The Harmony of the Gospels.

 Chapter I.—On the Authority of the Gospels.

 Chapter II.—On the Order of the Evangelists, and the Principles on Which They Wrote.

 Chapter III.—Of the Fact that Matthew, Together with Mark, Had Specially in View the Kingly Character of Christ, Whereas Luke Dealt with the Priestly.

 Chapter IV.—Of the Fact that John Undertook the Exposition of Christ’s Divinity.

 Chapter V.—Concerning the Two Virtues, of Which John is Conversant with the Contemplative, the Other Evangelists with the Active.

 Chapter VI.—Of the Four Living Creatures in the Apocalypse, Which Have Been Taken by Some in One Application, and by Others in Another, as Apt Figures

 Chapter VII.—A Statement of Augustin’s Reason for Undertaking This Work on the Harmony of the Evangelists, and an Example of the Method in Which He Me

 Chapter VIII.—Of the Question Why, If Christ is Believed to Have Been the Wisest of Men on the Testimony of Common Narrative Report, He Should Not Be

 Chapter IX.—Of Certain Persons Who Pretend that Christ Wrote Books on the Arts of Magic.

 Chapter X.—Of Some Who are Mad Enough to Suppose that the Books Were Inscribed with the Names of Peter and Paul.

 Chapter XI.—In Opposition to Those Who Foolishly Imagine that Christ Converted the People to Himself by Magical Arts.

 Chapter XII.—Of the Fact that the God of the Jews, After the Subjugation of that People, Was Still Not Accepted by the Romans, Because His Commandment

 Chapter XIII.—Of the Question Why God Suffered the Jews to Be Reduced to Subjection.

 Chapter XIV.—Of the Fact that the God of the Hebrews, Although the People Were Conquered, Proved Himself to Be Unconquered, by Overthrowing the Idols,

 Chapter XV.—Of the Fact that the Pagans, When Constrained to Laud Christ, Have Launched Their Insults Against His Disciples.

 Chapter XVI.—Of the Fact That, on the Subject of the Destruction of Idols, the Apostles Taught Nothing Different from What Was Taught by Christ or by

 Chapter XVII.—In Opposition to the Romans Who Rejected the God of Israel Alone.

 Chapter XVIII.—Of the Fact that the God of the Hebrews is Not Received by the Romans, Because His Will is that He Alone Should Be Worshipped.

 Chapter XIX.—The Proof that This God is the True God.

 Chapter XX.—Of the Fact that Nothing is Discovered to Have Been Predicted by the Prophets of the Pagans in Opposition to the God of the Hebrews.

 Chapter XXI.—An Argument for the Exclusive Worship of This God, Who, While He Prohibits Other Deities from Being Worshipped, is Not Himself Interdicte

 Chapter XXII.—Of the Opinion Entertained by the Gentiles Regarding Our God.

 Chapter XXIII.—Of the Follies Which the Pagans Have Indulged in Regarding Jupiter and Saturn.

 Chapter XXIV.—Of the Fact that Those Persons Who Reject the God of Israel, in Consequence Fail to Worship All the Gods And, on the Other Hand, that T

 Chapter XXV.—Of the Fact that the False Gods Do Not Forbid Others to Be Worshipped Along with Themselves. That the God of Israel is the True God, is P

 Chapter XXVI.—Of the Fact that Idolatry Has Been Subverted by the Name of Christ, and by the Faith of Christians According to the Prophecies.

 Chapter XXVII.—An Argument Urging It Upon the Remnant of Idolaters that They Should at Length Become Servants of This True God, Who Everywhere is Subv

 Chapter XXVIII.—Of the Predicted Rejection of Idols.

 Chapter XXIX.—Of the Question Why the Heathen Should Refuse to Worship the God of Israel Even Although They Deem Him to Be Only the Presiding Divinit

 Chapter XXX.—Of the Fact That, as the Prophecies Have Been Fulfilled, the God of Israel Has Now Been Made Known Everywhere.

 Chapter XXXI.—The Fulfilment of the Prophecies Concerning Christ.

 Chapter XXXII.—A Statement in Vindication of the Doctrine of the Apostles as Opposed to Idolatry, in the Words of the Prophecies.

 Chapter XXXIII.—A Statement in Opposition to Those Who Make the Complaint that the Bliss of Human Life Has Been Impaired by the Entrance of Christian

 Chapter XXXIV.—Epilogue to the Preceding.

