to establish their authenticity univerfally, by his own acknowledgment. Besides, being written to private individuals, we may fuppofe they remained fome time concealed in their poffeffion, and did not come abroad fo as to occafion much enquiry concerning them, whilst the apostle was alive.-This, I suppose, was the reafon that the fecond and third epiftles of John, were doubted of by many in the early ages; whilst the first was received universally as his, immediately on its publication. SECT. V. Of the Perfo ́s for whofe Ufe the First Epistle of John was written. Lardner, Can. vol. 3. p. 273. faith of this epiftle, "As the "writer does not at the beginning prefix his name, nor any "where else mention it in the epiftle; fo neither does he "describe, or characterize the persons to whom he writes, by "the name of their city, or country, or any fuch thing." Auguftine, Caffiodorius, and Bede, inform us, that the firft epiftle of John was anciently called, the epifle to the Parthians: as if it had been written to the Jewish believers in the country of Parthia; which Eftius faith lay between the Tigris and the Indies. For in that country, as Jofephus informs us Antiq. lib. xxiii. c. 12. there were many Jews, of whom, it is probable, fome were converted to Christianity. For Luke, speaking of the Jews, who came to Jerufalem to worship at the feast of Pentecost, which immediately followed our Lord's afcenfion, and who heard the apoftles preach after the Holy Ghoft had fallen on them, mentions firft of all, Parthians. Eftius, following the tradition preserved by Auguftine, was of opinion, that as Peter wrote his epiftle to the ftrangers of the difperfion in Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Afia, and Bithynia, fo John wrote his first epistle to the ftrangers of the dispersion in Parthia, and the neighbouring countries; and to perfons of ages in these countries, as he himself teftifies, chap. ii. 13. 14. 18. because he had a concern for the falvation of all. all Whifton, in his commentary on John's epiftles, faith, "None "of these three epiftles of St. John were written to the Par"thians, "thians, as fome later Latin writers have fuppofed but rather "to the Chriftians or churches of Afia near Ephefus." This opinion he supports, "by the perfect filence of all true anti"quity, as to St. John's ever preaching in Parthia; and from "the account which we have in Eufebius from Origen, that "Parthia was St. Thomas's province, and Afia St. John's: As "alfo from the account in the Recognitions ix. 29. That "Thomas really preached the gospel in Parthia, without a syl"lable of St. John, thereto relating. All which," fays he, "makes it plain, that this pretended direction of any of St. "John's epiftles to the Parthians, stands on no good authority "at all. And it is not improbable, that the occafion of this "error, was barely a false reading in fome ancient manufcripts, "where gos Tages, to the Parthians, was read for apeves, "to the virgins: which latter infcription might eafily be applied "to the first epiftle. For as it is chiefly addreffed to young "Chriftians, yet uncorrupted both as to fleshly and to spiritual "fornication, fuch as in St. John's revelations are called "TagIevo, virgins: fo was the fecond epiftle, anciently affirmed "by some to be written to the virgins: as we learn from Cle❝ment of Alexandria in Caffiodorius," that is, as Lardner obferves, from Clement's Adumbrations on the Catholic epiftles, tranflated by order of Caffiodorius. But as L'Enfant hath remarked, there is nothing in the fecond epiftle which fuits virgins, more than other Chriftians. Oecumenius, in his comment upon the laft verfe of this epiftle, fays it was written to the whole church in general. And in the proem to his commentary upon the fecond epiftle, he calls the first a catholic epiftle; and fays, "That epiftle is not writ"ten to a certain perfon, nor to the churches of one or more "places, as the bleffed Peter's to the Jews in their difperfion; "nor as James, before him, to the twelve tribes of the Jewish "people.-But he writes to all the faithful in general, whether "affembled together, or not; for which reason there is no in"fcription to that epiftle, as there is to the other two.". To "me, therefore," faid Lardner, "it feems that this epiftle was "defigned for the churches of Afia, under St. John's infpection C 3 --68 "and "and for all other Chriftians into whofe hands it should "come."