"Granny's Chapters" Part 25

Before St. Paul left Ephesus, a great tumult took place in that city; for, as St. Luke says, "there arose no small stir about that way,"--that is, the people were stirred up against the doctrines of Christianity, so as to make a tumult in the city. "For a certain man named Demetrius, a silversmith, which made silver shrines for Diana, brought no small gain unto the craftsmen."

We have said, that the temple of Diana, at Ephesus, was a most beautiful and magnificent building, and people came from all parts to see this wonderful temple, and to worship before an image of Diana, which was supposed by all the heathens to have been sent down direct from heaven. Those who came from far distant places to worship in this famous temple, were glad to carry away some remembrance of the G.o.ddess; and strangers who only came out of curiosity, also bought the "shrines," or little models of the temple, which the silversmiths at Ephesus made: these "shrines" had a small image of Diana within them.

By these means, the craftsmen, or workers in silver, gained a great deal of money; and the more they sold, the better it was for them.

St. Paul had of course taught all who listened to him, that Diana was no G.o.ddess, only an imaginary being, and that it was very sinful to worship or honour her in any way: those who believed him therefore, would not buy these silver shrines, and consequently the silversmiths found their trade very much fallen off. This great loss of money, caused Demetrius, one of the chief silversmiths, to call together all the craftsmen and workmen of the like occupation. When they were a.s.sembled, he said to them, "Sirs, ye know that by this craft we have our wealth. Moreover ye see and hear, that not alone at Ephesus, but almost throughout all Asia, this Paul hath persuaded and turned away much people, saying that they be no G.o.ds, which are made with hands: so that not only this our craft is in danger to be set at nought; but also that the temple of the great G.o.ddess Diana should be despised, and her magnificence should be destroyed, whom all Asia and the world worshippeth." This speech was well calculated to stir up the bad pa.s.sions of all who heard it; the craftsmen would be angry at the idea of losing their wealth, whilst all the Gentiles at Ephesus, would be indignant that their favourite G.o.ddess and her splendid temple should be less thought of, and thus bring fewer people to Ephesus, to admire and worship. This decrease in the number of strangers attracted to Ephesus, would of course cause less money to be spent in the city, which would be a great loss to the inhabitants generally. When, therefore, those to whom Demetrius spake, "heard these sayings, they were full of wrath, and cried out, saying, Great is Diana of the Ephesians."

What Demetrius had said to the craftsmen whom he had called together, spread quickly throughout the city: "and the whole city was filled with confusion"--the people were now ready for any mischief; and meeting with two of St. Paul's companions, Gaius and Aristarchus, they caught them, and "rushed with one accord into the theatre"--a large building, in which public shows and games took place, and which was also used for a.s.semblies of the people, when any important occasion brought them together. When St. Paul understood what had happened, he would have gone also into the theatre to speak to the people; but the disciples, fearing that they might do the Apostle some mischief, suffered him not to go in. "And certain of the chief of Asia, which were his friends," knowing that in the present excited state of the people, St. Paul's life would be in danger amongst them, "sent unto him, desiring him that he would not adventure himself into the theatre."

The persons here spoken of as chiefs of Asia, were the rulers of the provinces into which Asia Minor was divided: they were called "Asiarchs," and were chosen from amongst the men of wealth and rank in the different provinces. Their office was to direct all religious ceremonies and solemnities; and to celebrate at their own expense, public games in the theatre, in honour of the heathen G.o.ds. It seems probable that at this very time, public shows and games were going on in the city of Ephesus; and that some of the Asiarchs who were his friends, feared that if St. Paul now went into the theatre, the people might lay hold of him, and throw him to the wild beasts, whose fights with one another were generally a part of all the public games. In after times, very many Christians were cruelly given to be killed by wild beasts, because they would not give up their religion, and bow down to the false G.o.ds of the heathen. The tumult and disturbance in the theatre at Ephesus became worse and worse. St. Luke tells us, "Some therefore cried one thing, and some another: for the a.s.sembly was confused; and the more part knew not wherefore they were come together."

