174 ■ HO'RJE PAULINiE. 



"witnessing of the Holy Ghost" was undoubtedly prophetic 

 and supernatural. But it went no further than to foretell 

 that bonds and afflictions awaited him. And I can ygt'j 

 well conceive, that this might be all which was communi- 

 cated to the apostle by extraordinary revelation, and that 

 the rest was the conclusion of his own mind, the desponding 

 inference which he drew from strong and repeated intima- 

 tions of approaching danger. And the expression '• I know," 

 which St. Paul here uses, does not perhaps, when applied 

 to future events affecting himself, convey an assertion so 

 positive and absolute as we may at first sight apprehend. 

 In the first chapter of the episttS to the Philippians, and the 

 twenty-fifth verse, " I know," says he, '* that I shall abide 

 and continue with you all for your furtherance and joy of 

 faith." Notwithstanding this strong declaration, in the sec- 

 ond chapter and twenty-third and twenty-fourth verses of 

 this same epistle, and speaking also of the very same event, 

 he is content to use a language of some doubt and uncer- 

 tainty : " Him therefore I hope to send presently, so soon as 

 I shall see hoiv it icill go icith 77ie. But I trust in the 

 Lord that I also myself shall come shortly." And a few 

 verses preceding these, he not only seems to doubt of his 

 safety, but almost to despair ; to contemplate the possibility 

 at least of his condemnation and martyrdom : " Yea, and if 

 I be offered upon the sacrifice and service of your faith, T 

 joy and rejoice with you all." 



I. But can we show that St. Paul visited Ephesus after 

 his liberation at PLome ; or rather, can we collect any hints 

 from his other letters which make it probable that he did ? 

 If we can, then we have a coi7icidence ; if we cannot, we 

 have only an unauthorized supposition, to which the exi- 

 gency of the case compels us to resort. Noav, for this pur- 

 pose, let us examine the epistle to the Philippians and the 

 epistle to Philemon. These two epistles purport to be writ- 

 ten while St. Paul Avas yet a prisoner at Home. To the 

 Philippians he writes as follows : " I trust in the Lord tliat 



