3. Places at table in the upper room.— There is some probability in the suggestion (Edersheim, LT ii. 494-95) that our Lord occupied the place of the host, that St. John was on His right hand, Judas in the place of honour on His left hand, and St. Peter in the least honom-able place opposite St. John, as shown in tlie accompanying diagram.
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Such an arrangement would account for (1) our Lord telling St. John by what sign to know the traitor without the rest hearing, Jn 13^ ; (2) the giving of the ' sop' first to Judas, Jn 132«, Mk U^, Mt 26^ ; (3) the inquiry of Judas whether he was the traitor, and our Lord's reply without the rest hearing the latter, Mt 26^5, Jn 132^-30; (4) the beckoning of St. Peter to St. John, and St. Peter's request that St. John should ask our Lord who was the traitor, Jn 13'-^- -•* ; (5) th^ possibility that in the ' contention ' among the Apostles (Lk 22^^), if this took place in connexion -with the Supper and before it, Judas claimed and obtained the chief place ; (6) the possibility that after our Lord's rebuke of the ' contention ' (Lk 22^-^-^'^), St. Peter eagerly seized on the lowest place.
i. The identification of the site.— It is thought by many good judges tliat the traditional site of the rcnaculum (the present building dates from the 14th cent.) is probably the place where the upper room stood. Dr. Sanday (p. 77) writes, ' I believe that of all the most sacred sites it is the one that has the strongest evidence in its favour. Indeed, the evidence for it appears to me so strong that, for my own part, I think that I should be prepared
to give it an unqualified adhesion.' The most interesting testimonies in the tradition are the following :
St. Cyril of Jerusalem, Cat. (a.d. 348) xvi. 4 : ' The Holy Ghost, who spake in the prophets and on the Day of Pentecost, came down on the Apostles in the form of fier.\- tongues here in Jeru- salem, in the upper church of the Apostles ; for with us are the most valuable privileges of all. Here Christ came down from heaven. Here the Holy Ghost came down from heaven. And truly it is most fitting that, as we speak of Christ and Golgotha here in Golgotha, so also we should speak of the Holy Ghost in the upper church. But, since He who came down there shares in the glory of Him who was crucified here, we speak here of Him who came down there, for the worship of Them is indivisible.'
Sih ia (or Etheria), Peregrinatio (c. 385 a.d.), 39-43 : At Easter ' all the people conduct the bishop with hymns to Sion. When they have come there, suitable hymns for the day and place are said, prayer is made, and that passage from the Gospel is read in whichi on the same day, in the same place where the church itself in Sion now is, the Lord came in to the disciples when the doors were shut, that is, when one of the disciples, namely, Thomas, was not there.' On the octave of the Resurrection ' all the people conduct the bishop with hymns to Sion. When they have come there, suitable hymns for the place and day are said, and that passage from the Gospel is read in which, eight days after the Resurrection, the Lord came in where the disciples were, and rebuked Thomas for his want of belief.' At Pentecost ' all the people conduct the bishop with hymns to Sion, so that they may be in Sion at the third hour. When they have come there, that passage from the Acts of the Apostles is read in which the Spirit descends. ... In Sion is the very place, though tliere is a new church, where of old after the passion of the Lord the multitude was gathered together with the Apostles.'
Epiphanius, de Mens, et Pond. (a.d. 392) 14 : ' Hadrian ' ' found the whole city [Jerusalem] razed to the ground, and the temple of God trodden under foot, except for a few buildings and the little church of God. It was there that the disciples, on their return when the Saviour had ascended from the Mount of Olives, went up into the upper chamber (to ii-np^oi) ; for on that site had it been built.' (If Epiphanius possessed accurate information, this statement carries back the tradition about the site to the reign of Hadrian, a.d. 117-138).
Lucian of Caphargamala, near Jerusalem, Ep. de revel, corp. Steph. 8, after describing the discovery of the relics of St. Stephen (a.d. 415): 'Then, with psalms and hymns, they carried the relics of the most blessed Stephen to the holy church of Sion, where also the Archdeacon had been ordained.' Cf . Breviarium Romanum, lect. v. for August 3 ; Breviarium Ambrosianurn, lect. iii. for August 3.
Theodosius, De situ terrce sanctce (a.d. 530), 7 : ' Sion, which is the mother of all churches, which our Lord Christ founded with the Apostles. It was the house of holy Mark the Evan- gelist.'
Liturgy of St. James (Brightman, Liturgies Eastern and Western, i. 53, 54) : ' Thy all-holy Spirit,' ' who came down on Thy holy Apostles in the form of fiery tongues in the upper chamber (iv tu uTipuu) of the holy and glorious Sion on the Day of the holy Pentecost.' 'We offer unto Thee, O Lord, also for Thy holy places, which Thou didst glorify with the manifestation of Thy Christ and the descent of Thy all-holy Spirit, especially for the holy and glorious Sion, the mother of all churches.'