prerogatives of their departed Apostle. On this account it was, that the first order of ecclefiaftics were fo familiarly called the Apostles' fucceffors, and the title of Apostle given to them by many of the primitive writers. "O Awo50λos Kλnuns," fays CLEM. ALEX. fpeaking of the firft CLEMENT. Stromat. lib. iv. p. 516. TERTULLIAN calls them the

Apoftolici feminis traduces,"" the offspring, or rather the handers down of the apoftolic feed." THEODORET obferves, they were called Apostles, till in procefs of time, for distinction fake, the name of Apostle came only to be given to the Apostles efpecially fo called.* So Phil. ii. 25; their Bishop EPAPHRODITUS is called their Apoftle by ST. PAUL. And ST. CYPRIANT calls the Apostles bishops; and the bishops of his time, the fucceffors of the Apoftles.

In fact, there was no other difference between the Apostles and bishops but this: the Apostles, being confeffedly the first planters of the Gofpel, were general and ambulatory bishops, having the care and fuperintendency of all the churches; 2 Cor. xi. 28;

In 1 Timothy iii. 1.

† Apoftolos, id eft, epifcopos, diaconos autem Apoftoli fibi conftituerunt epifcopatus fui miniftros. Apoftolis data eft, et epifcopis, qui eis ordinatione vicaria fuccefferunt.

but bishops were Apostles fixed to the jurisdiction of one city or province.

In a word, the ecclefiaftical writers, who were contemporary with the Apostles, and those who were contemporary with them, have, as it were, with one voice declared unto us, that the bishops were the fucceffors of the Apostles, and the epifcopal office the ordinance of GOD. The reservation of the Apoftolic title, by the general confent of the primitive church, to the bleffed twelve; the distinct appropriation of that of bishop, a title which had before been common to ecclefiaftics of different degrees, to those who fucceeded the Apostles as governors of churches; are circumstances which have been above pointed out, together with the teftimony of ST. IGNATIUS to the latter point, who declares, that at the very close of the Apoftolic age, every Christian church, to the very utmost bounds, had a fupreme governor, at that time diftinguished by the fingular and peculiar_name of bishop.*

* IGNATIUS, in his epiftles, makes mention of many bishops Contemporary with himself.

+ IRENEUS, lib. iii. c. 3. EUSEBIUS iv. 14, and v. 23. POLYCRATES apud EUSEB. V. 24. CLEMENS Alexand. Strom. iii. 6. TERTULL. de Prescript. xxxii. 36. De BAPTISMO, c. 17. Poft hos, ORIGEN et CYPRIAN.

* σε Επισκοποι οι κατα τα πέρατα ορισθέντες εν Ιησυ Χρις8 γνεμη HON." Ep. ad POLYCARF. fec. 3.

When therefore CLEMENS,† in his epiftle to the Corinthians, fays, that the Apostles ordained bishops and deacons, or presbyters and deacons, to take care of the flocks, which should be provided for them; he well knew that the Apostles, who ordained them, belonged to a fuperior order in the church. The above words of ST. CLEMENT have therefore no respect to the number of orders in the church; the cafe to which they were applied, did not require that they should: his object on the occafion was to restrain the mutinous Corinthians from rebelling against the presbyters of the church, because they were of Apof tolical inftitution, and as much of GOD's appointment, as the tribe of Levi in the Jewish church; which is on that account fo particularly described in all the orders and offices of it, and fo closely applied by ST. CLEMENT to the Christian difpenfation; which is fo evidently built upon that of the Jewish temple, that an impartial reader would conclude that ST. CLEMENT meant to point out to his reader, the exact resemblance between the Jewish and Chriftian church, by the number and distinction of their refpective ministers.

+ " Κατα χώρας εν και πόλεις κηρύσσοντες καθίςανον τας απαρχας Επισκοπες καὶ Διακονες των μελλόντων πιςεύειν.” Ep. ad CORINTH. c. 42, p. 54.

αυτών

It was with this view, Sir, I brought forward that remarkable paffage of ST. CLEMENT, to which you object; where you fay, p. 7, "that if in the Jewish church there were high-priests, as well as priests and Levites, this is no good argument why there fhould be these distinct orders of clergy in the Christian church." It certainly, would not, fuppofing the argument originated with me; but when it is confidered, that the argument in question has ST. CLEMENT for its author, the conclufion drawn from it will, it is prefumed, be confidered as standing on too firm a ground to be shaken by any modern objection.

You go on to fay, that the high-priest under the law was evidently a type of the great high-priest JESUS CHRIST. The conclufion which you mean fhould be drawn from this circumftance is evident. But it must be observed, that what the high-priest under the law was, that the high-priest under the Gospel now is. The only difference between them being this: the former prefented a bloody facrifice, prefigurative of that great facrifice which was in the fulness of time to be offered up on the cross; the latter presents an unbloody facrifice, commemorative of the fame. The high-priest under the law looked for. ward in faith to what was in the fulness of time to

take place; the high-priest under the Gospel looks backward, in gratitude to what has been actually accomplished.

Again, Sir, the high-priest under the law had the fupreme government of the Jewish church committed to him. He was called of GOD to that high office, and publickly invested with it by Moses. The highprieft, or bishop, under the Gofpel, has a fimilar office to discharge in the Chriftian church: he is CHRIST'S vicegerent in his fpiritual kingdom upon earth; CHRIST having delegated to him that power in his church, which he himself received from the Father. For when the man CHRIST JESUS, the Angel of the Covenant, the great High-Priest of our profeffion, having fulfilled his commiffion upon earth, was about to return to heaven, and appear in his Father's prefence, for the better managing the affairs of his church; he called his Apostles unto him, and folemnly fent them, as his Father fent him: and as he fent the Apostles, with power to govern the church in his abfence, fo the Apostles fent their fucceffors, who by the fame authority were to fend others, "fucceffione vicaria," as ST. CYPRIAN expreffes it, unto the end of the world.