jailor “thrust them into the inner prison, and made their feet fast in the stocks; ”in Acts xviii. 12 of Paul being brought to the judgment, and in xxiii. 1 of his appearing before the council and being smitten on the mouth, by command of the high priest Ananias, One of the duties of the Ciazzan, a minister of the synagogue, was to exercise discipline, and of this Paul had his share, when, as he tells us, “Of the Jews five times received | forty stripes save one; ” and again, “ Thrice was I beaten with rods.” The eis before ‘‘ syna- gogues” is pregnant, implying that they were previously brought into the synagogues and then beaten therein. The distinction that makes eis refer to the persons present before whose eyes the punishment was inflicted, while év only indicates the place, is more than doubtful. Again, St. Paul affords an exemplification of the succeeding statement that they should “be brought before rulers and kings,” having appeared before Felix, Festus, and Agrippa in succession, as recorded in Acts xxiv.—xxvi.; also before Nero, as we may infer from 2 Tim. iv. 16, 17, where he speaks of his first answer, and of being delivered out of the mouth of the lion. Of apostasies, the eighth sign, we have both direct and indirect evidence. The latter is found in the many and earnest warnings which the Epistle to the Hebrews contains against such, while evidence of the former kind is supplied by the heathen historian Tacitus. The rapid progress which the preaching of the gospel had made, notwithstanding all the opposition and hindrances, and cruel persecutions, and sad apostasies, is perhaps the most surprising fact of all; while of this we have such incidental notices as the following :—“ Your faith is spoken of throughout the whole world,” writes St. Paul to the Romans; to the Galatians he writes of his own circuit to Arabia, back to Damascus, and then to the head-quart-~ ~ Jerusalem ; to the Colossians he says of “the Word of the truth of the gospel, which ,_ come unto you, as it is in all the world; and bringeth forth fruit, as it doth also in you;” and again, in the same chapter (Col. i. 23), he speaks of the hope of the gospel, and adds, “ which ye have heard, and which was preached to every creature which is under heaven.” Thus was verified the ninth sign.
IU. THE MORAL LESSONS INTERSPERSED. 1. Practical directions. With the impor- tant predictions of this section, and indeed of the whole chapter, practical directions of greatest consequence are blended. Similarly, in the writings of the apostles, we usually find along with exposition of doctrine the enforcement of duty. The principal practical directions of our Lord in this portion of Scripture are mostly of the nature of moral lessons, and are the following :—//eedfulness, which is several times repeated in the course of the chapter; needfulness of perseverance ; prayerfulness ; and waichfulness. Other lessons of great practical importance, though expressed rather as categorical statements or predictions than in the form of directions like those enumerated, are contained in it. 2. The first of these great moral lessons. The first of these lessons occurs in the fifth verse, in the words, “Take heed lest any man deceive you.” The game, though slightly altered, and in a somewhat different connection, occurs in the ninth verse, in the words, “ But take heed to yourselves;” again, in the twenty-third verse, we read, “ But take ye heed; ” and once more, in the thirty-third verse, it is set as a preface or introduction to other duties: “Take ye heed, watch and pray.” In its first occurrence, it warns the disciples against being deceived by others; in the second, is cautions them in reference to their own deportment; in its third occurrence, it calls on them to do their duty, as the Saviour had done his by them in full predictions and directions; while, in its last occurrenve in the chapter, its repetition seems designed to add emphasis to the injunctions immediately coming after. This first lesson is as- elastic in its application as practical in its nature, which is manifest from the varying context with which it is connected. In its first context in this chapter, it puts us on our guard against deception. As originally applied, it warned the disciples against pre- tenders to Messiahship—competitive claimants to that dignity, or rather personators of Christ himself, alleging they were himself returned again, according to the promise of his second advent. But in principle and spirit it applies to ourselves, and is needed by Christians at all times. In a world like this, where so many things are not what they geem, we are required to be upon our guard. Satan is watching to impose on us with his lies, and deceive us to our destruction ; we must beware of him. Sinners wre waiting to deceive us by their enticement ; we must beware of them, and when they entice us not yield consent. Sin itself contains the very essence of deception. It promises plea- sures; but the pleasures of sin last only for a season, and that season is a short one, while
220 THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO ST. MARK. (cu. xu, 1—37.