 Chapter XXXV.—Of the Fact that the Mystery of a Mediator Was Made Known to Those Who Lived in Ancient Times by the Agency of Prophecy, as It is Now De

 Book II.

 Chapter I.—A Statement of the Reason Why the Enumeration of the Ancestors of Christ is Carried Down to Joseph, While Christ Was Not Born of that Man’s

 Chapter II.—An Explanation of the Sense in Which Christ is the Son of David, Although He Was Not Begotten in the Way of Ordinary Generation by Joseph

 Chapter III.—A Statement of the Reason Why Matthew Enumerates One Succession of Ancestors for Christ, and Luke Another.

 Chapter IV.—Of the Reason Why Forty Generations (Not Including Christ Himself) are Found in Matthew, Although He Divides Them into Three Successions o

 Chapter V.—A Statement of the Manner in Which Luke’s Procedure is Proved to Be in Harmony with Matthew’s in Those Matters Concerning the Conception an

 Chapter VI.—On the Position Given to the Preaching of John the Baptist in All the Four Evangelists.

 Chapter VII.—Of the Two Herods.

 Chapter VIII.—An Explanation of the Statement Made by Matthew, to the Effect that Joseph Was Afraid to Go with the Infant Christ into Jerusalem on Acc

 Chapter IX.—An Explanation of the Circumstance that Matthew States that Joseph’s Reason for Going into Galilee with the Child Christ Was His Fear of A

 Chapter X.—A Statement of the Reason Why Luke Tells Us that “His Parents Went to Jerusalem Every Year at the Feast of the Passover” Along with the Boy

 Chapter XI.—An Examination of the Question as to How It Was Possible for Them to Go Up, According to Luke’s Statement, with Him to Jerusalem to the Te

 Chapter XII.—Concerning the Words Ascribed to John by All the Four Evangelists Respectively.

 Chapter XIII.—Of the Baptism of Jesus.

 Chapter XIV.—Of the Words or the Voice that Came from Heaven Upon Him When He Had Been Baptized.

 Chapter XV.—An Explanation of the Circumstance That, According to the Evangelist John, John the Baptist Says, “I Knew Him Not ” While, According to th

 Chapter XVI.—Of the Temptation of Jesus.

 Chapter XVII.—Of the Calling of the Apostles as They Were Fishing.

 Chapter XVIII.—Of the Date of His Departure into Galilee.

 Chapter XIX.—Of the Lengthened Sermon Which, According to Matthew, He Delivered on the Mount.

 Chapter XX.—An Explanation of the Circumstance that Matthew Tells Us How the Centurion Came to Jesus on Behalf of His Servant, While Luke’s Statement

 Chapter XXI.—Of the Order in Which the Narrative Concerning Peter’s Mother-In-Law is Introduced.

 Chapter XXII.—Of the Order of the Incidents Which are Recorded After This Section and of the Question Whether Matthew, Mark, and Luke are Consistent w

 Chapter XXIII.—Of the Person Who Said to the Lord, “I Will Follow Thee Whithersoever Thou Goest ” And of the Other Things Connected Therewith, and of

 Chapter XXIV.—Of the Lord’s Crossing the Lake on that Occasion on Which He Slept in the Vessel, and of the Casting Out of Those Devils Whom He Suffere

 Chapter XXV.—Of the Man Sick of the Palsy to Whom the Lord Said, “Thy Sins are Forgiven Thee,” And “Take Up Thy Bed ” And in Especial, of the Question

 Chapter XXVI.—Of the Calling of Matthew, and of the Question Whether Matthew’s Own Account is in Harmony with Those of Mark and Luke When They Speak o

 Chapter XXVII.—Of the Feast at Which It Was Objected at Once that Christ Ate with Sinners, and that His Disciples Did Not Fast Of the Circumstance th

 Chapter XXVIII.—Of the Raising of the Daughter of the Ruler of the Synagogue, and of the Woman Who Touched the Hem of His Garment Of the Question, Al

 Chapter XXIX.—Of the Two Blind Men and the Dumb Demoniac Whose Stories are Related Only by Matthew.

