mencement of his book against him, thus quote the words of St Matthew — et non cognovit earn, donee peperit filium suum, i.e., and he knew her not till she brought forth her Son ; but more com monly they quote thus donee peperit filium, i.e., until she brought forth (a or the) Son, without the addition of either suum (her) or primogenitum (first-born) ; nor can it be argued, that they have in these instances intended to abridge the text, since Jerome in one place thus quotes the passage in full, " Exurgens autem — accepit uxorem suam et non cognovit earn, donee peperit filium : et vocavit nomen ejus Jesum" i.e., But on rising from sleep — he received his wife, and knew her not until she had brought forth [the] Son : and he called His name Jesus.1
Both these writers, after a long dispute upon this passage of St Matthew, seek for a fresh argument grounded on the appel lation xpuroroxos, first-born, not from this passage of St Matthew, but solely from Luke ii. 7. If the Codex Barberini I., and the Coptic version already mentioned, obtained this reading from Greek MSS., their testimony is on that ground of great weight ; if, on the other hand, they obtained it from Latin sources, they greatly corroborate the genuine reading of the very ancient Latin version. The words aurJjs rbv vpuroroxov, " her first-born," appear to have been introduced into St Matthew, from the parallel passage in St Luke already cited : and the very idea of the Son of a Virgin, implies that He must have been the first born in a pre-eminent and strictly singular manner. [Such as He is expressly declared to be in Luke ii. 7, Vers. Germ."]
In some passages our criticism takes a different view of matters from what it did formerly. Yet no one can fairly ac cuse me of inconstancy ; for I do not confine myself to those views, which have gained acceptance by long usage (though I do not reject such assistance where truth requires it) : but I proceed to draw forth, by degrees, from their concealment, those things which have been buried out of sight.
'ExdXtas, lie called) i.e., Joseph did so ; as we learn from ver. 21.
' BZ. Memph. Theb. b.c. read only i/icm (without the article or the words following). Dd. and Vulg. read as the Rec. Text. Lachmann and Tischen- dorf follow the former reading, as resting on the weightiest authorities. — ED.