prince which first took that city, who having slaughtered CHAP. V. many of the befieged in a fally, for the terror of those SECT. I. which furvived raised a wall of their bones, which is fo well cemented, and the bones fo entire, that I brought a piece thereof with me from thence. The laft of the feven churches of Afia, mentioned by St. John P, is that of Laodicea, which, Strabo tells us, being before but a fmall place, grew great and confiderable in his own and the foregoing age. Sir Paul Rycaut 9 gives us this account of it. Laodicea is another of those cities, which is also forgotten in its name, and overwhelmed in its ruins; and yet we certainly discovered it about four days journey fouth-east from Tyria, a city about twenty-five miles from Ephefus, and commonly mistaken, by reason of the likeness of names, (as has been before obferved,) for Thyatira. r The first place, which we imagined might be Laodicea, was a city called by the Turks Dingizlee; being so esteemed by the Greeks who there inhabit, and are not above forty in number, where they have a little church. But little credit are we to give unto them concerning the ancient condition of their nation; for they who are in those parts, and have loft their own language, and speak and understand no other tongue than the Turkish, are not competent judges of the antiquities, which extend themfelves beyond the time of the Turks. Howfoever the fituation of that place, which is exceedingly pleasant, and not far diftant certainly from the true Laodicea, might yield us reason fufficient to enquire for it in that city, which is planted with all forts of fruit-trees, watered with plentiful streams, and abounds with all provifions either neceffary or convenient for livelihood, fo that the Turks compare it with the air and fruitfulness of Damafcus. The outward walls are ancient, but neglected, after the Turkish custom: the city within built low, after the modern fashion of that P Rev. iii. 14. 9 Prefent State of the Greek Church, p. 56-64. country, 9. Of Laodi cea. PART II. country, and is chiefly maintained by a trade of Bogafines. Some few churches there are, which appear to have been built by the Chriftians, now converted into mofques; fo that nothing appeared in this case, which could induce us to concur in opinion with the Greeks, that this place was Laodicea. But being informed by the Turks of certain ruins about four miles diftant from thence, called by them Efki-hifar, or the Old Caftle, curiofity led us thither; where being entered, we found a city of a vaft circumference, fubverted and overthrown, fituated on three or four small hills. What we had firft fight of was an aqueduct, which guided us to the rest: beneath which was a river, which I call the Lycus, nourished with two other ftreams, which I call Afopus and Caper, that fo the fituation may agree with the description which Pliny gives of it. This certainly can have been no other than the ancient Laodicea, according to the description of geographers, anciently called Diofpolis. Here within we found, befides a multitude of other ruins, three large amphitheatres, and a circus; the three were of a round form, confifting of about fifty feats, one above the other, the ftones of which were not much difplaced. The circus was long, and at the end thereof was a cave, where the wild beasts were kept, defigned for the Roman sports, over the mouth of which was an arch, with an infcriptions to the emperor Vefpafian. Many other ruins there were of mighty fabrics, of which we could receive no knowledge, nor make conjectures, nor could we be guided by infcriptions for time and earthquakes had so strangely defaced all things, that, befides the theatre, there fcarce remained one stone upon the other. It feems that this city fuffered much by Mithridates Eupator: yet the excellency of the foil, and the riches of the citizens, quickly repaired the damages, and restored it again to its pristine happiness: for, as I faid, the fituation of it is elevated on two or three pleasant mounts rather than hills, which overfee the most : • The infcription may be feen at large in my author, pag. 61. rich and delightful plains of all Phrygia. It hath to the CHAP. V. north the mountain Cadmus, being diftant, as may be SECT. I. conjectured, about ten English miles, from whence the Lycus hath its fource, and overflows those pastures round about; which in the time of Auguftus Cæfar bred numerous flocks of black fheep, which, for the fineness of the fleece, far exceeded the Milefian wools. And thus the riches of their woollen manufacture being added to the donative of two thousand talents, which Hiero bequeathed to that people, might be a confiderable revenue to the public, and serve to raise them out of the duft, when overthrown by earthquakes. For when Nero was the fourth time conful, Laodicea, faith Tacitus, was then forely fhaken by an earthquake, (the fate of most of the great cities of