 Chapter XXX.—Of the Section Where It is Recorded, that Being Moved with Compassion for the Multitudes, He Sent His Disciples, Giving Them Power to Wor

 Chapter XXXI.—Of the Account Given by Matthew and Luke of the Occasion When John the Baptist Was in Prison, and Despatched His Disciples on a Mission

 Chapter XXXII.—Of the Occasion on Which He Upbraided the Cities Because They Repented Not, Which Incident is Recorded by Luke as Well as by Matthew A

 Chapter XXXIII.—Of the Occasion on Which He Calls Them to Take His Yoke and Burden Upon Them, and of the Question as to the Absence of Any Discrepancy

 Chapter XXXIV.—Of the Passage in Which It is Said that the Disciples Plucked the Ears of Corn and Ate Them And of the Question as to How Matthew, Mar

 Chapter XXXV.—Of the Man with the Withered Hand, Who Was Restored on the Sabbath-Day And of the Question as to How Matthew’s Narrative of This Incide

 Chapter XXXVI.—Of Another Question Which Demands Our Consideration, Namely, Whether, in Passing from the Account of the Man Whose Withered Hand Was Re

 Chapter XXXVII.—Of the Consistency of the Accounts Given by Matthew and Luke Regarding the Dumb and Blind Man Who Was Possessed with a Devil.

 Chapter XXXVIII.—Of the Occasion on Which It Was Said to Him that He Cast Out Devils in the Power of Beelzebub, and of the Declarations Drawn Forth fr

 Chapter XXXIX.—Of the Question as to the Manner of Matthew’s Agreement with Luke in the Accounts Which are Given of the Lord’s Reply to Certain Person

 Chapter XL.—Of the Question as to Whether There is Any Discrepancy Between Matthew on the One Hand, and Mark and Luke on the Other, in Regard to the O

 Chapter XLI.—Of the Words Which Were Spoken Out of the Ship on the Subject of the Sower, Whose Seed, as He Sowed It, Fell Partly on the Wayside, Etc.

 Chapter XLII.—Of His Coming into His Own Country, and of the Astonishment of the People at His Doctrine, as They Looked with Contempt Upon His Lineage

 Chapter XLIII.—Of the Mutual Consistency of the Accounts Which are Given by Matthew, Mark, and Luke of What Was Said by Herod on Hearing About the Won

 Chapter XLIV.—Of the Order in Which the Accounts of John’s Imprisonment and Death are Given by These Three Evangelists.

 Chapter XLV.—Of the Order and the Method in Which All the Four Evangelists Come to the Narration of the Miracle of the Five Loaves.

 Chapter XLVI.—Of the Question as to How the Four Evangelists Harmonize with Each Other on This Same Subject of the Miracle of the Five Loaves.

 Chapter XLVII.—Of His Walking Upon the Water, and of the Questions Regarding the Harmony of the Evangelists Who Have Narrated that Scene, and Regardin

 Chapter XLVIII.—Of the Absence of Any Discrepancy Between Matthew and Mark on the One Hand, and John on the Other, in the Accounts Which the Three Giv

 Chapter XLIX.—Of the Woman of Canaan Who Said, “Yet the Dogs Eat of the Crumbs Which Fall from Their Masters’ Tables,” And of the Harmony Between the

 Chapter L.—Of the Occasion on Which He Fed the Multitudes with the Seven Loaves, and of the Question as to the Harmony Between Matthew and Mark in The

 Chapter LI.—Of Matthew’s Declaration That, on Leaving These Parts, He Came into the Coasts of Magedan And of the Question as to His Agreement with Ma

 Chapter LII.—Of Matthew’s Agreement with Mark in the Statement About the Leaven of the Pharisees, as Regards Both the Subject Itself and the Order of

 Chapter LIII.—Of the Occasion on Which He Asked the Disciples Whom Men Said that He Was And of the Question Whether, with Regard Either to the Subjec

 Chapter LIV.—Of the Occasion on Which He Announced His Coming Passion to the Disciples, and of the Measure of Concord Between Matthew, Mark, and Luke

 Chapter LV.—Of the Harmony Between the Three Evangelists in the Notices Which They Subjoin of the Manner in Which the Lord Charged the Man to Follow H

 Chapter LVI.—Of the Manifestation Which the Lord Made of Himself, in Company with Moses and Elias, to His Disciples on the Mountain And of the Questi

 Chapter LVII.—Of the Harmony Between Matthew and Mark in the Accounts Given of the Occasion on Which He Spoke to the Disciples Concerning the Coming o

 Chapter LVIII.—Of the Man Who Brought Before Him His Son, Whom the Disciples Were Unable to Heal And of the Question Concerning the Agreement Between

 Chapter LIX.—Of the Occasion on Which the Disciples Were Exceeding Sorry When He Spoke to Them of His Passion, as It is Related in the Same Order by t

 Chapter LX.—Of His Paying the Tribute Money Out of the Mouth of the Fish, an Incident Which Matthew Alone Mentions.

