of the Philippian jailor. The Philippians possessed some of the simple virtues of the old Roman stock. Romans and Macedonians were mingled together at Philippi, and the Macedonian character seems to have resembled the Roman more nearly, perhaps, than that of a.ny other of the subject races. The Macedonians, like the old Romans, were manly, straightforward, and affectionate. They were not sceptical like the philosophers of Athens, or voluptuous like the Greeks of Corinth. Holy Scripture gives a. very favourable view of the Thessalonians and Berreans, as well as of the Philip- pians. There were only e. few Jews resident at Philippi, for it was a. military colony, not a mercantile city. There was no synagogue, only a proseuche, a place of prayer, by the river-side, and that so little known that (accord- ing to the best-supported reading in Acts xvi. 13), Paul and Silas only supposed that they should find a place of prayer by the Gangites. Thither they went, with Timothy and Luke, on the sabbath. They found only a. few women. But that sabbath was an eventful day; that little congregation was the germ of great Churches ; the gospel was preached for the first time in that continent of Europe which was destined in the providence of God to be the scene of its greatest successes. The first convert, Lydia, strange as it may seem, came from that Asia where Paul had been forbidden to preach. She, with her household, was the firstfruits of Philippi unto Christ. Afterwards, as Paul and Silas were on their way to the same place of prayer, they met a slave-girl possessed with a spirit of Pytho; she recognized them again and again as "servants of the most high God." St. Paul cast out the spirit. This led to the apprehension of Paul and Silas. It was the first direct conflict of Christianity and heathenism; hitherto, as at Lystra, Jews had been the instigators of persecution. it was the first appeare.nce of St. Paul before a Roman tribunal, the first beating, and the first imprisonment. Then came the conversion of the jailor a.nd his family. Thus the Philippian Church was formed-the purple-seller from Thyatira, the Greek slave-girl, the (probably Roman) jailor, with the households of the first and last. Two of them were women-one engaged in a profitable trade, the other a slave; the third remarkable for his earnest question, "Sirs, what must I do to be saved ? " and for his kind attentions to Paul and Silas. We observe already some of the blessed results of Christianity-the Christian family, Christian hospitality, the religions equality of women and slaves. "There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female : for ye are all one in Christ Jesus" (Gal. iii. 28). There were others not known to us by name; there was a Church in the house of Lydia, where Paul and Silas saw the brethren and comforted them before their departure from Philippi (Acts xvi. 40). We notice the prominence of female converts in Macedonia. At Thessalonica (Acts xxii. 4) and at Berrea (Acts xvii. 12) many women, and those ladies of rank, became Christia.ns. Women formed an important element in the early Philippian Church. fv IN1'HODUCTION 'l'O
II. SunsEQUENT H1sTORY OF THE Pmt'IPPIAN cnoncu.
St. Paul's first visit to Philippi ended in snffering. In tho Roman colony he and Silas claimed the privilege of Roman oitiEens. They wel'e soon released, bnt the persecntions which the tea,chers ~re the first to feel fild. not pass away. The Chnrches of Macedonia, the Philippian Chnrch• especially, were called to so.ffer tribulation. St. Paul mentions.their afflic- tions more than once (see 2 Cor. viii. 1, 2, and eh. i. 28"""'""30).1 It was given to them, it was their privilege, not only to believe in Christ, bu~,also, to suffer for his sake. Their sufferings, their "deep poverty,'~ndid,;IJ.ot check that liberality which was characteristic of the Philippian Church: St. Paul had not left them long, he was still at Thessalonica, when they "sent once a.nd again unto his necessities." And from 2 Cor. x.i. 9 com- ps.red with eh. iv. 15 we may safely infer that his Philippian converts supplied his wants during his first sojourn in Corinth. Philippi was the only Church from which the great apostle was willing to accept help; it is a striking testimonial to their zeal and love.. St. Paul probably visited Philippi twice during his third missiot1ary journey. After leaving Ephesus he went into Macedonia; "and w baa he had gone over those parts., and had given them much exhortation, he;ciHne into Greece." It is not likely that Philippi was oi:iritted.. Philippi, wit'h; the other Chnrches of Macedonia., was then suffering that·~• great trial of affliction " mentioned in the Second Epistle to the Corintliiail$,' which StJ Paul wrote dnring this v.isit to Macedonia. We gather from· 'that: Epistle· that he wo.s busily employed in collecting alms for the saints in Jetnsli.lem 1 and that the Macedonian Christians contributed. :readily and· liberally:; and we :also learn (see 2 Cor. vii . .'i and viii. 2) that it was a tim:e•• of '.persecu- tion and distress for himself as well as for the Macedonian 'Churches. After three months in Greece, he "purposed to retnrn through :Maceclon-ia,'( and, St. Ln.ke continues (Acts xx. 6), "we sailed a.way from Philippi after the days of unle.avened bread." St Panl chose to keep the Passover, the greatest of the Jew.i.sh festivals, at Philippi, among those whom he calls his dearly beloved, his joy and crown. There were very few Jews at Philippi: did he keep the feast aa a Christian East.er among Christiane, rather than a. Jewish festival among Jews r It waa the last Passover for several years which he could keep where and as he pleased . .AJ; this point in St. Luke's narrative (Acts xx. 6) we notice the resump- tion of thE: first person, which St. Luke has not used since Acts x\ti1,, in which St. Paul's first visit to Philippi is related. From this circnmstanoe· it h.aB been inforrcd tha.t St. Luke was left at Philippi to carry on the work of organizing the Macedonian Chnrchee; and perhaps remained there till hE: rejoined St. Paul on his way to Jerusalem. Thoe it may be that the Cl1ri,.tiaru; at Philippi had the benefit of the teaching of the evangelist during the seven or eight years which followed St. Paul's first visit. 'l'hus theiJ" THE El'IS'l'LE 'fO '!'HE PllILIPPIANS. V