'S T1 : * - And (hey choſe x Stephen *, a man full of faith, and of nely Gholt, and Philipt, and Prochorus, and Nicanor,
-armenas, and Nicholas a proſelyte of
Ariioch. &A & 1 4 _ _ 2 = - " .
# Vl theſe o21ng Greet names, 'tis likely they were all Hel/eniſ2s,
and EzIcended tom Hebrew Parents, but born in foreivn Countries s
er amopgit tne Jews they might have other names, which St.
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Lnke wining this Hiſtory , tranſlated into Greek 38 - he A 6 Whom they {et before the apoſtles : And wh | had 2 prayed *, they a laid ther hands on them. ' 2 Prayer 1s the falr, which ſeaſonzth and ſanRifieth a11 thi a A 1ite uſed in the, Church of old, r. Intheir Sacrifices, z; Ws. \ 2. In their bleMings, Gen. 48. 14. 3. Tn their delignat a charge or office ; thus Afoſes or Joſhua, Numb. 27, 18. thence it was eaſi}ier derived unto the Goſpel-Church. © bleſſing thus the children which were brought unto 19. 13. and thus alſo were Miniſters ordained in the Pri; 2 Tim. 5. 22. E #* And * the word of God increaſed ; and the | . . . . » | of the diſciples multiplied in Jeruſalem greatly ; ' great b company of the pricits were obedient ynrg jj
| faith. |
194]. unye
| tereſt in a]l likelihood, heightning their oppolition) yer great is | eſpecially the ſpirit of truth, and did prevail ; and though in its j.; | the number might not be ſo great, as to becalled a great mult;
| wonderful, and the fewer might paſs for a many.
| more than we praCtice, fac quod dicis & fides eft. Aug 8 And Stephen tull of faith 4 and power, wonders e and miracles among the people.
did theſe wonders publickly.
diſputing with.Stephen.
f Synagogues were as Colleges in our Univerſities, being uſed $6; Inftruction and Learning ; and were diſtinguiſhed according tothz perſons that frequented them. The Jews fſpeak of no le3than 48 Synagogues at Jeruſalem : a vaſt number, and, probably, incre;{{4 by theſe here mentioned. g Some think, theſe were natives of acer- tain Countfey in 4Fica, from whencethey wereſa called ; but more
: . Gentile, and none could ſpeak more plainly of the calling TM to than Aalachi, Chap. x. 11. and yet when _ 2pP'y
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b None fo violent oppoſers of the Goſpel as theſe were, (thei: ;,. 7h, If
Piet ag »
yet conſidering who they were that were converted, it Was vers ] m c Chriſtianity ;; not a bare ſpeculation, but a prattical Religion ; and-'ve belieys ſe
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@ Enabled to Preach, diſpute, do, and tuffer all things thrgygy, Chriſt. e Of whom he cured many, or among the people, in tha j..
9 © Then there aroſe certain of the f ſynagogue, which is called the ſynagogue of theg Libertines, and bh Cyrenjang and Alexandrians, and ot them of Cilicia, and of Aj,
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probably, they wee fach as were manumitted or made free, (a5 the word is commonly ulcd for ſuch) and in a middle conc:tion between i ſuch as were free-born, and fuch as were bondlJaves ; and migh: c detire to freonent with thoſe of their own rank. + Thorg!i ſerer1! places are called Cyrene; this (from whence they took their name) h was in AF1ca In all likehood, it being joyned with that of the t Alecandrias: So God plealtd to prepare the Helleniſts, (or Jexrby X craduction) for the Gentiles were not yet called ; rhat they might all il hear the Goſpel 1a the Language they underſtood beſt. n 10 And * they were not able 7 to refiſt & the wiſtom+5 F and / the ſpirit by whici he ſpake. If d ; They did oppole it, but incfizQually, & The foolifhres of Gb $i is wiſer than 11czz, 1 Cor. 1.25. What then is his wiſdom, through = which this holy manſpake? 7 The holy Ghoſt direQ!ng him, and Ut putting a Divine Power upcn what he fpake, according tothe pro» , mile, Mat. 10. 20. ; # £1 22 Then they ſuborned men, which ſajd, We hare yo heard him ſpeak blaſphemous words againit Mofes, and «- tik | gatzſt God. ; the 2 What theſe blaſphzmous words were, we have verſe 14. which mo ſhew, that the veil was yet over their hearts, and that they could ot not indure to hear, that the ſhadows muſt flee away, when the vnn Gay is riſen, and the T'ypes be aboliſhed, when the ſubſtance oftle things | Typified is exhibited ; for this truth was all the blaſphem) thiskoly anc Martyr w7a5 guwlry of. {ha i2 And they » ſtirred up the people, and the elders, and þ the ſcribes, and came upon him, and caught bim and 6 brought him to the council, | "k » Being overcOme by reaſon and arguments, they betas? them- = ſelves to all the evil arts imaginable ; they ſuborn witnelks againk ey St. Stephen, (as was done acainſt Naboth ) and (that we read 01) mig never before ; they make the people, and the number, ( waich a whe uſually the worſt} on their fide; then they coinplain of h19 Fog the Prieſts, &c. and Ielt any, or all theſe, ſhould fall, they hay hs violent hands on him themſelves. Sin goes on as a Current, 4 "_ never ops, unlets an Almighty word be ſpoken unto 1t £0 0 10 further. l 4 | 4 ti-h Cid, This ma and 13 And {et up o falſe witneſſes, whica 1eic _ O the: ceafeth not to fſpzck blaſphemous words againft £115 00g wh place, and rhe law. ds -#*; o They ming!cd in their teftimony, falie thing* wi — trey, they who wimeed againſt our Saviour had done. ps viel mighr poſiibly have inculcared what our Savicur had —_ the y Luke 19. 43. and both have been very innoccnr ; for _— does them ipake with any ebhorrence of, much I-1s blaſphem) «9 47.4 the Law or the Temple ; bur in that the wirnelles oadbr® "% 5 added to their words, they ars deſervedly branded as fall "on jp Be fallws inmu, falſts m omni, 1s a granted Maxiun 22 the calc ws b witnels-bearing. =} if U 14 For we have heard him ſay, That this Jeſusof __ T | ” ſhall deſtroy p this place, and ſhall change the [| CUNons, "oy. which Moles delivered uz, RY + bury | p Thar is the Temple; Jeremy had foretold this may = hs Gods, did efcape, though very narrowly, Jer. 26. 12, 16. 1 Sana leaſt | Propheſied of the deſtrution both of the City _— har 4 Dar. 9. 26. and yet theſe were in great reſpect amons i, did
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