Afia,) which notwithstanding was re-edified by the puiffance of its own riches; but relapfing again into the fame calamity, was deferted by its inhabitants, and became irrecoverably loft, not only as to its pristine condition of profperity, but also to its very name, having now no other exiftence or being, than what wife and learned men have conferved in the hiftories thereof. SECT. II. Of St. Paul's Voyages and Travels from his leaving HAVING thus given an account of the feven Churches 1. parts from in Afia, to which the feven Epiftles recorded in the Re-St. Paul develation of St. John were fent by God's immediate ap- Ephefus inpointment; I fhall now proceed with the voyages and to Macedotravels of Paul, whom we left preaching at Ephefus; A. D. 52, where having ftaid two years and upwards, after the 53, 54. t Acts xix. 10. nia. VOL. II. uproar PART II. uproar occafioned by Demetrius the filversmith was ceafed, he called to him the difciples, and embracing them, A. D. 55. took his leave of them, and fo departed for to go into Macedonia, the feveral parts whereof he probably at this time went over, thereby preaching the Gospel round about from Jerufalem to x Illyricum. 2. cum and Χ For Illyricum was a province lying to the north and Of Illyri- north-weft of Macedonia, along the eaftern coaft of the Dalmatia. Adriatic Gulf, or Gulf of Venice. It was diftinguished into two parts; Liburnia to the north, where now lies Croatia; and Dalmatia to the fouth, still retaining the fame name, and being the country to which Titus went, as St. Paul informs Timothy, in his fecond Epiftle to him, chap. iv. ver. 10. 3. St. Paul comes into Greece. When St. Paul had gone over those parts, he came into Greece, a country renowned throughout the ancient world for learning and arts, infomuch that they divided A. D. 55. wisdom among themselves, looking upon it as if it belonged only to them, and hence ftyling all other nations barbarians. To this St. Paul alludes, when he faith, y I am a debtor both to the Greek and to the barbarian, to the wife and to the unwise. 4. tent of Ma As to the fignification of the name or extent of Greece, Of the ex- it was used by common writers to denote Macedonia, cedonia and Epirus, Theffaly, Hellas, or Greece properly so called, Achaia, or and the Peloponnefe, now Morea. But the Romans diftinthe accep- guished all these only into two provinces, viz. Macedonia and Achaia; under the former of which they compreTeftament. hended Epirus and Theffaly; under the latter, Greece pro Greece in tation of the New perly fo called, and the Peloponnefe. Now the word Greece, as it is taken in the Old Testament in the largest fenfe, fo as to include Macedonia, so in the New Teftament it is plainly taken exclufively of Macedonia, and as equivalent to Achaia in the Roman acceptation of it; that is, fo as to include not only Greece properly fo called, but * Acts xx. i. * Rom. xv. 19. y Rom. i. 14. alfo SECT. II. alfo the Peloponnefe, wherein lay Achaia Propria, and CHAP. V. the city Corinth ftood, which St. Paul is fupposed to have vifited during his three months stay at this time in Greece. 5. St. Paul comes to the Afiatic St. Paul being after this refolved for Syria, and understanding that the Jews had a defign to kill him by the way, he altered the course of his journey, not going the Affos in direct way out of Greece, but returning through Mace-continent. donia to Philippi, and failing thence to Troas; whence, after a week's stay, he went by land to a Affos, a sea-port town at the south-west part of the province of Troas, and lying over-against the ifle Lefbos, or Metelin; which therefore St. Paul touched at next. 6. St. Paul fails to Mi For St. Paul taking fhipping at Affos, came to b Mitylene, one of the principal cities of the ifle Lesbos, and which in time became the most confiderable, fo as to give tylene. name long fince to the whole ifle, hence called now-a-days Metelin. It is reckoned to be about feven miles from the main land of Troas, and to be one of the largest isles in the Archipelago; upon which account, as alfo of its fituation near the mouth of the Hellefpont, it is thought worthy of a fortrefs, and the defence of the Ottoman fword. It is memorable for the many eminent perfons, which it has produced, as Sappho, the inventrefs of Sapphic verses; Alcæus, a famous lyric poet; Pittacus, one of the feven wife men of Greece; Theophraftus, that noble physician and philofopher; to which may be added Arion, the celebrated mufician. As for the city Mitylene, it is feated on the east fide of the island, in a peninsula, with a commodious haven on each fide. с Sailing from Mitylene, St. Paul came the next day d over-against Chios, an isle also in the Archipelago, next to Lesbos or Metelin, both in fituation and bignefs; whence also this ifle is esteemed by the Turks worthy of a fort. 2 Acts xx. 3-6. a Acts xx. 13. b Acts xx. 14. e Rycaut's Prefent State of the 7. To Chios. |