 Chapter LXI.—Of the Little Child Whom He Set Before Them for Their Imitation, and of the Offences of the World Of the Members of the Body Causing Off

 Chapter LXII.—Of the Harmony Subsisting Between Matthew and Mark in the Accounts Which They Offer of the Time When He Was Asked Whether It Was Lawful

 Chapter LXIII.—Of the Little Children on Whom He Laid His Hands Of the Rich Man to Whom He Said, “Sell All that Thou Hast ” Of the Vineyard in Which

 Chapter LXIV.—Of the Occasions on Which He Foretold His Passion in Private to His Disciples And of the Time When the Mother of Zebedee’s Children Cam

 Chapter LXV.—Of the Absence of Any Antagonism Between Matthew and Mark, or Between Matthew and Luke, in the Account Offered of the Giving of Sight to

 Chapter LXVI.—Of the Colt of the Ass Which is Mentioned by Matthew, and of the Consistency of His Account with that of the Other Evangelists, Who Spea

 Chapter LXVII.—Of the Expulsion of the Sellers and Buyers from the Temple, and of the Question as to the Harmony Between the First Three Evangelists a

 Chapter LXVIII.—Of the Withering of the Fig-Tree, and of the Question as to the Absence of Any Contradiction Between Matthew and the Other Evangelists

 Chapter LXIX.—Of the Harmony Between the First Three Evangelists in Their Accounts of the Occasion on Which the Jews Asked the Lord by What Authority

 Chapter LXX.—Of the Two Sons Who Were Commanded by Their Father to Go into His Vineyard, and of the Vineyard Which Was Let Out to Other Husbandmen Of

 Chapter LXXI.—Of the Marriage of the King’s Son, to Which the Multitudes Were Invited And of the Order in Which Matthew Introduces that Section as Co

 Chapter LXXII.—Of the Harmony Characterizing the Narratives Given by These Three Evangelists Regarding the Duty of Rendering to Cæsar the Coin Bearing

 Chapter LXXIII.—Of the Person to Whom the Two Precepts Concerning the Love of God and the Love of Our Neighbour Were Commended And of the Question as

 Chapter LXXIV.—Of the Passage in Which the Jews are Asked to Say Whose Son They Suppose Christ to Be And of the Question Whether There is Not a Discr

 Chapter LXXV.—Of the Pharisees Who Sit in the Seat of Moses, and Enjoin Things Which They Do Not, and of the Other Words Spoken by the Lord Against Th

 Chapter LXXVI.—Of the Harmony in Respect of the Order of Narration Subsisting Between Matthew and the Other Two Evangelists in the Accounts Given of t

 Chapter LXXVII.—Of the Harmony Subsisting Between the Three Evangelists in Their Narratives of the Discourse Which He Delivered on the Mount of Olives

 Chapter LXXVIII.—Of the Question Whether There is Any Contradiction Between Matthew and Mark on the One Hand, and John on the Other, in So Far as the

 Chapter LXXIX.—Of the Concord Between Matthew, Mark, and John in Their Notices of the Supper at Bethany, at Which the Woman Poured the Precious Ointme

 Chapter LXXX.—Of the Harmony Characterizing the Accounts Which are Given by Matthew, Mark, and Luke, of the Occasion on Which He Sent His Disciples to

 Book III.

 Chapter I.—Of the Method in Which the Four Evangelists are Shown to Be at One in the Accounts Given of the Lord’s Supper and the Indication of His Bet

 Chapter II.—Of the Proof of Their Freedom from Any Discrepancies in the Notices Given of the Predictions of Peter’s Denials.