The greater number of those who were now a.s.sembled, and were loudest in their cries against St. Paul, did not even know what had caused this tumultuous meeting. They copied the example of others, without attempting to find out whether they were right or wrong. This is too often the case amongst ourselves; but we should be careful not to join in blaming any person, merely because others do so, without taking the trouble to find out whether they deserve blame or not. The Jews, seeing the rage of the people in the theatre, did their best to turn it all upon the Christians, and to show that they had taken no part in teaching men to despise the G.o.ddess Diana: and they now put forward a Jew named Alexander, that he might explain this to the a.s.sembly. "And they drew Alexander out of the mult.i.tude, the Jews putting him forward. And Alexander beckoned with the hand, and would have made his defence unto the people. But when they knew that he was a Jew," and therefore no worshipper of Diana, they refused to hear him, "and all with one voice (for) about the s.p.a.ce of two hours cried out," over and over again, "Great is Diana of the Ephesians."

The town-clerk, or princ.i.p.al magistrate of the city, succeeded at last in stopping this senseless outcry and tumult; and so far appeased the people, as to get them to listen to him. They were perhaps the more inclined to do this, as they must have been tired of repeating this cry for two hours, without knowing why.

As soon as the town-clerk was allowed to speak, he reminded the people, that as it was well known to all men, that the Ephesians were worshippers of the great G.o.ddess Diana, they need not be troubled by anything St. Paul said; more especially as the image of Diana had come down from heaven, and could not therefore be one of those idols, made by the hands of men, against which the Apostle had spoken. Then he went on to show them, that they had done wrong in seizing Gaius and Aristarchus, whom they could not accuse of any crime whatever: they were neither robbers of churches, nor yet blasphemers of the G.o.ddess, and could not justly be taken before the magistrates; but if Demetrius and his fellow workmen had injury to complain of, there were proper courts of law, where such complaints would be heard and judged. But he also told them, that if they wished to inquire into the doctrines taught by St. Paul and his companions, it must be done in a very different manner: a proper a.s.sembly must be called, of people who had authority to judge of such questions; and then the matter must be brought before them: and he ended by telling them, that they were in danger of being punished for the uproar and confusion they had made, for there was no cause for it, and therefore they would not be able to give a satisfactory answer to the Roman governor, if he should call them to account for what had happened.

When the town-clerk had thus spoken, he dismissed the a.s.sembly. "And after the uproar was ceased, Paul called unto him the disciples," to take leave of them, "and embraced them, and departed for to go into Macedonia."

From another part of the Bible, we learn that Timothy was now left at Ephesus, to direct the affairs of the Church in that city. We are not told what places St. Paul now visited in Macedonia, but no doubt he went wherever he had been before, as well as to other places. From one of these places in Macedonia, St. Paul wrote the First Epistle to Timothy; directing him how to answer the Jewish teachers, who tried to bring false doctrines into the Church at Ephesus. After giving Timothy much advice as to what he was to teach to others, St. Paul ends his letter by begging him to keep steadfast in the faith of the Gospel; to avoid and flee from all sins; and to follow after righteousness, G.o.dliness, faith, love, patience, meekness, that so he might, for Jesus Christ's sake, receive eternal life.

Chapter XX.--ST. PAUL'S JOURNEY TO MILETUS.

During the time that St. Paul was journeying about in Macedonia, he suffered much both from the unbelieving Jews and the infidels; for he says himself, in one of his Epistles (2 Cor. vii.), "when we were come into Macedonia, our flesh had no rest, but we were troubled on every side; without were fightings, within were fears." But in the midst of his troubles, the Apostle had one great comfort, for t.i.tus came to him from Corinth, and brought him a very satisfactory account of the state of the Church in that city.

