{b) Matthew. — An obvious parallel to this ap- pears in St. Matthew. Here baptism into the Spirit implies that, besides the work of the Father
and tlie Son, that of the Spirit likewise avails for all who are called to follow Jesus (Mt 28''*). Ex- cept in this connexion, however, the Spirit is only once referred to, viz. as a special support to those who have to proclaim the message of Jesus before the secular powers (10-").* Nevertheless, the voca- tion of the disciples, in all its grandeur and its solemn obligation, is realized with extraordinary vividness and most impressively depicted in the First Gospel. The disciples are the light of the world, the stewards of the treasure committed to them by Jesus, the loyal husbandmen through whose labours the vineyard yields fruit for God, the iishers of men who must cast out the net, the sowers to whose exertions the harvest is due. But the Gospel does not show how Christians are to acquire the inward provision for their task. In the conviction that they are the guardians of the commission of Jesus lies also their glad confidence that they are able to discharge it.
(c) First Epistle of Peter. — As Matthew con- cludes with a distinct reference to the Trinity, so the First Epistle of Peter opens with one (1-). The sequence of the Persons here — God the Father, the Spirit, Jesus Christ — which finds a parallel in the salutation at the beginning of Kevelation (1^), is probably to be explained by the fact that Jesus is quite unmistakably represented as man, even when He is associated with the Father and the Spirit. The same fact appears also in the statement that His blood and His obedience are the means by which the sanctification imparted by the Spirit is won, in accordance with the foreknowledge of God. The mention of Jesus, accordingly, follows that of the Spirit through whom the humanity of Jesus was endowed with Divine power and grace, just as believers are enabled to participate in what the Cross of Christ secures for them in virtue of the sanctification bestowed upon them by the Spirit. In 1 Pet. the Spirit is spoken of also as constituting the endowment of those who had carried the gospel to Asia Minor (1'^), and as thus setting them beside the prophets in whom the Spirit of Christ spoke (1"). Since the new birth is effected by the Word (1^), it is not surprising that the community should be called the Temple. The sacrifices which it otters bear the impress of the Spirit (2^). Those who are brought before secular tribunals for Christ's sake are assured that the Spirit of God rests upon them (4"), and here the promise which Jesus gave to His disciples is ex- tended to the Church at large. Those who after death obtain the gift of life receive it through the Spirit (4^), just as Jesus Himself, after being put to death, was quickened by the Spirit (3^^). We thus see that this hortatory Epistle proceeds upon the idea that it is the Spirit of God that secures for the Church its portion in the Divine grace. But the Epistle furnishes nothing that can com- pare with the great utterances of St. Paul regard- ing the operations of the Spirit, as e.g. in Ro 8, Gal 5, 1 Co 2. 12, 2 Co 3. Its exhortations appeal to the ethical knowledge and the power of volition which reside in believers themselves.
(d) The Johannine writings. — (1) Revelation. — A similar representation is given in the Revelation of St. John. That Jesus governs the Christian society through the Spirit is attested here by its having received the gift of prophecy. What the Apocalypse speaks of figuratively as a writing of Jesus to the angels of the Churches it also desig-
* It is true that in 123if- Christ and the Spirit are conjoined as the revealers of Divine grace, and in such a way as to imply that the offer of Divine grace is consummated through the Spirit, so that the guilt of those who speak against it is irre- versible. Yet it is not distinctly said here that the Spirit will become manifest also after the earthly mission of Jesus. The primary reference of the passage is to the revelation of God which is effected by the works of Jesus.
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HOLY SPIRIT
HOLY SPIRIT
nates literally as a speaking of the Spirit to the Churches (2^, etc. ; cf. 19^°). When consolation is given to those ■who are dying in the Lord, or when the Church prays for the Coming of Jesus, it is the Spirit that speaks (14^3 22i^). As every prophet receives the Spirit in such wise as to possess Him individually, the Spirit is also referred to as plural : God is the Lord of the spirits of the prophets (22'i ; cf. 1 Co 1432). -phe relation of the Spirit to Christ is set forth in the assertion that the Lamb has seven eyes, which are the seven spirits of God (5^) : the Spirit gives Jesus the power of vision by which He surveys the world from the throne of God. The Spirit's relation to God is expressed in the figurative statement that the seven spirits burn as lamps before the throne (4^ ; cf. 1*) : the Spirit is the light of heaven. These figures do not imply, however, that St. John regarded the Spirit as broken up into seven inde- pendent and co-ordinate beings. That no such idea was in his mind is evident from the fact that he ascribes these seven Spirits to God and Christ, in whom the unity of personal life is inviolable. Whether the metaphor was in some way suggested by astronomical conceptions, as e.g. the seven heavens, or the seven planets, it is impossible to determine, as other metaphors of the Apocalypse speak only of a single heaven, and never refer to tne planets at all. On the other hand, it is clear that the form of the metaphor was in some way influenced by the Messianic interpretation of Zee