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ib
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Thus, opposite a certain passage in John, the reader finds ib (12) written, and beneath it, A (1). He therefore turns to the first canon (A) and finds that sections ia(11) in Matthew, d (4) in Mark, and i(10) in Luke are parallel with ib in John. The advantage and convenience of such a system are obvious, and the invention of it shows great ingenuity. It has indeed never been superseded, and the sections and canons are still indicated in the margins of many of our best Greek Testaments (e.g., in those of Tregelles and of Tischendorf). The date of the construction of these canons it is quite impossible to determine. For further particulars in regard to them, see Lightfoot's article on Eusebius, p. 334 sq., and Scrivener's Introduction to the Criticism of the New Testament, 2d ed. p. 54 sq. The canons, with the letter to Carpianus prefixed, are given by Migne, Opera, IV. 1275-1292.
Gospel Questions and Solutions. This work consists of two parts, or of two separate works combined. The first bears the title Gospel Questions and Solutions addressed to Stephanus (pros Stephanon peri ton en euangeliois zetem?ton kai luseon), and is referred to by Eusebius in his Dem. Evang. VII. 3, as Questions and Solutions on the Genealogy of our Saviour (ton eis ten genealogian tou soteros hemon zetem?ton kai luseon). The second part is entitled Gospel Questions and Solutions addressed to Marinus (pros Marinon). The first work consisted of two books, we learn from the opening of the second work. In that passage, referring to the previous work, Eusebius says that having discussed there the difficulties which beset the beginning of the Gospels, he will now proceed to consider questions concerning the latter part of them, the intermediate portions being omitted. He thus seems to regard the two works as in a sense forming parts of one whole. In his de vir ill. 81, Jerome mentions among the writings of Eusebius one On the Discrepancy of the Gospels (De Evangeliorum Diaphonia), and in his Comm. in Matt. chap. I. vers. 16, he refers to Eusebius' libri diaphonias euangelion. Ebedjesu also remarks, "Eusebius Cæsariensis composuit librum solutionis contradictionum evangelii." In the sixteenth century there were found in Sicily, according to the announcement of Latino Latini, "libri tres Eusebii Cæsariensis de Evangeliorum diaphonia," but nothing more has been heard or seen of this Sicilian ms. There can be no doubt that the work referred to under the title De Evangeliorum Diaphonia is identical with the Gospel Questions and Solutions, for the discrepancies in the Gospels occupy a considerable space in the Questions and Solutions as we have it, and the word diaphonia occurs frequently. The three books mentioned by Latino Latini were therefore the two books addressed to Stephanus which Eusebius himself refers to, and the one book addressed to Marinus. The complete work is no longer extant, but an epitome of it was discovered and published by Mai, together with numerous fragments of the unabridged work, two of them in Syriac (Bibl. Nova Patrum, IV. 217 sq.; reprinted by Migne, Opera, IV. 879-1016). In the epitome the work addressed to Stephanus consists of sixteen chapters, and the division into two books is not retained. The work addressed to Marinus consists of only four chapters.
The work purports to have been written in answer to questions and difficulties suggested by Stephanus and Marinus, who are addressed by Eusebius in terms of affection and respect. The first work is devoted chiefly to a discussion of the genealogies of Christ, as given by Matthew and Luke; the second work deals with the apparent discrepancies between the accounts of the resurrection as given by the different evangelists. Eusebius does not always reach a solution of the difficulties, but his work is suggestive and interesting. The question as to the date of the work is complicated by the fact that there is in the Dem. Evang. VII. 3 a reference to the Questions and Solutions addressed to Stephanus, while in the epitome of the latter work (Quæst. VII. §7) there is a distinct reference to the Demonstratio Evang. This can be satisfactorily explained only by supposing, with Lightfoot, that the Epitome was made at a later date than the original work, and that then Eusebius inserted this reference to the Demonstratio. We are thus led to assume two editions of this work, as of the others of Eusebius' writings, the second edition being a revised abridgement of the first. The first edition, at least of the Quæstiones ad Stephanum, must have been published before the Demonstratio Evangelica. We cannot fix the date of the epitome, nor of the Quæstiones ad Marinum.
