seized him, under the false pretence of his having introduced Greeks into the temple; and their fury rose to such an ungovernable height, that the apostle would certainly have lost his life, had it not been for the captain of the temple, who rescued him with an armed force, and gave him permission to address the multitude.

Paul, being thus called upon for his defence, made an elegant oration to his countrymen, in which he recapitulated the principal transactions of his life, and gave an animated description of his conversion: but when he affirmed that Christ had appeared to him in the temple, and commanded him to offer salvation to the Gentiles, his auditors exclaimed, with one accord,

Away with such a fellow from the earth, for it is not fit that he should live." Hereupon the chief captain conducted him to the castle, and ordered the chief priests and other members of the council to appear, on the morrow, that the prisoner might have a better opportunity of pleading his cause before them.

Next morning Paul was brought before the Jewish tribunal; but, as one part of his judges were Pharisees and the other Sadducees, he prudently affirmed that he was called in question for the hope of the resurrection, and by that means eluded condemnation for the present. Upon his return to prison he was greatly encouraged by a vision of his Divine Master; and, the cruel design of some Jews against his life, being frustrated by the Providence of God, he was sent, under a strong guard, to Cæsarea.

The Jewish elders finding themselves disappointed of immediate revenge, followed the apostle to Cæsarea, and renewed their accusations before Felix, the gover

nor of Judea. Paul's defence, however, was so ener

getic and convincing, that him; and only kept him as a receiving a liberal douceur for

Felix refused to condemn
prisoner, in expectation of
liberation.

Festus succeeded to

At the expiration of two year the government of Judea, and the inveterate Jews again preferred their complaints against the object of their resentment; but Paul utterly denied their charge, and effectually baffled their nefarious design by appealing to Cæsar. Soon after this transaction he was desired to give an account of himself to king Agrippa; and his speech, upon that occasion, was fraught with such irresistible arguments, that his royal judge exclaimed, "Almost thou persuadest me to be a Christian."

Having thus vindicated his doctrines and conduct upon several occasions, Paul was, at length, sent to Rome with several other prisoners, and a suitable guard. Their voyage was rendered extremely dangerous by storms and dark weather, as the apostle had predicted, and they were finally shipwrecked near the island of Melita.* They all escaped, however, safe to land, and the barbarous inhabitants of the island entertained them with great hospitality. Here Paul, having excited the attention of the people, by shaking a viper from his hand without receiving any injury, wrought several miraculous cures, and laboured assiduously in the work of the ministry for the space of three months, at the expiration of which time he resumed his voyage to Italy, and soon afterward arrived at Rome.

Having, at length, reached the imperial city, and obtained permission to reside, with a Roman soldier, in

* Now Malta.

his own hired house, he set for chief of the Jews, and made a suitable apoloy for his having appealed to the emperor. He theth bean to preach the gospel to all, both Jews and Renans, who would give him audience and he occasional y comorted the churches of God by various instructive letters or epistles.

;

After he had esided a considerable time at Rome, he was permitted to visit several of the Christian churches, both in Europe and Asia; but on his return he was thrown into close confinement, and all men forsook him. He therefore wrote to inform his beloved Timothy that the time of his departure was at hand; and, after he had laboured and suffered more than any of the apostles, he was decapitated, by command of Nero, whose infamous cruelties have rendered his name obnoxious to mankind.

and memory

Of the other apostles of our Blessed Redeemer, it is only requisite to observe, that Peter was crucified according to his Master's prediction; James the Greater, was assassinated at Jerusalem; John was banished to the isle of Patmos, where he wrote the Apocalypse, or Book of Revelations, and most of the others termi̟nated their successful labours by a glorious martyrdom.

ce,

Tel.

CHAP.XIII

Continuation of the Jewish History, from the Death of St. Paul to the final Destruction of Jerusalem by the

Romans.

WHILST the church of Christ acquired strength and credit by the miraculous works of its apostles, and the pious deportment of its members, that of the Jews was distracted by commotions, and exhibited several convincing symptoms of its approaching downfal. The Jewish state was also involved in perpetual troubles, under a succession of tyrannical governors; and the decision of a contest, which had been long carried on between the Jews and Syrians, respecting the city of Cæsarea, was the signal for a general insurrection in Judea.

A. D.

Agrippa, who happened to be at Jerusalem 69. at this critical juncture, made an elaborate speech to the insurgents in hope of appeasing their fury: but his intreaties and remonstrances were alike disregarded, and he was soon compelled to provide for his own safety by flight. Nothing was now to be seen but acts of cruelty and desperation; nothing to be heard but the agonizing shrieks of sufferers, and the rude shouts of sanguinary rebels. Twenty thousand Jews were inhumanly murdered by the Cæsareans; fifty-two thousand were massacred in Egypt; and three thousand

five hundred were cut off in one day, at Jerusalem, by command of the Roman prætor; whilst the Jews, on their part, exercised the most wanton cruelties on all the Syrians and Romans who had the misfortune to fall into their hands.

After the rels had, with the assistance of a numerous bandit taken several important fortresses, reduced the palaces of Agrippa and the highpriest to ashes, and defeated Cestius Gallus with the loss of four thousand of his infantry, and four hundred of his cavalry, Nero commanded Vespasian, an officer of extraordinary prudence and bravery, to march with all possible expedition into Palestine: but whilst that commander was employed in raising forces, and his son, Titus, was sent to fetch two of the Roman legions from Alexandria, the Jews made formidable preparations for carrying on the war, and appointed persons of approved conduct and resolution to command their troops in the various cantons and fortresses of Judea.

Early in the ensuing spring, however, the imperial army, which consisted of sixty thousand men, entered Galilee with fire and sword, and laid close siege to Jotapa. Josephus, governor of the province, being apprised of their design; supplied the city with an abundance of stores, and defended it with unparalleled bravery for the space of forty-seven days; but the Roman arms were, at length, victorious, and all the inhabitants were either sacrificed to the rage of the conquerors or made prisoners. Josephus, perceiving that all resistance was vain, hid himself in a deep cavern, with forty of his men: but his retreat was discovered to Vespasian, and that famous general sent to offer him