256 THOMAS CHAPLIN, ESQ., M.D., ON 



to this that, even to the present hour, many doubts and 

 differences of opinion exist as to the nature of the " leprosy," 

 so called, of the thirteenth chapter of Leviticus. In some 

 instances, also, such a word as "plague" or "pestilence" is 

 used without any attempt to indicate its nature, and some- 

 times it is simply told that the angel of the Lord smote the 

 people. 



The age in which the New Testament was written was 

 more cultured. The Greeks had then already taught the 

 world to use terms with precision, and medical Avriters had 

 learned to describe diseases accurately, and had given names 

 to some which have continued in use to the present day. 

 St. Luke was himself a physician, and his allusions to 

 diseases are marked by the use of w^ords and phrases which 

 only a physician would have used. So marked is this 

 characteristic of the third gospel and the Acts of the 

 Apostles, that it has been put forward as evidence that these 

 books were written by the same author, and that he must 

 have been a medical man. 



1. Blindness. — Diseases of the eyes are very prevalent in 

 Egypt and Palestine. Probably in no other countries are 

 there larger proportions of blind people. At the British 

 Ophthalmic Hospital at Jerusalem almost every kind of 

 eye disease comes under treatment. The most common is 

 severe inflammation, Avhich prevails especially in summer and 

 arftumn. It is thought to be caused by the " bloom " or the 

 saccharine matter of fresh figs and grapes, bv the intense 

 light and heat of the sun, by air filled wnth dust, and 

 especially by the damp winds of evening and the dew. It is 

 very contagious, and a frequent cause of blindness, 

 especially if neglected. It also produces chronic and often 

 incurable disease of the insides of the "eyelids, rendering 

 people tender-eyed, as Leah Avas. Another kind produces 

 small ulcers, which sometimes penetrate the cornea, and 

 lead to the destruction of the sight. It is not uncommon to 

 see two blind men walking hand in hand, each feeling the 

 way with his staff". As in our own country, children are 

 often leaders of the blind. 



The man who w^as born blind probably had cataract, 

 which is sometimes congenital. St. Paul's temporary loss 

 of vision was miraculous; yet, as the Almighty frequently 

 works His wonders througli natmal causes intensified or 

 brought specially into operation, we may suppose that the 

 " light from heaven above the brightness of the sun " 