Commentary on the Psalms (eis tous psalmous). This commentary is extant entire as far as the 118th psalm, but from that point to the end only fragments of it have been preserved. It was first published in 1707, by Montfaucon, who, however, knew nothing of the fragments of the latter part of the work. These were discovered and published by Mai, in 1847 (Bibl. Nov. Patrum, IV. 65 sq.), and the entire extant work, including these fragments, is printed by Migne, Opera, V. and VI. 9-76. According to Lightfoot, notices of extant Syriac extracts from it are found in Wright's Catal. Syr. mss. Brit. Mus. pp. 35 sq. and 125. Jerome (de vir. ill. 96 and Ep. ad Vigilantium, §2; Migne's ed. Ep. 61) informs us that Eusebius of Vercellæ translated this commentary into Latin, omitting the heretical passages. This version is no longer extant. The commentary had a high reputation among the Fathers, and justly so. It is distinguished for its learning, industry, and critical acumen. The Hexapla is used with great diligence, and the author frequently corrects the received LXX. text of his day upon the authority of one of the other versions. The work betrays an acquaintance with Hebrew, uncommon among the Fathers, but by no means extensive or exact. Eusebius devotes considerable attention to the historical relations of the Psalms, and exhibits an unusual degree of good judgment in their treatment, but the allegorical method of the school of Origen is conspicuous, and leads him into the mystical extravagances so common to patristic exegesis.
The work must have been written after the close of the persecution and the death of the persecutors (in Psal. XXXVI. 12). In another passage (in Psal. LXXXVII. 11) there seems to be a reference to the discovery of the site of the Holy Sepulchre and the erection of Constantine's basilica upon it (see Vita Const. III. 28, 30, &c.). The basilica was dedicated in the year 335 (see above, p. 24), and the site of the sepulchre was not discovered until the year 326, or later (see Lightfoot, p. 336). The commentary must have been written apparently after the basilica was begun, and probably after its completion. If so, it is to be placed among the very latest of Eusebius' works.
Commentary on Isaiah (hupomnemata eis Esaian). This work is also extant almost entire, and was first published in 1706, by Montfaucon (Coll. Nova Patrum et Script. Græc. II.; reprinted by Migne, Opera, VI. 77-526). In his de vir. ill. 81 Jerome refers to it as containing ten books (in Isaiam libri decem), but in the preface to his Comment. in Isaiam he speaks of it as composed of fifteen (Eusebius quoque Pamphili juxta historicam explanationem quindecim edidit volumina). In its present form there is no trace of a division into books. The commentary is marked by the same characteristics which were noticed in connection with the one on the Psalms, though it does not seem to have acquired among the ancients so great a reputation as that work. It must have been written after the close of the persecution (in Is. XLIV. 5), and apparently after the accession of Constantine to sole power (in Is. XLIX. 23 compared with Vita Const. IV. 28). If the commentary on the Psalms was written toward the close of Eusebius' life, as assumed above, it is natural to conclude that the present work preceded that.
Commentary on Luke (eis to kata Loukan euallelion). This work is no longer extant, but considerable fragments of it exist and have been published by Mai (Bibl. Nova Patrum, IV. 159 sq.; reprinted by Migne, Opera, VI. 529-606). Although the fragments are all drawn from Catenæ on Luke, there are many passages which seem to have been taken from a commentary on Matthew (see the notes of the editor). A number of extracts from the work are found in Eusebius' Theophania (see Mai's introduction to his fragments of the latter work).
The date of the commentary cannot be fixed with certainty, but I am inclined to place it before the persecution of Diocletian, for the reason that there appears in the work, so far as I have discovered, no hint of a persecution, although the passages expounded offer many opportunities for such a reference, which it is difficult to see how the author could have avoided making if a persecution were in progress while he was writing; and further, because in discussing Christ's prophecies of victory and dominion over the whole world, no reference is made to the triumph gained by the Church in the victories of Constantine. A confirmation of this early date may be found in the extreme simplicity of the exegesis, which displays neither the wide learning, nor the profound study that mark the commentaries on the Psalms and on Isaiah.
Commentary on the First Epistle to the Corinthians. This work is no longer extant, and we know of it only from a reference in Jerome's Ep. ad Pammachium, §3 (Migne's ed. Ep. 49): "Origenes, Dionysius, Pierius, Eusebius Cæsariensis, Didymus, Apollinaris latissime hanc Epistolam interpretati sunt."