A short time afterwards, he sent t.i.tus back to Corinth, and by him he sent his "Second Epistle to the Corinthians." Some of the teachers, who had been reproved for disturbing the faith of the believers by their mistaken teaching, had, in their anger at the reproof, spoken ill of St. Paul himself. In this letter, therefore, St. Paul shows the Corinthians that all he has done or said has been according to the Will of G.o.d, and that therefore they may safely believe him rather than any teachers, whose doctrines do not agree with what he had taught them. Many other things he wrote; above all, entreating the members of the Corinthian Church to keep steadily in the Faith of the Lord Jesus Christ, and to strive to please G.o.d in all things, by living in peace and holiness.

This Epistle St. Paul sent to Corinth by t.i.tus, remaining himself a little longer in Macedonia. "And when he had gone over those parts, and had given them much exhortation, he came into Greece, and there abode three months." We are told nothing of what St Paul did during these three months, but no doubt he visited Corinth amongst other places; and we are quite sure that wherever he went he was doing the work of the Lord. It seems that St Paul proposed to go by sea from Achaia to Syria; but the Jews, who were as usual greatly vexed at the success of his preaching, laid some plot to take or kill him, at the port from which he must sail. Hearing in some way of this plot, St.

Paul "purposed," or determined, to return through Macedonia, and so disappoint the malice of his enemies. Accordingly he went into Macedonia, where he was joined by several of the brethren from different cities in that province. And they "accompanied him into Asia," together with some others who had come with him from that country.

St. Paul appears to have merely pa.s.sed through Macedonia at this time, sending most of his company on before, for St. Luke says of them, "These going before tarried for us at Troas,"--that is, they crossed over into Asia, and waited at Troas until the Apostle should join them there.

St. Luke and one or two others stayed with St. Paul, and we read, "And we sailed away from Philippi after the days of unleavened bread, and came unto them to Troas in five days; where we abode seven days."

Whilst St. Paul was on his way through Macedonia at this time, he wrote a long letter, called "The Epistle to the Romans," about the year 58 (A.D.). In our Bibles, this Epistle stands first of all; but the Epistles are not _chronologically_ arranged; that is, they are not arranged according to the order in which they were written. If they had been chronologically arranged, "The Epistle to the Galatians,"

written A.D. 51, would have stood first; then "The First Epistle to the Thessalonians," also written A.D. 51; and next, "The Second Epistle to the Thessalonians," A.D. 52; and that to "t.i.tus," A.D. 53.

After these, the next in order would have been, "The First Epistle to the Corinthians," A.D. 57, and "The First Epistle to Timothy," in the same year; and "The Second Epistle to the Corinthians," A.D. 58, just before St. Paul wrote that of which we are speaking, to "The Romans."

In this letter, St. Paul speaks both to the Jews and Gentiles; trying to persuade both, that the only possible way of salvation for all mankind was through Faith in Jesus Christ. He tells the Gentiles that their learning and wisdom will not save them; and that even all their moral virtues, such as truth, honesty, charity, and such like, will be of no use without Faith: they must first believe in Jesus Christ, and then do all these things, _because_ they are pleasing to Him. To the Jews, the Apostle writes, that all their obedience to the Law of Moses cannot save them, or give them eternal life; that the Law was only given to prepare the way for Christ, Who had now made known that the only way of salvation was through Faith in Him, and consequent obedience to His holy Word. St. Paul also explained clearly, that Adam's sin had made all men sinners; and that therefore all men deserved the wrath of G.o.d; but that Christ, by His sufferings and death, had undone the evil brought upon all mankind by Adam, and purchased for them forgiveness and justification. Much more St. Paul taught in this Epistle, and we have it to teach us now. The Epistles are of the greatest use to us, for they explain and teach much, that is not even mentioned in the Gospels.

From Troas, St. Paul determined to go on foot to a.s.sos, another sea-port town a little to the south; but at the same time he purposed to send most, if not all, his companions to that place by sea. During the seven days spent by St. Paul at Troas, he of course preached the Gospel diligently; and, on the last occasion of his speaking to the people, a very remarkable event took place, of which we must now read the account given us by St. Luke in the Book of Acts.

