praised for his humility, because, in addressing the Almighty, he uttered the words, " Behold, I am but dust and ashes."57 Job is commended in like manner, for a similar confession.58 The humility of Moses is next lauded, in acknowledging his own want of eloquence, when God first called him,59 (c. 17.) and from him he proceeds to David, of whose humility he finds a pregnant proof in the fifty-first Psalm, the whole of which he quotes. (c. 18.) He reminds them, that these examples were written for their learning, and then commends humility and patience to them by the example of God himself; his proof of the patience and humility of the Almighty, he discovers in the works of Providence. (cc. 19, 20.)

In the course of it, he passes from this view of his subject, to another, that of the order observed throughout all his works; he infers that a similar order has been established in the church, and, consequently, that all departure from that order is an act of great sin.-" Let us not, then, forsake our ranks by doing contrary to his will.-Let us choose to offend a few foolish and inconsiderate men, lifted up and glorying in their own pride, rather than God.-Let us honour those that are set over us; let us respect the presbyters that are among us; let us instruct the young men in discipline by the fear of the Lord." He then digresses into a general exhortation to Christian duties; (c. 21.) and, after dwelling upon them at some length, he again returns to the subject of the epistle:"Let us, therefore, march on, men and brethren, with all earnestness in his holy laws. Let us consider those that fight under our earthly governors: how orderly, how readily, with what exact obedience, they perform

57 Gen. xviii. 27.
58 xiv. 4.
59 Exod. iii. 11.
60 λειποτακτεῖν, desert.

those things that are commanded them: all are not prefects, or chiliarchs, or centurions, or commanders of fifty, and so on; but every one in his proper rank does what is commanded him, by the king and those in authority over him. The great cannot subsist without the little, nor the little without the great.-But there must be a mixture in all things, and then there will be use and profit too. Let us, for example, take our body; the head without the feet is nothing: neither the feet without the head.—But all conspire together, and are subject to one common use, namely, the preservation of the body. (c. 37.) Let, therefore our whole body be saved in Jesus Christ, and let every one be subject to his neighbour, according to the order in which he is placed by his gift.61 Let not the strong despise the weak, and let the weak see that he reverence the strong." He speaks in the same manner of the gifts of riches, wisdom, humility, and continence.

After another invective against the schismatical clergy, which has more of the character of railing, than is consistent, either with the dignity or propriety of the subject, (c. 39.) he thus introduces the passage which is already before the reader :-" Seeing, then, that these things are manifest unto us, it will behove us to take care that, looking into the depths of the divine knowledge, we do all things in order, whatsoever our Lord has commanded us to do particularly, that we perform our offerings and service at their appointed seasons," &c. A few more remarks upon times and seasons of worship, which we have already quoted,62 precede the passage in question; the argument of which is of easy comprehension.-Be

61 xápiopa. See 1 Cor. xii. 5.; but no miraculous gift is here alluded to, as the context shows.

62 Chap. VIII., p. 118.

cause there were courses of priests and Levites in the temple at Jerusalem, which was then standing, therefore, there ought to be orders in the Christian church also.And because the apostles were sent by Christ, and Christ by God, therefore, those whom they ordained as presbyters and deacons succeeded to their authority. This argument he attempts to corroborate by the circumstance, that the apostles left directions for the ordination of ministers after their departure: these he conjectures to have originated in their foreknowledge of the schisms that would arise on account of the ministry. He considers the case to be exactly parallel with that of the miraculous choice of Aaron; and supposes it to have been foretold in an unknown, and probably accommodated, Greek version of a passage of Isaiah. (We shall hereafter consider the mode of quoting and explaining Scripture used by Clement and his cotemporaries.) He infers, that in virtue of the apostolical succession, as well as of their innocent and holy lives, they cannot be displaced from their office; nor can any one refuse a degree of submission and respect, which he elsewhere describes by the expression, "bending the knees of the heart," without being guilty of a sin equal to that of disobedience to God. To this submission therefore, he exhorts them at considerable length, to the conclusion of the epistle.

It will be perceived by this long analysis, which was rendered necessary by the loose and parenthetical style of the writer, that the question regarding the ministry was one of the earliest that disturbed the peace of the church. As he makes no allusion to the plea upon which the schismatics sought to displace the Corinthian ministers, we can of course form no judgment upon it. The cessation of the

63 C. 57.

power of working miracles among them, and the bolder pretensions to these gifts of the intruders, would seem to be a very probable one.

64

I will commence my remarks upon this ancient document by stating my full belief, that the object of St. Clement and the church at Rome, in addressing this epistle to the church at Corinth, was a highly laudable one. The discarded clergy were, beyond all doubt, men of blameless and edifying conversation; had it been otherwise, the fact would not have been stated so boldly and repeatedly: this alone is enough to criminate the individuals who displaced them, by whatever means. Equally ready am I to acknowledge, that it contains some beautiful passages, conceived in the true spirit of primitive Christianity. Nor do I deny that parts of it display considerable intellectual powers; as for instance, the argument for subordination in the church from analogy is extremely well managed and expressed, and will not suffer by comparison with any cotemporary production. But, notwithstanding, there is too much evidence that upon the question before us St. Clement had grievously departed from the spirit and design of the New Testament. We have already shown that there, the authority of the ministry was viewed in no other light than that of a means subserving an end, that end being the diffusion of Christianity. But with Clement the pastoral authority is the end, to which he propounds the entire cycle of Christian motives as means subservient. He cites a cloud of witnesses from the Old Testament; but whatever be the nature of their virtues or their vices, he arranges them all (in some cases at a large expense of sound reasoning) under the two categories of obedience and disobedience to spiritual authority. Yet, the question was merely one

64 C. 37.

of succession: no difference of opinion, upon any of the doctrines of Christianity, existed between the regular and schismatical clergy at Corinth: such difference is not even hinted at; and his advice to the apostolic presbyters to leave the church rather than continue the schism, (c. 54.) reduces it to an absolute certainty. Had the schismatics held also heretical opinions, he would unquestionably have called upon them to suffer martyrdom on the spot, rather than leave their flock to the guidance of false teachers.

It is happily in our power to produce a precisely similar instance, which occurred to an inspired apostle. St. Paul writes thus to the Philippians:-"I would ye should understand, brethren, that the things which happened unto me have fallen out rather unto the furtherance of the Gospel; so that my bonds in Christ are manifest in all the palace, and in all other places; and many of the brethren in the Lord, waxing confident by my bonds, are much more bold to speak the word without fear. Some indeed preach Christ, even of envy and strife; and some also of good will; the one preach Christ of contention, not sincerely, supposing to add affliction to my bonds; but the other of love."65 Here is a much worse case of exactly the same schism as that described by St. Clement. Here is a rebellion, not against the presbyters ordained by the apostles, but against an apostle himself, in the plenary exercise of all the miraculous gifts of the Holy Ghost. Taking a mean and cruel advantage of his bonds for Christ's sake, these schismatics contemptuously defied his pastoral authority, and preached Christ of contention, not sincerely; vilifying his apostle at the same time, in the malicious hope of adding affliction to his tedious imprisonment. Their motive, also, in obtruding their unauthorised

65 Phil. i. 217.