 Chapter III.—Of the Manner in Which It Can Be Shown that No Discrepancies Exist Between Them in the Accounts Which They Give of the Words Which Were S

 Chapter IV.—Of What Took Place in the Piece of Ground or Garden to Which They Came on Leaving the House After the Supper And of the Method in Which,

 Chapter V.—Of the Accounts Which are Given by All the Four Evangelists in Regard to What Was Done and Said on the Occasion of His Apprehension And of

 Chapter VI.—Of the Harmony Characterizing the Accounts Which These Evangelists Give of What Happened When the Lord Was Led Away to the House of the Hi

 Chapter VII.—Of the Thorough Harmony of the Evangelists in the Different Accounts of What Took Place in the Early Morning, Previous to the Delivery of

 Chapter VIII.—Of the Absence of Any Discrepancies in the Accounts Which the Evangelists Give of What Took Place in Pilate’s Presence.

 Chapter IX.—Of the Mockery Which He Sustained at the Hands of Pilate’s Cohort, and of the Harmony Subsisting Among the Three Evangelists Who Report th

 Chapter X.—Of the Method in Which We Can Reconcile the Statement Which is Made by Matthew, Mark, and Luke, to the Effect that Another Person Was Press

 Chapter XI.—Of the Consistency of Matthew’s Version with that of Mark in the Account of the Potion Offered Him to Drink, Which is Introduced Before th

 Chapter XII.—Of the Concord Preserved Among All the Four Evangelists on the Subject of the Parting of His Raiment.

 Chapter XIII.—Of the Hour of the Lord’s Passion, and of the Question Concerning the Absence of Any Discrepancy Between Mark and John in the Article of

 Chapter XIV.—Of the Harmony Preserved Among All the Evangelists on the Subject of the Two Robbers Who Were Crucified Along with Him.

 Chapter XV.—Of the Consistency of the Accounts Given by Matthew, Mark, and Luke on the Subject of the Parties Who Insulted the Lord.

 Chapter XVI.—Of the Derision Ascribed to the Robbers, and of the Question Regarding the Absence of Any Discrepancy Between Matthew and Mark on the One

 Chapter XVII.—Of the Harmony of the Four Evangelists in Their Notices of the Draught of Vinegar.

 Chapter XVIII.—Of the Lord’s Successive Utterances When He Was About to Die And of the Question Whether Matthew and Mark are in Harmony with Luke in

 Chapter XIX.—Of the Rending of the Veil of the Temple, and of the Question Whether Matthew and Mark Really Harmonize with Luke with Respect to the Ord

 Chapter XX.—Of the Question as to the Consistency of the Several Notices Given by Matthew, Mark, and Luke, on the Subject of the Astonishment Felt by

 Chapter XXI.—Of the Women Who Were Standing There, and of the Question Whether Matthew, Mark, and Luke, Who Have Stated that They Stood Afar Off, are

 Chapter XXII.—Of the Question Whether the Evangelists are All at One on the Subject of the Narrative Regarding Joseph, Who Begged the Lord’s Body from

 Chapter XXIII.—Of the Question Whether the First Three Evangelists are Quite in Harmony with John in the Accounts Given of His Burial.

 Chapter XXIV.—Of the Absence of All Discrepancies in the Narratives Constructed by the Four Evangelists on the Subject of the Events Which Took Place

 Chapter XXV.—Of Christ’s Subsequent Manifestations of Himself to the Disciples, and of the Question Whether a Thorough Harmony Can Be Established Betw

 Book IV.

 Chapter I.—Of the Question Regarding the Proof that Mark’s Gospel is in Harmony with the Rest in What is Narrated (Those Passages Which He Has in Comm

 Chapter II.—Of the Man Out of Whom the Unclean Spirit that Was Tormenting Him Was Cast, and of the Question Whether Mark’s Version is Quite Consistent

 Chapter III.—Of the Question Whether Mark’s Reports of the Repeated Occasions on Which the Name of Peter Was Brought into Prominence are Not at Varian

 Chapter IV.—Of the Words, “The More He Charged Them to Tell No One, So Much the More a Great Deal They Published It ” And of the Question Whether that

 Chapter V.—Of the Statement Which John Made Concerning the Man Who Cast Out Devils Although He Did Not Belong to the Circle of the Disciples And of t

 Chapter VI.—Of the Circumstance that Mark Has Recorded More Than Luke as Spoken by the Lord in Connection with the Case of This Man Who Was Casting Ou

 Chapter VII.—Of the Fact that from This Point on to the Lord’s Supper, with Which Act the Discussion of All the Narratives of the Four Evangelists Con

 Chapter VIII.—Of Luke’s Gospel, and Specially of the Harmony Between Its Commencement and the Beginning of the Book of the Acts of the Apostles.

