The epistles that are not from Paul in one important point carry us on to the closing period of the New Testament era. The "last days" reveal an outburst in the churches of what is called by an apt name, antinomianism. Paul's conception of Christian liberty is a noble thought: but it is obviously one which lends itself to frightful perversion. In place of the liberty which substitutes the spirit for the letter of law we now have antagonism to all idea of law. Christian love is made a cover for fleshly indulgence; the spirit of order in the life of the churches, for which Paul had so often contended, becomes a spiritual anarchy and "railing at dignities."

And this leads us naturally to the final book of the New Testament, the Revelation of St. John. It has this much in common with the epistles that its Prologue takes the form of addresses to the Seven Churches of Asia. But these addresses are not the words of St. John himself: they are words he has received in supernatural vision. And the vision of the Prologue is extended, in the body of the book, into a succession of visions which resemble and transcend the prophetic visions of the Old Testament. In this book the New Testament reaches its Epilogue. The gradually enlarging conception of Jesus Christ, which has been maintained through narrative and epistles, attains finality when vision presents Him as king of all kings and lord of all lords. The witnessing for Jesus, which has been seen extending from Jerusalem to the nations of the earth, attains in vision its goal, and the kingdom of the world becomes the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ.

What has been said will explain the mode in which this portion of the New Testament is presented in the present work. Portions of the epistles which are local and temporary in their application are omitted. On the other hand, every one of the epistles is a distinct contribution to the thought of the Bible. Accordingly, each epistle is presented in a summary, which seeks to bring out its individual character and its leading ideas. To each summary are appended notable passages of the epistle, so that the writer's great thoughts may be read in his own language.

One word of comment may be added. Some modern readers find the epistles, especially those of St. Paul, difficult writings. It should be understood in what the difficulty consists. St. Paul is one of the world's greatest masters of style. But there is one element of his style that may strike a very modern reader as foreign. Speaking in general terms, we may say that the world has known two great models of literary style, coming from the two main sources of modern culture, Hebrew and Greek. In the English language these two modes of expression contended for a time. Our great prose writers, up to and including Milton, leaned to the Greek model; in later times the Hebrew style has more and more prevailed. The difference of the two corresponds with the difference, in grammar, between coördinate and subordinate sentence construction. Parallelism of clauses was so inherent in the Hebrew language that it became the basis of Hebrew verse; it is natural that its prose writers also favor the flow of comparatively simple sentences and clauses bound together by more or less of parallelism. On the contrary, the Greek language is particularly rich in prepositions, conjunctions, and other particles, which indicate subtly and clearly the subordination of clause to clause. The Greek model of style has one advantage, that it allows thoughts to express themselves precisely as they arise in the mind of a fervid thinker, without any obligation to adapt expression to some received fashion of speech. Now, Paul was a meeting point of Hebraic and Hellenic; versed in Greek culture he had also sat at the feet of the Hebrew Gamaliel. The rapid flow of parallel clauses and sentences which makes the Hebrew model is conspicuously illustrated in his epistles. But at other times his thoughts lend themselves to the Greek complexity of subordinate sentences. These are the passages which may strike a modern reader as difficult. Paul is a great master of digression: not the digression in which the thread of thought is lost, but the freedom which allows digression to follow digression with a certainty that the original thread of thought can be recovered. The apparent difficulty is partly a question of printing. One of the most complicated sentences in the New Testament (I Peter 318) would appear far less complex if our mode of printing allowed the digressional structure to strike the eye; thus:

Christ suffered for sins once, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God; being put to death in the flesh

but quickened in the spirit: in which also he went and preached unto the spirits in prison, which aforetime were disobedient, when the longsuffering of God waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was a preparing, wherein few, that is, eight souls, were saved through water;

which also after a true likeness doth now save you, even baptism, not the putting away of the filth of the flesh, but the interrogation of a good conscience toward God, through the resurrection of Jesus Christ;

who is on the right hand of God, having gone into heaven; angels and authorities and powers being made subject unto him:

then as Christ suffered in the flesh, arm yourself also with the same mind

(for he that hath suffered in the flesh hath ceased from sin) that ye no longer should live the rest of your time in the flesh to the lusts of men, but to the will of God.

The student should not regard difficulties of such a kind as obstructions; he should recognise that he is encountering a larger instrument of expression than his own, and should seek by effort -perhaps the effort of memorizing to assimilate the new element of style. In the apt phrase of Browning, this is the duty of followers to a leader, that they should "learn his great language," enlarging at once their stock of thoughts and powers of expression.

The Epistles and Revelation

Missionary Epistles of St. Paul

The Epistles to the Thessalonians
The Epistle to the Galatians

The First Epistle to the Corinthians
The Second Epistle to the Corinthians
The Epistle to the Romans

Epistles of Paul's Imprisonment
The Epistle to the Ephesians
The Epistle to the Colossians
The Epistle to Philemon

The Epistle to the Philippians

Last Epistles of St. Paul

The First Epistle to Timothy
The Epistle to Titus

The Second Epistle to Timothy

Miscellaneous Epistolary Literature
An Epistle to Hebrews

The Wisdom Epistle of St. James
The First Epistle of St. Peter
The Second Epistle of St. Peter
The Epistle of St. Jude

The Wisdom (or First Epistle) of St. John
The Second and Third Epistles of St. John

The Revelation of St. John

MISSIONARY EPISTLES OF ST. PAUL

THE EPISTLES TO THE THESSALONIANS

It has been pointed out in the Introduction to this portion of Scripture, that these missionary epistles will often be called forth by special circumstances of some particular church; but the apostle, in dealing with these special circumstances, will from time to time rise to themes of general and enduring interest.

One notable feature of the primitive church was the fixed idea that the "coming of Christ," and end of the world, was close at hand. Now, it would appear that in the Church of Thessalonica some of the brethren had died. In the tension of feeling caused by the expectation of the immediate end of the world this circumstance had come with a shock; it raised the question whether these brethren had fallen out of the Christian hope. The purpose of the First Epistle to the Thessalonians was to give reassurance on this topic. But in discussing it Paul rises to the whole theme of the Christian resurrection.

The purpose of the Second Epistle is to correct some misunderstandings which had arisen upon the reception of the First Epistle. Not misunderstandings only there appears to have been unauthorized use of Paul's name, and he announces his purpose of appending an autograph signature to future epistles. This we frequently find in the epistles which follow. In dealing with these misunderstandings Paul expresses himself in phrases of current controversies which have lost their meaning to modern readers.

Both epistles, and the missionary epistles generally, contain also expressions of affection for the people the writer is addressing, and notices of his movements.

PASSAGES

We would not have you ignorant, brethren, concerning them that fall asleep; that ye sorrow not, even as the rest, which have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also that are fallen asleep in Jesus will God bring with him. For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we that are