to examine briefly, but honestly, each portion in its relation to the views herein maintained. The reader who takes the trouble to do this, with the Revised Version of the New Testament before him, will find it to be a work of absorbing interest, and will meet with new surprises almost on every page. In the remaining part of this work I endeavour to give some assistance in the pursuit of this quest. I am however but a pioneer in this particular portion of the field, and hope that far richer results may be achieved when others turn their steps in the same direction. I follow generally but not invariably the order of events observed in that most valuable work, The Life of our Lord upon Earth by S. J. Andrews. PROVISO It is necessary however to premise that, although in our view the manuscripts of which the Gospels are composed were for the most part written at the time or immediately after the events related, this is not strictly speaking the case with the earlier portions of the narratives of Christ's ministry. They were written during Christ's lifetime; but not until after the lapse of a period varying from two years to a few weeks after the events recorded. The disciples did not any of them begin to make written notes until some time after the beginning of the Ministry, and it was not until after the choosing of the Twelve that the Apostles as a whole set themselves to the work of keeping records. And the records they first wrote were those of events happening at the time. Soon, however-perhaps after a month or twothey felt the necessity of writing some account of the ministry of John the Baptist, and of the earlier events of the public life of Jesus; and they taxed their memories to that end. Following the most approved chronology, the preaching of John began about July A.D. 26, the Apostles were chosen about June A.D. 28, and the recollections of what took place between those dates were written in July or August of the latter year. The recollections written at that time are comprised in the following portions: Matthew iii. 1-iv. 22, viii. 14-17; Mark i. 2-39; Luke iii. 2-22; iv. 1-15, 31-44; John i. 19-51, ii. I-25. IN THE BEGINNING John i. 1-18 The Prologue to John's Gospel is remarkable for the manner in which the doctrinal gradually merges into the historical. It is difficult if not impossible to mark the exact place in these verses where the introduction ends and the narrative begins. Nevertheless, though the transition is so gradual there should be no doubt that the verses indicated above were written at a much later date than the rest of the book. This appears from the general style of their composition; from the manner in which John the Baptist is introduced to the reader in the sixth verse; and from the use of the messianic title as a proper name: "Grace and truth came by Jesus Christ." The use of this name here brings into clearer relief its non-use elsewhere; a sure proof that, like the other Gospels, its main portions were written long before any other New Testament book. As showing how little use John made of his memory when writing history, notice that the only utterance of the Baptist quoted in the Prologue (verse 15) is copied from one of his old manuscripts (i. 30). LUKE'S DEDICATION Luke i. 1-4 Like John, Luke begins with a Prologue; but its style is very unlike that of John. It is written in classical Greek, and was evidently composed with the utmost care. MATTHEW'S INTRODUCTIONS Matthew i. 1 ; i. 18a The first verse in Matthew is not an introduction to the Book; but only to the Genealogy, which ends at verse 17, and doubtless formed a separate roll of itself. The history therefore required its own introduction, which Matthew also wrote in his editorial capacity, and which is found in the first clause of verse 18. MARK'S INTRODUCTION Mark i. I Mark's introduction is the briefest of all, and it bears no resemblance to any of the others. BIRTH OF JOHN THE BAPTIST; THE GENEALOGIES; BIRTH, INFANCY AND CHILDHOOD OF JESUS Matthew i. 2-25; ii. 1-23; Luke i. 5-80; ii. 1–52; In Part II. Chapter VII., I pointed out that neither Mark nor John supplies any information whatever with reference to the birth, infancy or early life of our Lord, and that the accounts in Matthew and Luke relate, in addition to the circumstances attending His birth and infancy, nothing except the visit to Jerusalem when He was twelve years old, and that He returned to Nazareth and resided there with His parents in subjection to them. I also presented the narratives in Luke and Matthew to the eye of the reader, so as to show at a glance that the two, while quite distinct, yet mutually supplement one another in a most remarkable manner, there being neither repetition of the same facts, nor yet one word of contradiction. It should be obvious that these are peculiarities which cannot be made to harmonise with any existing theory as to the origin of the Gospels. It cannot be doubted that at the time when Mark and John composed their Gospels, the doctrine of the Incarnation of the Son of God was generally believed in the Church. Why do both refrain from mentioning so important an event? They must have desired to instruct their readers on this subject. Why do they totally ignore it? Turning to the narratives of Matthew and Luke, we find a difficulty equally great. Here are two accounts, each of considerable length, and yet, excepting two or three essential particulars which could not be omitted, no fact is related in both. And yet there is no contradiction. Each narrative leaves room for the incidents told in the other, and the two can be fitted together so as to form a consecutive and intelligible story. Is it credible that the two Evangelists, each collecting the floating material, oral or written, of the time, could have |