 Chapter IX.—Of the Question How It Can Be Shown that the Narrative of the Haul of Fishes Which Luke Has Given Us is Not to Be Identified with the Reco

 Chapter X.—Of the Evangelist John, and the Distinction Between Him and the Other Three.

Chapter V.—Of the Accounts Which are Given by All the Four Evangelists in Regard to What Was Done and Said on the Occasion of His Apprehension; And of the Proof that These Different Narratives Exhibit No Real Discrepancies.

15. When we follow the versions presented by Matthew and Mark, we find that the history now proceeds thus: “And while He yet spake, lo, Judas, one of the twelve, came, and with him a great multitude, with swords and staves, from the chief priests and elders of the people. Now he that betrayed Him, gave them a sign, saying, Whomsoever I shall kiss, that same is He; hold Him fast. And forthwith he came to Jesus, and said, Hail, Master; and kissed Him.” 781    Matt. xxvi. 47–56; Mark xiv. 43–50. First of all, however, as we gather from Luke’s statement, He said to the traitor, “Judas, betrayest thou the Son of man with a kiss?”782    Luke xii. 48. Next, as we learn from Matthew, He spoke thus: “Friend, wherefore art thou come?” Thereafter He added certain words which are found in John’s narrative, which runs in the following strain: “Whom seek ye? They answered Him, Jesus of Nazareth. Jesus saith unto them, I am He. And Judas also, which betrayed Him, stood with them. As soon then as He had said unto them, I am He, they went backward, and fell to the ground. Then asked He them again, Whom seek ye? And they said, Jesus of Nazareth. Jesus answered, I have told you that I am He: if therefore ye seek me, let these go their way; that the saying might be fulfilled which He spake, Of them which thou gavest me have I lost none.”783    John xviii. 4–9. [This passage is more naturally placed before the kissing by Judas.—R.]

16. Next comes in a passage, which is given by Luke as follows: “When they which were about Him saw what would follow, they said unto Him, Lord, shall we smite with the sword? And one of them smote the servant of the high priest,” as is noticed by all the four historians, “and cut off his ear,” which, as we are informed by Luke and John, was his “right ear.” Moreover, we gather also from John that the person who smote the servant was Peter, and that the name of the man whom he thus struck was Malchus. Next we take what Luke mentions, namely, “Jesus answered and said, Suffer ye thus far;”784    Luke xxii. 51. with which we must connect the words appended by Matthew, namely, “Put up thy sword into his place: for all they that take the sword shall perish with the sword. Thinkest thou that I cannot now pray to my Father, and He shall presently give me more than twelve legions of angels? But how then shall the Scriptures be fulfilled, that thus it must be?”785    Matt. xxvi. 52–55. Along with these words we may also place the question to which John tells us He gave utterance on the same occasion, namely, “The cup which my Father hath given me, shall I not drink it?”786    John xviii. 11. And then, as is recorded by Luke, He touched the ear of the person who had been struck, and healed him.