Exegetical Fragments. Mai has published brief fragments containing expositions of passages from Proverbs (Bibl. Nova Patrum, IV. 316; reprinted by Migne, Opera, VI. 75-78), from Daniel (ib. p. 314; Migne, VI. 525-528), and from the Epistle to the Hebrews (ib. p. 207; Migne, VI. 605). Fabricius mentions also fragments from a commentary on the Song of Songs as published by Meursius, and says that other commentaries are referred to by Montfaucon in his Epistola de Therapeutis, p. 151. We have no references in the works of the ancients to any such commentaries, so far as I am aware, and it is quite possible that the various fragments given by Mai, as well as those referred to by Fabricius may have been taken not from continuous commentaries, but from Eusebius' General Elementary Introduction, or others of his lost works. According to Migne (VI. 527) some Greek Catenæ published by Cramer in Oxford in the year 1884 contain extensive fragments on Matthew and John, which, however, have been taken from Eusebius' Quæst. Evang. Other fragments in Catenæ on the same Evangelists and on Mark, have been taken, according to Migne, from the Quæstiones ad Stephanum, or from the Commentary on Luke.
It is, however, quite possible, as it seems to me, that Eusebius wrote a commentary on Daniel. At any rate, the exegetical fragments which we have, taken with the extended discussions of certain passages found in the Dem. Evang. VIII. 2 and in the Eclogæ Proph. III. 40 sq., show that he expounded at one time or another a considerable portion of the book.
VI. Biblical Dictionaries.
Interpretation of the Ethnological Terms in the Hebrew Scriptures. This work is no longer extant, but is known to us from Eusebius' reference to it in the preface to his work On the Names of Places, where he writes as follows: ton ana ten oikoumenen ethnon epi ten hell?da phonen metabalon tas en te thei& 139; graphe keimenas hebraiois onomasi prosreseis. Jerome, in the preface to his Latin version of the same work, also refers to it in the following words: "...diversarum vocabula nationum, quæ quomodo olim apud Hebræos dicta sint, et nunc dicantur, exposuit." No other ancient authority mentions the work so far as I am aware.
Chorography of Ancient Judea with the Inheritances of the Ten Tribes. This work too is lost, but is referred to by Eusebius in the same preface in the following words: tes p?lai 'Ioudaias apo p?ses Biblou katagraphen pepoiemenos kai tas en aute ton dodeka phulon diairon klerous. Jerome (ib.) says: "...Chorographiam terræ Judaeæ, et distinctas tribuum sortes ...laboravit."
It is remarked by Fabricius that this work is evidently intended by Ebedjesu in his catalogue, where he mentions among the writings of Eusebius a Librum de Figura Mundi (cf. Assemani's Bibl. Orient. III. p. 18, note 7).
A Plan of Jerusalem and of the Temple, accompanied with Memoirs relating to the Various Localities. This too is lost, but is referred to by Eusebius (ib.) in the following words: hos en graphes tupo tes p?lai diaboetou metropoleos autes (lego de ten Ierousalem) tou te en aute hierou ten eikona diachar?xas meta paratheseos ton eis tous tupous hupomnem?ton. Jerome (ib.) says: "ipsius quoque Jerusalem templique in ea cum brevissima expositione picturam, ad extremum in hoc opusculo laboravit."
On the Names of Places in Holy Scripture (peri ton topikon onom?ton ton en te thei& 139; graphe). In Jerome's version this work bears the title Liber de Situ et Nominibus Locorum Hebraicorum, but in his de vir. ill. 81, he refers to it as topikon, liber unus, and so it is commonly called simply Topica. It is still extant, both in the original Greek and in a revised and partly independent Latin version by Jerome. Both are published by Vallarsi in Hieronymi Opera, III. 122 sq. Migne, in his edition of Eusebius' works, omits the Topica and refers to his edition of Jerome's works, where, however, he gives only Jerome's version, not the original Greek (III. 859-928). The best editions of the Greek text are by Larsow and Parthey (Euseb. Pamph. Episc. Cæs. Onomasticon, &c., Berolini, 1862), and by Lagarde (Onomastica Sacra, I. 207-304, Gottingæ, 1870). The work aims to give, in the original language, in alphabetical order, the names of the cities, villages, mountains, rivers, &c., mentioned in the Scriptures, together with their modern designations and brief descriptions of each. The work is thus of the same character as a modern dictionary or Biblical geography. The other three works were narrower than this one in their scope, but seem also to have been arranged somewhat on the dictionary plan. The work is dedicated to Paulinus, a fact which leads us to place its composition before 325 a.d., when Paulinus was already dead (see below, p. 369). Jerome, in the preface to his version, says that Eusebius wrote the work after his History and Chronicle. We are to conclude, then, either that the work was published in 324 or early in 325, within a very few months after the History, or, what is more probable, that Jerome is mistaken in his statement. He is proverbially careless and inaccurate, and Eusebius, neither in his preface--from which Jerome largely quotes in his own--nor in the work itself, gives any hint of the fact that his History and Chronicle were already written.