remaining, defires Jerome to give him a clear explanation of the word Hofanna, found in the New Teftament; "he (Damafus) haying met with very different interpretations of it in the Greek and Latin commentaries of catholic writers which he had read This laft claufe fhews the number and variety of commentaries then extant.

Gregory of Nyffen, at one time, appeals to the most exact copies of St. Mark's gofpel; at another time, compares together, and proposes to reconcile, the several accounts of the refurrection given by the four evangelifts; which limitation proves, that there were no other histories of Chrift deemed authentic befide thefe, or included in the fame character with thefe. This writer obferves, acutely enough, that the difpofition of the clothes in the fepulchre, the napkin that was about our Saviour's head, not lying with the linen clothes, but wrapped together in a place by itself, did not befpeak the terror

Ib. vol. ix. p. 108.

and

and hurry of thieves, and therefore refutes the ftory of the body being ftolen *.

Ambrofe, bishop of Milan, remarked various readings in the Latin copies of the New Teftament, and appeals to the original Greek;

And Jerome, towards the conclufion of this century, put forth an edition of the New Teftament in Latin, corrected, at least as to the gofpels, by Greek copies," and thofe (he fays) ancient."

Laftly, Chryfoftom, it is well known, delivered and published a great many homilies, or fermons, upon the Gofpels and the Acts of the Apoftles.

It is needlefs to bring down this article lower; but it is of importance to add, that there is no example of Chriftian writers of the three first centuries compofing comments

*Ib. vol. ix. p. 163.

upon

Sunon any other books than those which are found in the New Teftament, except the fingle one, of Clement of Alexandria, commenting upon a book called the Revelation of Peter.

Of the ancient verfions of the New Teftament, one of the most valuable is the Syriac. Syriac was the language of Palestine when Christianity was there first established. And although the books of scripture were written in Greek, for the purpose of a more extended circulation than within the precincts of Judea, yet it is probable that they would foon be tranflated into the vulgar language of the country where the religion first prevailed. Accordingly a Syriac tranflation is now extant, all along, fo far as it appears, ufed by the inhabitants of Syria, bearing many internal marks of high antiquity, supported in its pretenfions by the uniform tradition of the Eaft, and confirmed by the discovery of many very ancient manuscripts in the libraries of Europe. It is about 200 years fince a Bishop of Antioch fent a copy

of

of this tranflation into Europe, to be printed; and this feems to be the first time that the tranflation became generally known to thefe parts of the world. The Bishop of Antioch's teftament was found to contain all our books, except the fecond epiftle of Pe ter, the second and third of John, and the Revelation; which books, however, have fince been discovered in that language in fome ancient manuscripts of Europe. But in this collection, no other book, befide what is in ours, appears ever to have had a place. And, which is very worthy of observation, the text, though preserved in a remote country, and without communication with ours, differs from ours very little, and in nothing that is important *.

Jones on the Canon, vol. i. c. xiv.

SECT.

SECT. VII.

Our fcriptures were received by ancient Chriftians of different fects and perfuafions, by many heretics as well as catholics, and were usually appealed to by both fides in the controverfies which arofe in those days.

THE three most ancient topics of controverly amongst Chriftians, were, the authority of the Jewish inftitution, the origin of evil, and the nature of Chrift. Upon the first of these, we find, in very early times, one clafs of heretics rejecting the Old Teftament entirely; another, contending for the obligation of its law, in all its parts, throughout its whole extent, and over every one who fought acceptance with God. Upon the two latter fubjects a natural, perhaps, and venial; but a fruitless, eager, and impatient curiofity, prompted by the philosophy

and