. Apoftolical Conftitutions

ἀντοῖς (@πήσεσθε, καὶ εἰρήνίω ἕξετε ἀπει θέντες κολασθήσεσθε, και πόλεμον μετ ̓ ἀλλήλων Ροβ. Can. αἴδιον ἕξετε, δίκην τ ανηκοΐας * προσήκει τιν 85. uns. All the Ages of Chriftianity before Athanafius are a noble Teftimony to the accomplishment of the former part of this Prediction; and all the Ages of Christianity fince Athanafius, when thefe facred Conftitutions and Canons first began to be laid afide, are but too fure and authentick a Teftimony to the alike completion of its latter part. And this Prediction feems the more worthy of our regard, becaufe Clement himfelf, in his Epistle to the Corinthians, feems to mention the like fore-knowledge and precaution of the Apostles about this very matter, as received from Chrift himfelf; which yet is not any where elfe recorded to us

from them, but in this place. His words

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χωρίς ἡμης ἰησε χεις ὅτι ἔρις ἔξεις ὅτι τὸ ὀνό ματα Επισκοπής. δια ζωτω εν * αιτίαν, πρό γνωσιν εἰληφότες τελείαν, κατέςη τις προειρ μήνες, και μεταξὺ πινομώ δεδώκασι ὅπως ἐὰν μηθώσιν διαδέξων3) ἕτεροι δεδοκιμασμένοι άνδρες I harapiau duri. This Paffage well deferves a very serious confideration.

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XIV. The Quotations bere made out of the Old Teftament are exactly fuch as were us'd in the first times of the Church, and efpecially fuch as are peculiar to Clemens Romanus himself, who is herein juftly fup

pos'd

pos'd the Amanuenfis of the Apostles in the greatest part of these Constitutions. Thus the Conftitutions quote the Old Books from the Septuagint, and not from the Hebrew ; as the antient Chriftians, particularly Clement almost always did. They do almost equally alfo agree with, and differ from the Two moft famous Copies of the Septuagint, I mean the Roman and Alexandrian; or rather do somewhat more agree with the Roman; as does Clement's undoubted Epiftle; especially in the Book of Job. They appear to quote the Book of Daniel, as does the fame Epiftle, from the genuine Septuagint, and not from the present Copy, which is known to be Theodotion's. They agree in fome places with the Quotations of the fame Clement, contrary to all our modern Copies, as in the order of the Three Supplicants in Ezekiel, Noah, Job and Daniel; wherein yet they are followed by Chryfoftom: And the fame Obfervations may made in other Citations alfo. So that they have eminent marks of this kind, that for the main they were written from the Apoftles by Clement himself, and by no other.

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XV. Those Books of the New Teftament which were written after A. D. 68. are never cited nor alluded to in thefe Conftitutions; altho' they do perpetually cite and allude to the Books of the Old Testament, and to thofe of the New alfo which were written

written earlier than that time: whereby is fhewn, that the latest additions to these original Conftitutions, I mean thefe Quotations and References were no later than that Year; and all clearly fome time earlier than the Destruction of Jerufalem A. D. 70. I here only except the laft branch of the Sixth Book, which feems to have been written A. D. 71. But has no Quotations later than the reft, because there were hardly any Books of the New Teftament written during that small interval; and because it is it felf fo fmall as not to include many Quotations in it neither. This I take to be a noble and authentick Character; and it affords us a moft convincing proof that these Constitutions, and all the main parts of them, belong to the times before the deftruction of Jerufalem. The Four Gofpels, with the Acts of the Apoftles, and Paul's Epiftles, all written before A. D. 68. are very frequently cited or alluded to: Nay, Peter's firft Epiftle is feveral times cited; and perhaps that of James, and the fecond of Peter fometimes ; while the Three Epiftles of John, the Epiftles of Jude, and of Barnabas,the Shepherd of Hermas,the Apocalypfe,the fecond of Efdras, the Epiftles of Ignatius,and of Polycarp, written after that time, are never at all mention'd or alluded to therein; and those Books are generally the most frequently referr'd to which had been written the longest before

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P. 33-34

prius.

before A. D. 68. Nay, the foregoing Table, which has the number of references to every particular Book alluded to in all thefe Conftitutions, fet down in a diftinct Column, and the fumm of thofe references, affords us an opportunity of computing almost the exact proportion of probability this argument implies. For the Books written before A. D. 68. exhibiting above 500 Citations or References, thofe written after that time, at the fame rate, ought to have afforded us above 300, had the Constitutions been finish'd but fo late as A. D. 117. whereas they do not give us a fingle Quotation from, or Reference to any of them. This Argument is of very great confequence in this matter, and is next to demonftration that the Conftitutions were written after fome, and before others of the Books of the New Teftament, in the very Days of the Apoftles themfelves. I must add to this Argument, by way of Appendix, that the Quotations made in thefe Conftitutions to other fpurious or unknown and Apocryphal Books, long fince loft, nay fcarce heard of in the fecond Century, are alfo great Arguments of the mighty Antiquity of the fame. LV.16. Such were the dangerous Books of Simon Magus and Cleobius, written in the very Names of Chrift and his Apoftles: Such were the pernicious Writings fet out under P. 346,347 the Name of Mofes, Enoch, Adam, Efaias,

8.345.

22. 23. P.

David, and the Three Patriarchs; to fay nothing of thofe Citations out of the Old L. II. c. 8. and New Testament not now appearing in. 218. 6. the Copies of later Ages; the like to which 230-234are till found in the other antientest Re-36 p. 247. L. VII. 4. cords of our Religion, but feldom afterward. All which circumstances ftill farther confirm the genuine Antiquity of the fame Conftitutions.

XVI. The Names of the particular Apofiles fpeaking ftill in the firft Perfon, as prefent; and that of Paul spoken of fill as abfent, excepting the first and third Councils of Jerufalem when he appears with the reft, do ftill agree to Chronology; and fo confirm the Truth and Authority of these Conftitutions. Thus Matthew fpeaks in the first Perfon in the first and fecond Books. Thus Peter moft frequently fpeaks in the first Perfon in the fecond, fourth, fifth, fixth, seventh, and eighth Books; that is in fuch places where he was alive, and might be prefent ; and the cafe is the fame with Thomas and John alfo. But in the concluding branch of the fixth Book, written after the Death of fome of these Apoftles, there is no fuch Language at all. Thus alfo Paul and only Paul is ever spoken of as abfent in all the Acts of the second, fourth, and fifth Councils here concern'd; and that at the fame time when fcarce any other Companions of the ApoAles, but those of Paul are employ'd; and

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when

364.