66 lines
4.4 KiB
XML
66 lines
4.4 KiB
XML
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<div2 id="Luke.i" n="i" next="Luke.ii" prev="Luke" progress="46.53%" title="Introduction">
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<h2 id="Luke.i-p0.1">Luke</h2>
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<hr/>
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<pb id="Luke.i-Page_573" n="573"/>
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<div class="Center" id="Luke.i-p0.3">
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<p id="Luke.i-p1"><b>AN</b></p>
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<h3 id="Luke.i-p1.1">EXPOSITION,</h3>
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<h4 id="Luke.i-p1.2">W I T H P R A C T I C A L O B S E
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R V A T I O N S,</h4>
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<h5 id="Luke.i-p1.3">OF THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO</h5>
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<h2 id="Luke.i-p1.4">S T. L U K E.</h2>
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<hr style="width:2in"/>
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</div>
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<p class="indent" id="Luke.i-p2"><span class="smallcaps" id="Luke.i-p2.1">We</span> are now
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entering into the labours of another evangelist; his name
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<i>Luke,</i> which some take to be a contraction of
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<i>Lucilius;</i> born at Antioch, so St. Jerome. Some think that he
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was the only one of all the penmen of the scripture that was not of
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the seed of Israel. He was a Jewish proselyte, and, as some
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conjecture, converted to Christianity by the ministry of St. Paul
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at Antioch; and after his coming into Macedonia (<scripRef id="Luke.i-p2.2" osisRef="Bible:Acts.16.10" parsed="|Acts|16|10|0|0" passage="Ac 16:10">Acts xvi. 10</scripRef>) he was his constant companion.
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He had employed himself in the study and practice of physic; hence,
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Paul calls him <i>Luke the beloved Physician,</i> <scripRef id="Luke.i-p2.3" osisRef="Bible:Col.4.14" parsed="|Col|4|14|0|0" passage="Col 4:14">Col. iv. 14</scripRef>. Some of the pretended
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ancients tell you that he was a painter, and drew a picture of the
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virgin Mary. But Dr. Whitby thinks that there is nothing certain to
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the contrary, and that therefore it is probable that he was one of
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the seventy disciples, and a follower of Christ when he was here
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upon earth; and, if so, he was a native Israelite. I see not what
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can be objected against this, except some uncertain traditions of
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the ancients, which we can build nothing upon, and against which
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may be opposed the testimonies of Origen and Epiphanius, who both
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say that he was one of the seventy disciples. He is supposed to
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have written this gospel when he was associated with St. Paul in
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his travels, and by direction from him: and some think that this is
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<i>the brother</i> whom Paul speaks of (<scripRef id="Luke.i-p2.4" osisRef="Bible:2Cor.8.18" parsed="|2Cor|8|18|0|0" passage="2Co 8:18">2 Cor. viii. 18</scripRef>), <i>whose praise is in the
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gospel throughout all the churches of Christ;</i> as if the meaning
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of it were, that he was celebrated <i>in all the churches</i> for
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writing <i>this gospel;</i> and that St. Paul means this when he
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speaks sometimes of <i>his</i> gospel, as <scripRef id="Luke.i-p2.5" osisRef="Bible:Rom.2.16" parsed="|Rom|2|16|0|0" passage="Ro 2:16">Rom. ii. 16</scripRef>. But there is no ground at all for
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this. Dr. Cave observes that his way and manner of writing are
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accurate and exact, his style polite and elegant, sublime and
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lofty, yet perspicuous; and that he expresses himself in a vein of
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purer Greek than is to be found in the other writers of the holy
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story. Thus he relates divers things more copiously than the other
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evangelists; and thus he especially treats of those things which
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relate to the priestly office of Christ. It is uncertain when, or
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about what time, this gospel was written. Some think that it was
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written in Achaia, during his travels with Paul, seventeen years
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(twenty-two years, say others) after Christ's ascension; others,
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that it was written at Rome, a little before he wrote his history
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of the <i>Acts of the Apostles</i> (which is a continuation of
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this), when he was there with Paul, while he was a prisoner, and
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preaching in his own hired house, with which the history of the
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Acts concludes; and then Paul saith that <i>only Luke was with
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him,</i> <scripRef id="Luke.i-p2.6" osisRef="Bible:2Tim.4.11" parsed="|2Tim|4|11|0|0" passage="2Ti 4:11">2 Tim. iv. 11</scripRef>.
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When he was under that voluntary confinement with Paul, he had
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leisure to compile these two histories (and many excellent writings
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the church has been indebted to a prison for): if so, it was
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written about twenty-seven years after Christ's ascension, and
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about the fourth year of Nero. Jerome says, He died when he was
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eighty-four years of age, and was never married. Some write that he
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suffered martyrdom; but, if he did, where and when is uncertain.
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Nor indeed is there much more credit to be given to the Christian
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traditions concerning the writers of the New Testament than to the
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Jewish traditions concerning those of the Old Testament.</p>
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</div2>
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