17. Neither should we let the idea disturb us, that some contradiction may be found in the circumstance that Luke tells us how, when the disciples asked Him whether they should smite with the sword, the Lord replied in these words, “Suffer ye thus far,” in a manner which might seem to imply that He thus expressed Himself, after the blow had been struck, in terms bearing that He was satisfied with what had been done so far, but desired nothing further to be done; whereas the language which is employed by Matthew might give us rather to understand that this whole incident of the use which Peter made of the sword was displeasing to the Lord. For it is more correct to suppose that when they put the question to Him, “Lord, shall we smite with the sword?” He replied then, “Suffer ye thus far;” His meaning being this: “Let not what is about to take place agitate you. These men are to be suffered to go thus far; that is to say, so far as to apprehend me, and thus to effect the fulfilment of those things which are written of me.” We have further to suppose, however, that during the time which passed in the interchange of the question addressed by them to the Lord, and the reply returned by Him to them, Peter was borne on by his intense desire to appear as defender, and by his stronger excitement in the Lord’s behalf, to deal the blow. But while these two things might easily have happened at the same time, two different statements could not have been uttered by the same person in one breath.787    That is to say, while Christ’s answer to the disciples and Peter’s act might easily have been synchronous, the Lord could not have addressed Himself in different senses to two distinct parties at the same time, namely, to the persons who put the question, and to Peter. For the writer would not have used the expression, “And Jesus answered and said,” unless the words were a reply to the question which had been addressed by those who were about Him, and not a statement directed to Peter’s act. For Matthew is the only one who has recorded the judgment passed by Jesus on Peter’s act. And in that passage the phrase which Matthew has employed is also not in the form, “Jesus answered Peter thus, Put up thy sword;” but it runs in these terms: “Then said Jesus unto him, Put up thy sword;” from which it appears that it was after the deed that Jesus thus declared Himself. What is contained, again, in the phraseology used by Luke, namely, “And Jesus answered and said, Suffer ye thus far,” must be taken to have been the reply which was returned to the parties who had put the question to Him. But inasmuch as, according to our previous explanation, the single blow with which the servant was struck was delivered just during the time when the terms of the said question and answer were passing between these persons and the Lord, the writer has considered it right to record that act in the same particular order, so that it stands inserted between the words of the interrogation and those in which the response was couched. Consequently, there is nothing here in antagonism to the statement introduced by Matthew, namely, “For all they that take the sword shall perish with the sword,”—that is to say, those who may have used the sword. But there might appear to be some inconsistency here if the Lord’s answer were taken in a sense which would show Him to have expressed approval on this occasion of the voluntary use of the sword, even although it was only to the effect of a single wound, and that, too, not a fatal one. The words, however, which were addressed to Peter may be understood, as a whole, in an application quite in harmony with the rest; so that, bringing in also what Luke and Matthew have reported, as I have stated above, we obtain the following connection: “Suffer ye thus far. Put up thy sword into its place; for all they that take the sword shall perish with the sword,” etc. In what way, moreover, this sentence, “Suffer ye thus far,” is to be understood, I have explained already. And if there is any better method of interpreting it, be it so. Only let the veracity of the evangelists be maintained in any case.

18. After this, Matthew continues the narrative, and mentions that in that hour He addressed the multitude as follows: “Are ye come out as against a thief with swords and staves for to take me? I sat daily with you teaching in the temple, and ye laid no hold on me.”788    Matt. xxvi. 53. Then He added also certain words, which Luke introduces thus: “But this is your hour, and the power of darkness.”789    Luke xxii. 53. Next comes the sentence given by Matthew: “But all this was done that the Scriptures of the prophets might be fulfilled. Then all the disciples forsook Him and fled.” This last fact is recorded also by Mark. The same evangelist makes also the following addition: “And there followed Him a certain young man, having a linen cloth cast about his naked body; and when they laid hold on him, he left the linen cloth, and fled from them naked.” 790    Mark xiv. 52.

CAPUT V. De his quae in ejus apprehensione facta et dicta omnes commemorant, quomodo inter se nihil appareat dissentire.

15. Adhuc ergo ipso loquente, sicut dicunt Matthaeus et Marcus, ecce Judas unus de duodecim venit, et cum eo turba multa cum gladiis et fustibus, a principibussacerdotum et senioribus populi. Qui autem tradidit eum, dedit illis signum dicens: Quemcumque osculatus fuero, ipse est, tenete eum. Et confestim accedens ad Jesum, dixit: Ave, rabbi. Et osculatus est eum (Matth. XXVI, 47-56, et Marc. XIV, 43-50). Dixitque illi primo, quod ait Lucas, Juda, osculo Filium hominis tradis (Luc. XXII, 47-53)? deinde quod Matthaeus, Amice, ad quid venisti? Deinde dixit, quod Joannes commemorat: Quem quaeritis? Responderunt ei: Jesum Nazarenum. Dicit eis Jesus: Ego sum. Stabat autem et Judas, qui tradebat eum, cum ipsis: ut ergo dixit eis, Ego sum, 1167abierunt retrorsum, et ceciderunt in terram. Iterum ergo eos interrogavit: Quem quaeritis? Illi autem dixerunt: Jesum Nazarenum. Respondit Jesus: Dixi vobis quia ego sum: si ergo me quaeritis, sinite hos abire. Ut impleretur sermo quem dixit, Quia quos dedisti mihi, non perdidi ex ipsis quemquam (Joan. XVIII, 2-11).

