each Christian set apart at home on the first day of the week, from his weekly receipts, to be kept in store? It appears that this treasuring up was not at each Christian's home:

1. Because the phrase, "at home," grammatically connects, not with the word "treasuring," but with the preceding verb. This verb does not mean "lay by," but "lay," or "place." The preposition rendered "by" is part of the phrase, "at home." If it is insisted that the idea of treasuring in store is in the word rendered "lay," then we have this tautology: "Let every one place in store or lay by at home, placing in store." Paul did not write in this way.

2. The first day of the week must have offered a special facility for doing what was required. True, if nothing more is meant than laying by at home, even that marks the first day with distinguishing honor. But the placing or putting of God's portion by itself, separated from the remainder of the receipts of the past week, on each first-day, in each Christian's home, was in order to something else, for which the first day alone gave opportunity. On that day, as we have learned from Acts 20:7, and other portions of Scripture, Christians were accustomed to meet for public religious services, and at these public gatherings, each Christian put into the treasury of the church what he had set apart at home from the rest of the gains of the week.

3. The most conclusive argument, however, is drawn from the end that Paul desired to accomplish. He states expressly that his aim in giving his directions was to avoid the necessity of gatherings or collections when he should come. The force of this consideration is evaded by ex

plaining the apostle's words as meaning "small collections." But if every Christian had his money laid by at home, whether it were much or little, the "collections" would still have to be made. Each Christian, it is true, would have his sum already made up, and would need to make no personal gathering. But the apostle's word is much more naturally and fittingly applied to collections on a larger and wider scale. And to effect the apostle's end, and avoid such collections at his coming, the Corinthians, like the Galatians, were to make a collection every Lord's day, of what each one at home had set apart or placed aside from the proceeds of his business during the preceding week. In no other way would the moneys needed be in perfect readiness for the apostle. If left in the hands of individuals scattered around, there would be uncertainty about the apostle's receipt of them, and there would still be trouble in connection with collections on his arrival. But with the moneys already gathered, at the regular weekly meetings, into the common treasury of the church, and there waiting his coming, his aim is satisfactorily accomplished.

The only remaining passage is Rev. 1:10: "I was in the Spirit on the Lord's day." It has been admitted by opponents of the first-day Sabbath, that if, by the Lord's day in this passage, the first day of the week is meant, their cause is lost. And lost it is; for no other day can be meant. Three interpretations have been given of John's words :

1. By the Lord's day is meant the day of Judgment. Wetstein, in his elaborate edition of the Greek New Testament, in the year 1752, first

advanced this view. His comment is; "Hunc diem judicii vidit in spiritu; i. e., prævidit representatum." "John saw in Spirit the day of Judgment; that is, he foresaw it represented." The phrase, "the day of the Lord," does mean in the Scriptures the day of Judgment. But that phrase is different from the one here employed. The literal rendering of the former is, " the day of the Lord." The literal rendering of the other is, "the dominical day." This was not a day foreseen, but a day on which John was in the Spirit a day of weekly recurrence which the Lord claims as his own, as he claims the dominical supper.

2. By the Lord's day, it is maintained again, is meant the seventh-day Sabbath. In support of this view it is said that the phrase employed by John corresponds with such Old-Testament expressions as "a Sabbath to the Lord," and with the Saviour's language: "The Son of man is Lord even of the Sabbath." But the very fact that the seventh day had a well-known and distinctive name by which it was always designated, is strong presumptive proof that this new and unusual phrase used by John cannot apply to it. It would be most natural to suppose that some other day is meant, and this is clearly proved to be the fact.

3. The phrase, the Lord's day, was the common expression for designating the first-day Sabbath from John's time onward. As the meal which the Lord hallowed as his own was called the Lord's supper, so the day hallowed by the Lord's resurrection, by his repeated meeting with his disciples after rising from the dead, by the descent of his Spirit, by the weekly religious

assemblies of his people with their communions, preaching and hearing the word, prayers and almsgiving, was properly termed the Lord's day. It has been argued on the other side of the question that the Lord had a day, and but one in the week, called specially his own. But as has been shown, Jesus himself, after his resurrection, paid no regard to the seventh day. His disciples did not observe it. It could not, therefore, have been the Lord's day. On the other hand, Jesus did honor the first day, and the Christian churches everywhere did the same; and thus this honored day is the only one of which John could speak when he said he was "in the Spirit on the Lord's day." By this name, as will be seen in our next article, the first day of the week was known in the early church.

A REJOINDER.

"TESTIMONY OF PAUL AND JOHN TO THE
FIRST-DAY SABBATH."

WITH no small degree of interest we have perused the article entitled, "Testimony of Paul and John to the First-day Sabbath." The two texts which it brings forward in defense of the theory of a changed Sabbath, are regarded by the friends of that theory, generally, as among the strongest of its supports. The first of them (1 Cor. 16: 1, 2), we had assailed, and adduced a criticism, from the pen of Mr. J. W. Morton,

which was of great importance. In it, the very stronghold of the Sunday argument had been fearlessly attacked, and, to our mind, carried beyond all question. The writer whom we quoted presented twelve versions and translations, all of which clearly sustained the position that the expression, “by him," was equivalent to the term, "at home." If this were true, then beyond all dispute the Sunday argument had been denuded of all its strength, provided it ever had any; for the support of its logic was the assumption that the transaction brought to view in this text was to take place in the respective assemblies of the saints.

It is, therefore, with the most profound satisfaction that-if we rightly apprehend the remarks of our reviewer-we accept his concession of the point that the words, "by him," do indeed answer to a Greek idiom, of which the original terms are equivalent to the expression, "at home." This being true, we are agreed that at least a portion of the duty which Paul commanded was to be performed, not at the house of assembly, but at the dwelling of the individual Christian. In other words, he admits that the money which they were to "place or devote" to charitable purposes, was first to be estimated and separated while yet they were in their own houses. Having conceded thus much, he reasons that the money was to be carried to the place of worship, and laid up in store, or deposited among the collec