1 donia, and croffed the fea there into Afia. And St. Luke, Acts xx. 4. gives us the names of all, except himself, " that accompanied him "into Afia," viz. Sopater, Ariftarchus, Secundus, Gaius, Timotheus, Tychicus, Trophimus. Thofe feven went over fea before: and “we,” says St. Luke (meaning Paul and himself), followed in five days. He goes on to relate (fpeaking ftill in the first person) their voyage, and arrival at Jerufalem. Some of the forefaid that accompanied them into Afia did (as appears from other places) hold on the journey with Paul to Jerufalem; but I fuppofe not all of them. But, however that be, one of these eight must be the man we enquire after.

6. It was not Timothy, by Obferv. 2. for he was not one of the three fent; but did himself join in sending the letter. And there is not one of the other feven but St. Luke to whom the first obfervation can agree. For in what sense soever those words, "whose praise "is in the Gospel through all the churches," be taken; none of the other, either by writing or preaching, &c. was yet generally known. On the contrary, they feem to have been all

late converts; and this is the first time that they are named or fpoken of in the history of the Gofpel. Afterward indeed fome of them are often spoken of in the Acts and in the Epiftles: but that is racter given at this time.

nothing to a cha

But to St. Luke letting go thofe

it agrees very well; for, improbable ftories of his having been one of the seventy-two, &c. the opinion of Bishop Pearson [Annales Paulini ad ann. 51.] is very probable, and confirmed, as he fhews, by the Codex Cantabr. that he was a Chriftian of Antioch, at that time [ann. 43] when and where, as he relates, "the difciples "were firft called Chriftians." But if we take no more than what he plainly tells of himself, Acts xvi. he was one of St. Paul's followers and companions when he was at Troas, before his paffage into Europe ann. 51, Pearfon; 53, Prideaux; which was fix years before this time. And he came over with him into Macedonia, and speaks in the first perfon ["affuredly gathering, that the

Lord had called us to preach the Gospel "unto them". So that he was, from this time at least, a preacher of the Gospel. When

When the perfecution in Macedonia was so great that the Chriftians there privately conducted Paul to Athens, St. Luke says, that Silas and Timothy stayed there still; and so, it feems, did he himself; for he speaks no more in the first perfon for five or fix years, till about this time. Where he spent those intermediate years is not, I think, remembered. It is probable, all, or a 'good part of them, in Macedonia; for there Paul left him; and there, as I take it, he found him, and fent him before on this charitable embaffy to Corinth; and when they returned through Macedonia, he fpeaks of himself as being one of the company.

His having converfed for a confiderable time with thofe churches might incline them to make choice of him for one of their truftees. And thofe intermediate fix years do allow a probable time of retirement for writing his Gospel. Baronius, as I find by Spondanus, fixes the time of his writing to the fame year that Paul wrote this fecond Epiftle to the Corinthians; but, I think, does not date the year as we do now; nor does he tell us his reafons. Irenæus, 1. iii. c. 1. and Tertullian,

Eẹ 4

tullian, c. Marcion. 1. iv. c. 5. do both, in their mentioning of St. Luke's Gospel, call him, "the difciple, the follower, fellow"labourer," of St. Paul; and Tertullian fays of Mark and him, "Licet & Marcus quod edidit, Petri affirmetur, cujus interpres Marcus. Nam & Lucæ digeftum Paulo "afcribere folent." But they have nothing explicit concerning this text, or the time of their writing, fave that of Irenæus's date of St. Mark's writing: Med Tv Terav ï1⁄2odov, &C.

The opinion of Origen, Hierom, &c. whom your Lordship quotes, is far more confiderable than that of St. Chryfoftom in loc. He owns the common opinion, that Luke is here meant, and that the words do refer to the Gofpel written by him, διὰ τὴν ἱςορίαν ἦνπερ ylale. But he himself is of another opinion, viz. that it was Barnabas. But he takes this opinion for a reafon which would make any one diffent from him; because St. Paul here ufes the word χειροτονηθείς, his mind ran upon ordination. And σvrendypos yuav he under ftands, ordaned together." And because Barnabas and Paul had been both fent out together from Antioch in Syria a great many

years

years before, he must be the man whom St. Paul now fent to Corinth; whereas, in all probability, they had not feen one another for feveral years, and perhaps never fince they parted. Theodoret, I guess, may follow St. Chryfoftom; for he does almost always; and eyer fince, here and there one commentator has gueffed fo. But the common opinion appears by the fubfcription at the foot of the Epiftle, which is, I think, the fame in all editions and MSS. that the carriers of the Epiftle were Titus and Luke.”

There feems little doubt but Luke was the

man. Whether the words do refer to his written Gofpel, or to his preaching, or other fuch ways of promoting the doctrine and belief of the Gofpel, is a queftion that will be refolved by every one in the sense that feems most obvious to him. The words themselves do by no means make a fufficient proof that he had then written. But if it be otherwife proved that he had (which your Lordship gives hopes will be done to your hand), they do, I think, then very aptly receive that explication; and Origen, and the others, who have fo understood them, have thereby

6