16. Videntes autem, sicut Lucas dicit, ii qui circa ipsum erant, quod futurum erat, dixerunt ei: Domine, si percutimus in gladio? Et percussit unus ex ipsis, quod omnes quatuor dicunt, servum principis sacerdotum, et amputavit auriculam ejus, sicut Lucas et Joannes dicunt, dexteram. Qui autem percussit, secundum Joannem Petrus erat: quem percussit autem, Malchus vocabatur. Deinde quod Lucas dicit, Respondens Jesus ait: Sinite usque huc; et adjunxit quod Matthaeus commemorat, Converte gladium tuum in locum suum. Omnes enim qui acceperint gladium, gladio peribunt. An putas quia non possum rogare Patrem meum, et exhibebit mihi modo plus quam duodecim legiones Angelorum? Quomodo ergo implebuntur Scripturae, quia sic oportet fieri? His verbis adjungi potest quod illum eo loco dixisse Joannes commemorat, Calicem quem dedit mihi Pater, non vis bibam illum? Tunc, sicut Lucas dicit, tetigit auriculam illius qui percussus erat, et sanavit eum.

17. Nec moveat quasi contrarium sit quod Lucas dixit, interrogantibus discipulis si percuterent in gladio, Dominum respondisse, Sinite usque huc: quasi post illam percussionem ita dictum fuerit, ut placuerit ei usque huc factum, sed amplius fieri noluerit; cum in verbis quae Matthaeus posuit, intelligatur potius totum factum quo usus est gladio Petrus, Domino displicuisse. Illud enim verius est, quod cum eum interrogassent dicentes, Domine, si percutimus in gladio? tunc respondit, Sinite usque huc: id est, non vos moveat quod futurum est; permittendi sunt huc usque progredi, hoc est, ut me apprehendant, et impleantur quae de me scripta sunt. Sed inter moras verborum interrogantium Dominum et illius respondentis, Petrus defensionis aviditate et majori pro Domino commotione percussit: sed non potuerunt etiam simul dici, quae simul fieri potuerunt. Non enim diceret, Respondens autem Jesus, nisi illorum interrogationi responderet, non facto Petri. Nam de facto Petri quid judicaverit, Matthaeus solus dixit. Ubi etiam non dixit Matthaeus, Respondit Jesus Petro, Converte gladium tuum; sed dixit. Tunc ait illi Jesus, Converte gladium tuum: quod post factum apparet dixisse Dominum. Illud vero quod Lucas posuit, Respondens autem Jesus ait, Sinite usque huc, illis qui interrogaverant responsum esse accipiendum est: sed quia, ut diximus, inter verba interrogantium et respondentis Domini, facta est uno ictu percussio, hoc ordine judicavit esse narrandum, ut etiam inter verba interrogationis et responsionis eam insereret. Non est ergo contrarium hoc ei quod dixit Matthaeus, Omnes enim qui acceperint gladium, gladio peribunt, id est, qui usi fuerint gladio. Videri autem posset contrarium, si Dominus ex illa responsione, saltem usque ad unum, 1168 nec ipsum lethale vulnus, usum tamen gladii spontaneum approbasse demonstraretur. Quanquam etiam Petro dictum totum congruenter intelligi possit, ut sic connectatur et quod Lucas et quod Matthaeus retulit, quemadmodum supra commemoravi, Sinite usque huc; et, converte gladium tuum in locum suum. Omnes enim qui acceperint gladium, gladio peribunt, etc. Quomodo autem sit intelligendum, Sinite usque huc, jam exposui: et si aliter melius potest, ita sit; dum tamen Evangelistarum veritas constet.

18. Postea sequitur Matthaeus, et commemorat eum in illa hora dixisse turbis: Tanquam ad latronem existis cum gladiis et fustibus comprehendere me. Quotidie apud vos sedebam docens in templo, et non me tenuistis. Tunc addidit etiam verba quae Lucas ponit: Sed haec est hora vestra, et potestas tenebrarum. Hoc autem totum factum est, sicut Matthaeus dicit, ut implerentur Scripturae Prophetarum. Tunc discipuli omnes relicto eo fugerunt; sicut et Marcus dicit. Sequebatur autem illum unus adolescens amictus sindone, sicut idem Marcus commemorat; et cum tenuissent eum, rejecta sindone nudus profugit ab eis.