"And upon the first day of the week, when the disciples came together to break bread, Paul preached unto them, ready to depart on the morrow."

The "breaking of bread" here spoken of, was the partaking of the Bread and Wine which, on the night before His death, our blessed Lord commanded to be received constantly by all His faithful followers, in remembrance of His Body given, and His Blood shed, for our redemption.

This receiving of Bread and Wine we call "The Sacrament of the Lord's Supper." The early Christians met to partake of the Lord's Supper on the First Day of every week, the day on which Jesus rose from the dead. On the night before St. Paul intended to leave Troas, the disciples met together to partake with him, for the last time, of the Lord's Supper, and to listen to his farewell counsels. Much had the Apostle to say, and his hearers were anxious to learn of him, so that he continued his speech until midnight. "And there were many lights in the upper chamber, where they were gathered together." This upper chamber was, on what we should call the third story, and, like all Eastern houses, would have large windows opening even with the floor.

"Many lights," and a number of people, naturally made the room very hot, so that the windows were wide open. "And there sat in a window a certain young man named Eutychus, being fallen into a deep sleep: and as Paul was long preaching, he sunk down with sleep, and fell down from the third loft, and was taken up dead." The terrible death of this young man would, of course, create much confusion and distress amongst the a.s.sembled Christians. "And Paul went down, and fell on him, and embracing him said, Trouble not yourselves; for his life is in him." The Apostle did not ask G.o.d to bring Eutychus at once to life, but he told the brethren that his life would come back, and that they need not therefore grieve and distress themselves about him.

Those to whom St. Paul now spake had faith in G.o.d, Whose servant he was, and therefore believed his words, and were content to wait the Lord's time; and so they returned to the upper chamber, leaving the lifeless body of Eutychus for a time, while St. Paul continued his preaching. "When he therefore was come up again, and had broken bread, and eaten, and talked a long while, even till break of day, so he departed," and went at once on his way to a.s.sos. The Apostle grudged no labour done for the Lord; on the eve of a journey he gave up his night's rest to preach the Gospel: Eutychus, who might probably never have another opportunity of learning from him, had fallen asleep instead of listening to the words of salvation. After St. Paul's departure from amongst the brethren, the miracle which he had foretold came to pa.s.s; for "they brought the young man alive, and were not a little comforted." Comforted as to Eutychus himself, and comforted in this additional proof, that St. Paul's words were indeed the words of one under the especial direction and blessing of G.o.d Almighty, the Lord of Life and Death. St. Luke now says, "And we went before to ship, and sailed unto a.s.sos, there intending to take in Paul: for so had he appointed, minding himself to go afoot. And when he met with us at a.s.sos, we took him in, and came to Mitylene." This was the chief town in Lesbos, one of the islands of the Archipelago: the whole island is now called Metelin. St. Paul did not stop at Mitylene, for we read that he and his company pa.s.sed the island of Chios next day, then that of Samos, and landed at Trogyllium, a town of Asia Minor, to the S.W. of Ephesus; and next day they came to Miletus, still lower on the coast, but directly to the south of Ephesus, from whence it was no great distance. St. Paul knew that if he went to Ephesus, he should find it difficult to get away again so soon as he wished; and therefore he "had determined to sail by Ephesus, because he would not spend the time in Asia: for he hasted, if it were possible for him, to be at Jerusalem the day of Pentecost." But although he could not spare time to visit Ephesus, he would not be so near without seeing some of the elders of the Church, especially as he had something he wished particularly to say to them. The chief ruler of the Church under St.

Paul was now journeying with him; for Timotheus, or Timothy, was Bishop of Ephesus, and during his absence had left the care of the Church to a certain number of elders, or chief men amongst the believers. From Miletus, therefore, St. Paul "sent to Ephesus, and called the elders of the church. And when they were come to him," St.