--Lampe fays, "We easily admit that Jewish be lievers are specially regarded in this epiftle. Nevertheless, "we think that St. John directed it to all believers of his time, ❝ in general; forafmuch as there appears not in it, any expref"fion of limitation."-Nevertheless, chap. ii. 2. He is the propitiation for our fins, and not for ours only, but even for those of the whole world, feems to intimate, that this epiftle was intended chiefly, though not exclufively, for the Jewish believers in Judea and the neighbouring countries. To this opinion Oecumenius likewife inclines; for in his note on chap. ii. 2. he thus writes, "This John faid, either becaufe he wrote to Jews, "and intended to fhew that the benefit of repentance was not "restrained to them, but extended to Gentiles alfo ; or else, "that the promife was not made to the men of that time only, "but likewife to all in future times." CHAP. CHAP. I. View and Illuftration of the Matters contained in this Chapter. Tis remarkable, that the apostle begins this epiftle, with a I confutation of thofe corrupt teachers, whom he afterwards calls antichrifts, but who were named by the ancient fathers Docete, becaufe, as was obferved, pref. fect. 3. they affirmed that Chrift had not come in the flesh, and that the things which were related concerning him by the evangelifts, were not really done and fuffered by him, but were tranfacted in appearance only. For he affures us, that the evangelifts and apofties teftified to the world, nothing concerning the life of the word in the flesh, but what they had heard with their ears, and feen with their eyes, and handled with their hands; founding their atteftation on the evidence of their own fenfes, ver. 1.-So that the apostles, who accompanied the word during his abode on earth, bare witness to his life in the flesh, as it was plainly manifefted to their fenfes, ver. 2.-And, that they declared these inconteftable facts to the world, that all who received them, might have fellowship with the apostles, through their believing the truth. This he told them, would be a great honour to them, because the apoftle's fellowship was with the Father of the universe, and with his Son Jefus Christ, ver. 3.-John mentioned the honourablenefs of being in the fellowship of the Father and of his Son Jefus, because the heathens boafted to the believing Jews and Gentiles, of the honour which they derived from their fellowship in the Eleufinian and other myfteries. But thefe were far inferior to the Christian fellowship in this respect, that the heathen gods, the supposed heads of the heathen fellowfhips, were mere non-entities, 1 Cor. viii. 4. Or if any of them were real beings, they had no power in the affairs of the world. Whereas the Father and his Son Jefus Chrift, the heads of the Christian fellowship, governed the whole affairs of the universe without controul. These things concerning the heads of the Christian fellowship, the apostle told them, he wrote that their joy in being members of fuch an honourable and powerfully protected fellowship, might be complete, ver. 4.-Further, that the believing Jews and Gentiles might know the advantages alfo which they enjoyed in the Chriftian fellowship, he told them, This is the meflage which we apoftles have received from Chrift, and which we declare to you the initiated into our fellowship, That God is light, and in nim is no darkness at all; He is goodness and truth, without any mixture of evil or error. Wherefore, C 4 "and for all other Chriftians into whofe hands it fhould "come."--Lampe fays, "We easily admit that Jewish be"lievers are specially regarded in this epiftle. Nevertheless, "we think that St. John directed it to all believers of his time, in general; forafmuch as there appears not in it, any expref"fion of limitation."-Nevertheless, chap. ii. 2. He is the propitiation for our fins, and not for ours only, but even for those of the whole world, feems to intimate, that this epiftle was intended chiefly, though not exclufively, for the Jewish believers in Judea and the neighbouring countries. To this opinion Oecumenius likewise inclines; for in his note on chap. ii. 2. he thus writes, "This John faid, either becaufe he wrote to Jews, "and intended to fhew that the benefit of repentance was not <reftrained to them, but extended to Gentiles alfo; or elfe, "that the promife was not made to the men of that time only, "but likewise to all in future times." CHAP. |