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Christ, St. Paul (the fellow-apoftle of Barnabas) fays, "that he gave fome apostles," &c. This is what has occurred to me towards proving Barnabas an apostle, and fhewing when, and how, he came to be fo. Which, 1 hope, will not be wholly unacceptable; being a matter that has fo little faid of it in Scripture, and where I have had no affiftance from any, that I have read on this fubject.

I hope what I have said here, to fhew that the apoftles were particularly commiffioned and sent to testify the refurrection of Christ, may, in fome meafure, account for their being the only perfons, who are faid to witnefs, or testify it. But I am fenfible, this will account for that character of theirs but in part. However, I hope under its proper head, before I conclude this Effay, to give my reader full fatisfaction concerning it.

Thus it appears, that the apoftles were sent by God to testify the refurrection of Chrift, and were the only perfons faid in fcripture to be fent by God for that purpose. Now that they might be capable of giving their testimony, it was neceffary" that they should "have feen and heard our Lord after his re"furrection;" that fo they might be eye and ear-witneffes of his being raised from the dead. The eleven had seen and heard him after his refurrection, as St. Luke particularly acquaints D 2

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And Peter fays, when they were to choose one in Judas's room, that "out of those "men which have companied with us, all the "time that the Lord Jefus went in and out "among us, beginning from the baptism of John unto the fame day that he was taken

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up from us, muft one be ordained to be a "witnefs with us of his refurrection." So that from hence it appears, that Matthias had feen and heard our Lord, after his refurrection, as well as the eleven. St. John in his first epistle fays very expreffly to this purpofe k, "That which we [apoftles] have feen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled ofthe word "of life, That which we have feen and "heard, declare we unto you." And to the fame purpose likewife St. Paul fays of himself, "Am not I an apostle? have I not feen Jefus "Chrift our Lord?" And m❝that he deli"vered unto them (the Corinthians) that "which he first received; how that Chrift "died for our fins, according to the fcriptures; "and that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day, according to the fcrip"tures: and that he was seen of Cephas "and last of all that he was feen of him also, "as of one born out of due time, For' he

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Acts i. 2-5.

k ver. 1. 3.
Ibid. xv. 3-10,

i Ver. 21, 22.

I Cor. ix. I.

"was the leaft of the apoftles, that was not "meet to be called an apoftle, because he "perfecuted the church of God.”

And as to Barnabas, it is most likely that he was one of the feventy: and it is most likely that all the seventy faw our Saviour after his refurrection. It is also most likely that all the seventy were part of the one hundred and twenty. They were of those who had companied with our Saviour from the beginning. And who were fo likely as they to be with the apof tles at Jerufalem after what had befallen their Master so lately there? none after the apoftles were equally concerned in the great events of his refurrection and afcenfion. But however that be, Barnabas is in both the lifts that the primitive fathers give us of the feventy ". So that Barnabas had, in all probability, feen our Saviour after he rofe from the dead. He is mentioned by St. Luke, presently after Christ's afcenfion, as fo eminent in the church as to have been furnamed by the apoftles, Barnabas, that is, the fon of confolation; or, perhaps, of exhortation, as we fhall fee prefently. But however that is, he is faid to be "full of the Holy Ghoft;" a phrase that I hope I have made appear, in the Firft Effay, is not used of any, but fuch on whom the Holy

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Clem. Alex. Strom. lib. ii. p. 410. Eufeb. Hift. Ecclef. lib. i. c. 12. & ii. c. 1, • Acts iv. 36.

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and Epiph. Heræf. 19 n.. P Ibid. xi. 24.

Ghoft

Ghoft fell, without the laying on of hands. He is reckoned the first of all the prophets 9. That rank, perhaps, denotes Barnabas to be one of the hundred and twenty, who had companied with the eleven, all the time that Christ went in and out among them; who were, if I mistake not, called the apostles company.

I fay this upon the fuppofition, that Barna- · bas is not the fame with Barfabas, mentioned Acts i. 23. For if he be the fame, he must have been one of the hundred and twenty, who had accompanied with them from John's baptifm, ver. 21. and confequently muft have feen Chrift after his refurrection. And, indeed, it appears to me highly probable, that Barfabas, Acts i. 23. is the fame with Barnabas, Acts iv. 36. because their name is the fame in fome copies: for, 1, Barfabas, who is called Jofeph in fome copies, is called Jofes in others; the fame name given to Barnabas, Acts iv. 36. As on the other hand, Barnabas, Acts iv. 36. commonly called Jofes in the generality of copies, is yet called Jofeph in fome approved ones. Jerome fays" Barnabas of Cyprus called "alfo Jofeph the Levites," Indeed the names Jofes and Jofeph in the Hebrew are the famet.

q Acts xiii. I.

So

Ibid. iv. 23. and Luke xxiv. 33.

Catal. Vir. Illuftr. in Barnab.

See Epifcop. in Act. i. 23. Here Hebr. & Talm.

Imp. in Act. Apoft.

2. Ear

2. Barfabas, Acts i. 23. is in fome copies called Barnabas; and Barnabas, Acts iv. 36. is in fome copies called Barfabas ". It is plain,

Clemens Alexandrinus and Eufebius were of this opinion; who, as the rest of the fathers, must be allowed to be of confiderable authority in a matter of fact fo much nearer their time than ours. And though our countryman Bede calls their authority in question, in this matter, in Act. iv. yet I think he does it without fufficient ground. For St. Luke does not intimate that Barnabas then first came to the apostles, or that he came after the afcenfion of Chrift; fo much as that he then fold his poffeffions. Our most Reverend Metropolitan Abp. Wake seems to incline to Bede's opinion, and offers what is much more confiderable than Bede does, to support it. For his Grace obferves, in his "preliminary dif"courfe to the genuine epistles of the antient "fathers, that Barnabas is called a Levite "of Cyprus in this place; whereas it would "have been more for his honour to have ❝ been mentioned as one of the feventy, if he "had been one." This, I confefs, would have have had great weight with me, if I had found one fingle instance in the Acts, or Epistles, where that character had been given to any. And I apprehend, the reason why w Acts iv. 36,

" See Mill, in loc.
* P. 61.

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