Paul spake to them. He reminded them, that he had freely preached unto them the Gospel of Jesus Christ, in spite of all difficulties and dangers; keeping back nothing that was profitable for them to know; "testifying both to the Jews, and also to the Greeks, repentance toward G.o.d, and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ." He then told them that now, by the direction of the Holy Spirit, he was going up to Jerusalem, not knowing what would happen to him there; except that the Holy Ghost had made known unto him, that in every city bonds and afflictions awaited him. But St. Paul then declared, that the prospect of imprisonments and persecutions did not trouble him, for that he was quite ready to give up his life also, if so he could best finish the work which the Lord had given him to do: in the faithful service of G.o.d he should finish his course, or end his life, with joy. The Apostle then spake words grievous for the Ephesians to hear; saying, "And now, behold, I know that ye all, among whom I have gone preaching the kingdom of G.o.d, shall see my face no more. Wherefore I take you to record this day, that I am pure from the blood of all men; for I have not shunned to declare unto you all the counsel of G.o.d." St. Paul had thoroughly done his duty to the Ephesians, in showing them the way of salvation; and if any of them failed to obtain it, such failure could in no way be laid to him: he was "pure from the blood," the _spiritual death_, of all men.

Chapter XXI.--ST. PAUL GOES UP TO JERUSALEM.

After reminding the elders of Ephesus of what he had done for them and their countrymen, St. Paul exhorted them to take heed unto themselves, and to all the flock over which the Holy Ghost had made them overseers, so as in all things to set a good example to others; and to feed the Church, or nourish and strengthen the souls of the brethren, with the blessed truths of the Gospel, the pure Word of Him Who had purchased the Church with his own blood. He told them, that he was the more anxious to exhort them to do this, because he knew that, after his departing, wicked men, whom he likens to "grievous wolves," would enter in among them, not sparing the flock, but leading the brethren astray to the destruction of their souls. And not only this, but also of their own selves men should arise teaching false doctrines, speaking perverse things, to draw away disciples after them. Having thus warned them, St. Paul entreated them to "watch," remembering that for three years he had not ceased to warn them of these things. Again the Apostle commended the Ephesians to the grace of G.o.d, which was able to give them an inheritance "among all them which are sanctified": and ended by reminding them that he had "coveted no man's silver, or gold, or apparel"; but that he had maintained himself by working with his own hands, setting them an example that they also should "remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he said, It is more blessed to give than to receive." "And when he had thus spoken, he kneeled down, and prayed with them all." St. Paul knew well that without the blessing and help of G.o.d no good thing can be done; and thus did he set an example to all men for ever, to ask His aid in all their works.

"And they all wept sore, and fell on Paul's neck, and kissed him, sorrowing most of all for the words which he spake, that they should see his face no more. And they accompanied him unto the ship," in which he was about to sail from Miletus; anxious not to lose sight of him before it was absolutely necessary. It was natural and right that the elders of Ephesus should be deeply grieved, at hearing that they would never again in this world, see one who had been so much with them, and from whom they had learnt so much. But had they duly considered his words, they would not have sorrowed most of all on this account, but for the troubles which were to fall upon their Church from false and wicked teachers, who would lead many to forsake the Gospel, and thus destroy them for ever.

Having taken a final leave of the elders of Ephesus, St. Paul and his company sailed to the island of Coos, or Cos; then to another called Rhodes; and from thence to the coast of Asia Minor, where they landed at Patara, a sea-port of Lycia. Here they found a ship about to sail into Ph[oe]nicia, and going on board, they pa.s.sed near the isle of Cyprus, and finally landed at Tyre, "for there the ship was to unlade her burden." Finding disciples at Tyre, St. Paul stayed with them seven days, teaching and exhorting them. St. Luke tells us that some of these disciples "said to Paul through the Spirit, that he should not go up to Jerusalem." This means that the Holy Spirit had made known to these disciples, that great troubles and dangers awaited the Apostle at Jerusalem; and therefore they tried to persuade him that he should not go up at all. St. Paul, however, knew that it was his duty to go to Jerusalem at this time, and therefore no fear of personal suffering would keep him away: he was ready to undergo whatever G.o.d saw fit to send. St. Luke then says, "And when we had accomplished those days, we departed, and went our way; and they all brought us on our way, with wives and children, till we were out of the city: and we kneeled down on the sh.o.r.e, and prayed."

