he to the Corinthians) as the filth of the world, the off-fcouring of all things unto this day. Yet he went on as zealously as he fet out, and was not ashamed of the Gospel of Christ. Certainly then the defire of glory, the ambition of making to himself a great name, was not his motive to embrace Chriftianity. Was it then the love of power? power! over whom? over a flock of sheep driven to the flaughter, whose shepherd himself had been murdered a little before. All he could hope from that power was to be marked out in a particular manner for the fame knife, which he had feen fo bloodily drawn against them. Could he expect more mercy from the chief priefts and the rulers, than they had fhewn to Jesus himself? Would not their anger be probably fiercer. against the deferter and betrayer of their cause, than against any other of the Apostles? Was power over fo mean and despised a fet of men worth the attempting with so much danger? But ftill it may be faid, there are fome natures fo fond of power, that they will court it at any risk, and be pleased

with it even over the meaneft. Let us fee then what power Saint Paul affumed over the Chriftians. Did he pretend to any fuperiority over the other Apoftles? No; he. declared himself the leaft of them, and lefs than the leaft of all faints*. Even in the churches he planted himself, he never pretended to any primacy or power above the other Apoftles: nor would he be regarded any otherwise by them, than as the inftrument to them of the grace of God, and preacher of the Gospel, not as the head of a fect. To the Corinthians he writes in these words: Now this I fay, that every one of

you faith, I am of Paul, and I of Apollos, and I of Cephas, and I of Chrift. Is • Chrift divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Or were ye baptized in the name of Pault? And in another place, Who then is Paul, and who is Apollos, but ministers by whom ye believed, even as the Lord gave to every man? For we preach not

* Ephef. iii. 8. 1 Cor. xv. 9. + 1 Cor. i. 12, 13. ourselves,

ourselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord, and ⚫ ourselves your fervants for Jefus fake *:

All the authority he exercised over them was purely of a spiritual nature, tending to their inftruction and edification, without any mixture of that civil dominion in which alone an impoflor can find his account. Such was the dominion acquired and exercised through the pretence of Divine infpiration, by many ancient legislators, by Minos, Radamanthus, Triptolemus, Lycurgus, Numa, Zaleucus, Zoroafter, Zamolxis, nay even by Pythagoras, who joined legislation to his philofophy, and, like the others, pretended to miracles and revelations from God, to give a more venerable fanction to the laws he prefcribed. Such, in later times, was attained by Odin among the Goths, by Mahomet among the Arabians, by Mango Copac among the Peruvians, by the Sofi family among the Perfians, and that of the Xeriffs among the Moors. To fuch a dominion did alfo afpire the many false

Cor. iii. 5. 2 Cor. iv. 5.

4

Meffiahs

Meffiahs among the Jews. In short, a spiritual authority was only defired as a foundation for temporal power, or as the fup-. port of it, by all these pretenders to divine inspirations, and others whom history mentions in different ages and countries, to have ufed the fame arts. But St. Paul innovated. nothing in government or civil affairs; he meddled not with legiflation, he formed no commonwealths, he raifed no feditions, he affected no temporal power. Obedience to their rulers was the doctrine he taught. to the churches he planted *, and what he taught he practifed himself; nor did he ufe any of thofe foothing arts by which ambitious and cunning men recommend themselves to the favour of those whom they endeavour to fubject to their power. Whatever was wrong in the difciples under his care, he freely reproved, as it became a teacher from God, of which numberlefs inftances are to be found in all his Epiftles. And he was as careful of them when he had

* Rom. xiii.

left

left them, as while he refided among them, which an impoftor would hardly have been, whofe ends were centered all in himself. This is the manner in which he writes to the Philippians: Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not in my pre fence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own falvation with "fear and trembling.' Phil. ii. 12. And a little after he adds the cause why he interested himself so much in their conduct,

that ye may be blameless and harmless, the Sons of God in the midft of a crooked

and perverfe nation, among whom ye 'fhine as lights in the world, holding forth the word of life; that I may rejoice in the day of Chrift, that I have not run in vain, neither laboured in vain. Yea, and * if I be offered up on the facrifice and fer'vice of your faith, I joy and rejoice with

you all.' Are these the words of an impoftor defiring nothing but temporal power? No, they are evidently written by one who

* Phil. ii. 15, 16, 17.

looked