The brethren at Tyre were grieved to part with St. Paul, particularly foreseeing that sufferings awaited him at Jerusalem. They accompanied him to the sea-sh.o.r.e, where the ship waited for him. Their last act sets us an example of what we should do in all times of sorrow and anxiety. They would not part without praying to G.o.d; so they all knelt down where they were, and prayed earnestly from their hearts. The Lord will hear all such real prayers, wherever we say them, or whether we are kneeling or not; but if we kneel down and repeat words without caring or thinking about what we are saying, that is not such prayer as the Lord our G.o.d has promised to hear. When St. Paul and his companions had prayed with the Christians of Tyre, and taken leave of them, they "took ship,"--that is, embarked on board the ship, whilst the others "returned home again."

From Tyre St. Paul sailed to Ptolemais, and landing there, stayed one day with the brethren. Ptolemais was a celebrated sea-port of Syria, to the north of Mount Carmel. In the Old Testament, Ptolemais is called Accho. It was situated in that part of the Land of Canaan given to the Tribe of Asher; and it was one of those cities out of which the Children of Israel did not drive the idolatrous inhabitants, as the Lord had commanded them to do. You will remember the sin and trouble that came upon the Land of Israel, in consequence of the disobedience of several of the tribes, who, instead of entirely driving out the Canaanites, let them continue to live amongst them; by which they were afterwards led into sin, and suffered much misery in consequence.

The town of Accho was enlarged and beautified, after the death of Alexander the Great, by the first of the Egyptian kings, called Ptolemy; and the name of the city was in consequence changed to Ptolemais. We now call it Acre, and you will find Acre often spoken of in history.

St. Luke now says, "And the next day we that were of Paul's company departed, and came unto Caesarea: and we entered into the house of Philip the evangelist, which was one of the seven; and abode with him." We have heard of Philip as one of the seven deacons, (of whom Stephen was another,) chosen to help the Apostles, by distributing food and money to the believers, when they had all things in common; and we have also heard of his being sent by the Spirit into the desert between Jerusalem and Gaza, to teach the officer of Candace, queen of Ethiopia; after which he returned to his home in Caesarea. This Philip must not be confounded with the Apostle of the same name, a native "of Bethsaida, the city of Andrew and Peter," unto whom our Lord said, "Follow me." We do not call the deacon Philip an "evangelist," because we only give that name to those four men who, by the inspiration of G.o.d, wrote their several accounts of Christ's life and death; but St.

Luke might well call Philip so, because he preached the Gospel in every place to which he was sent; and one who spreads the knowledge of the Gospel by preaching it, was as much an "evangelist" as he who spread it by his writing.

Philip had four unmarried daughters, to whom G.o.d had, in a miraculous way, given His Holy Spirit, so that they "did prophesy." This was a fulfilment of the ancient promise recorded by the prophet Joel, that in the days of the Messiah the Spirit should be poured out upon their sons and daughters, servants and handmaidens, so that they should prophesy.

St. Paul stayed many days with Philip. We hear nothing of the work he then did there; but St. Luke says, "And as we tarried there many days, there came down from Judaea a certain prophet, named Agabus. And when he was come unto us, he took Paul's girdle, and bound his own hands and feet, and said, Thus saith the Holy Ghost, So shall the Jews at Jerusalem bind the man that owneth this girdle, and shall deliver him into the hands of the Gentiles." We have heard already of Agabus, as one of the prophets who went from Jerusalem to Antioch, and foretold the dearth, or famine, in consequence of which the Christians of Antioch made a collection for the poorer brethren at Jerusalem, and "sent it up by the hands of Barnabas and Saul," as St. Paul was at that time called. Agabus, inspired by the Holy Spirit, now bore his testimony to the dangers which threatened the Apostle at Jerusalem.

The consequence of this was, that St. Paul's companions themselves, and "they of that place," (the brethren at Caesarea,) "besought him not to go up to Jerusalem"; and so avoid the dangers which threatened him in that city.

Here we see that even our friends may tempt us to sin, and that we must be careful not to yield to their entreaties when they would make us do wrong. When we know what our duty is, we must not be prevented from doing it, either by love to our friends or fear of our enemies.

It is often very hard and difficult to do right, when those we love, ask and beg us not to do it. In this way, children are often led to do wrong. Let us all, whether we are old or young, take care not to give way to such temptations; and, above all, let us never so tempt others to do wrong: let us never ask any one to do what is wrong, but, on the contrary, do all we can to persuade all to do what is right and pleasing in the sight of G.o.d. St. Paul knew that it was his duty to go up to Jerusalem; and therefore when those about him entreated him not to go, he answered, "What mean ye to weep and to break mine heart?

for I am ready not to be bound only, but also to die at Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus."

Though the Apostle was firmly resolved to do his duty, and quite ready to lay down his life for Christ's sake, if called upon to do so, it grieved him to give pain to his friends; and therefore he reminds them, that all their sorrow and weeping would but distress him more and more--break his heart, as he expressed it, without in any way changing his settled purpose to go up to Jerusalem.

When St. Paul had thus declared his unalterable determination, those who had tried to persuade him not to carry it out, did what they should have done at first: they left the whole matter in the hands of G.o.d, for "when he would not be persuaded," they "ceased, saying, The will of the Lord be done." Thus St. Paul's example had a good effect upon the brethren.

St. Luke then says, "And after those days we took up our carriages, and went to Jerusalem." The word "carriages" here does not mean conveyances to take people from one place to another, but rather such things as they _carried_ with them--their baggage, in short. Some of the disciples from Caesarea went with the Apostles. Amongst them was an old disciple, a native of Cyprus, called Mnason, who appears at this time to have had a house in Jerusalem, where St. Paul and his company were to lodge. St. Luke tells us, "And when we were come to Jerusalem, the brethren received us gladly. And the day following Paul went in with us unto James; and all the elders were present. And when he had saluted them, he declared particularly what things G.o.d had wrought among the Gentiles by his ministry. And when they heard it, they glorified the Lord."

Chapter XXII.--TUMULT AT JERUSALEM.

St. James, and the elders of the Church at Jerusalem, glorified G.o.d, upon hearing of the conversion of so many Gentiles by the teaching of St. Paul, and then they "said unto him, Thou seest, brother, how many thousands of Jews there are which believe; and they are all zealous of the law: and they are informed of thee, that thou teachest all the Jews which are among the Gentiles to forsake Moses, saying that they ought not to circ.u.mcise their children, neither to walk after the customs. What is it therefore? the mult.i.tude must needs come together: for they will hear that thou art come."

The elders feared, that St. Paul's coming to Jerusalem might cause a disturbance amongst the Jewish converts; who, though Christians, reverenced the Law, and could not bear that it should be neglected.

They had heard exaggerated accounts of what the Apostle had taught; for he had never said that it was _wrong_ to observe and do the things commanded by Moses, and that therefore they _ought not_ to do them. He had only said, that it was not _necessary_ to keep the ceremonial Law; and that it was _useless_ to do so, because no man could obtain eternal life by any such outward acts. St. Paul's great object was to make the Jews understand, that the Law given by Moses, was only meant to be binding until the Messiah came; and that as Jesus had now visited his people, the ceremonial part of the Law was done away with.