Christ's Eighth Appearance.—Greal indeed it was, the very culmination of his sacred displays of himself. St. Matthew, to whom we owe the ac count of it (xxviii. 16-20), seems to confine the interview to the eleven. But it is his manner to mention salient points, and to inz,ply the rest. He does so here, for by informing us that some doubted' among the persons now assembled, he suggests the idea that others were present besides the apostles, who, after all the sz..enes through which we have been following them, had certainly ceased to a'oubt. We conclude then, with most commentators, that the present meeting was at tended by more than the eleven, and was in truth identical with that to which St. Paul refers (I Cor. xv. 6), who mentions one occasion on which the Lord was seen by more than five hundred bre thren at once.' That occasion was the present. It was a solemn and an appointed' congregation of all the Lord's followers, to whom he would vouchsafe the glorious privilege of seeing him once more on earth. Galilee would contribute most of them ; but we hardly believe that the faithful of the southern districts would be absent. The excellent women, who had so long had the privilege of ministering to him before death, hav ing themselves been elevated to the happy belief of his resurrection, would, we may well imagine, be especially zealous in the holy office of pioneering for this assembly, to which they were in some de gree appointed by the Lord himself and his angel (see Matt. xxviii. 7 ; xxviii. io; Mark xvi. 7). The locality was a mountain of Galilee, probably the mount of the beatitudes, where, as we have seen, a large number of persons might meet on a plateau of one of its slopes. Mountains are the sites of the grandest events in the Lord's career on earth. On a mountain was he tempted ; on a mountain did he expound the principles of his kingdom, as well as choose his apostles ; on a mountain was he transfigured when he gave his select witnesses an insight of his glory ; on a mountain did he foretell the doom of Jerusalem and the end of the world ; from a mountain will he soon ascend to heaven ; and on a mountain does he now meet the full conclave of his followers, to prove to them the reality of his dominion over death by the only public attestation he ever gave of the truth of his resurrection. How sublime the scene ! Himself the centre of all, with the holy eleven around him in profoundest adoration (Matt. xxviii. 17), and the rest either prostrate with them in the conviction of a settled faith, or conquering ' doubt' bv the wondering and joyous scrutiny of strained eyes (see Stier, 278). How thrilling the effect when Jesus announced to them, as God's final and full ratification of all his work and passion for them, the mighty words : All power is given unto me in 'heaven and in earth !' On another mountain the kingdoms of the world and the glory of them were once offered to him by the great usurper, as the guerclon of fealty to hint. Glorious constancy, which disdained the glittering bait, and earned the present prize of omnipotence in heaven as well as earth ! But not glorious for himself alone : be even at this moment lays his gracious plans for making his followers partakers of his glory,' by issuing from this Galilean mount of re union his great evangelical commission for gather ing from all nations a people for himself, who, disciplined by his own appointed means, and blessed by his own abiding presence, shall thus be org,an ised for the eternal fniition of his everlasting reign (Rev. i. 6 and xi. 15 ; comp. with Dan. vii. 14). When we were contemplating Christ's ministry in Galilee we found abundant reason for congratulat ing that rough and despsed province on the won drous grace of which it was the favoured recipient. Too often was that grace despised ; but yet Christ had verified the promise of an ancient prophet (Is. ix. t, 2). But have we not in the Lord's tostInimons grace to Galilee, by the remarkable event we have jnst contemplated, a still more glorious accomplishment of the great seer's words ? Ninth Appearance—to Yarnes.—We are indebted to St. Paul for the knowledge of the very interest ing fact that the Lord vouchsafed an interview with one of the two apostles who bore the name of Jarnes. There are some wha have thought that he was onc of the Emmaus disciples, and that Cleo phas was his father, and that therefore his sight of the Saviour was on the day of tbe resurrection. It is, we need hardly say, fatal to this view that the two disciples are by St. Luke expressly dis tinguished from the eleven (xxiv. 33). St. Paul probably enumerates his six appearances of Christ in order; if so, we must place Christ's visit to this solitary apostle after the full meeting of his dis ciples in Galilee (etrcera, e., subsequently to the appearance on the mountain, 60-77 Cor. xv. 7). The question, which James enjoyed this signal blessing, is not so easily disposed of. Indeed, it is impossible to solve it. The greatly preponderant opinion supposes him to have been the son of Alphmus, and the Lord's cousin. The story of the apocryphal gospel, that Christ ap peared to release him from the bond of a rash vow, is unworthy of the least attention. In the Acts, and in one of St. Paul's Epistles, this James is prominently in connection with the church of Jerusalem (Acts. xii. ; xv. 13 ; xxi. IS ; Gal. ii. 9), of which ecclesiastical tradition makes him the first bishop, designated as. such by the Lord himself (so Theophylact and Photius ; see Hammond on Cor. xv. 7). Whether the tradition truly illustrates St. Paul's statement, or was suggested by it, we cannot tell. It is not too much to suppose, that among the gracious inten tions of Christ's love to Yerusalem, he might have singled out for this special interview his relative, the son of his mother's sister, and imparted to him some of that wisdom which enabled him to take so prominent a part in planting the gospel in the Holy City,' and to allay the dangerous schism that threatened the infant church (Acts xv.) To us, however, while we would not venture to reject this prevalent opinion, there seems to be a thrilling interest in the idea, that the gracious Jesus, who had hin.self tasted the pains of the martyr's death, and had expressly awarded to the son of Zebedee the honourable destiny of drinking the sartr cup and receiving the same baptism of suffering with himself (Matt. xx. 23 ; Mark x. 39), did now in truth pay this mysterious visit to James the Great, to strengthen the brother of the disciple whom he loved' for the painful but blessed prerogative which awaited him, of being the very first to win the martyr's crown among his twelve apostles ! Tenth Appearance, at the time of the Axension. --Having accomplished his long-ordained purpose of meeting his people in Galilee, he probably inti mated to them that Jerusalem must be the scene of his last sight of them on earth, for in his next interview with tbem we find him request his dis ciples not to depart front that city (Acts i. 4). At any rate, whether expressly bidden, or led by some stmnge mysterious presentiment, such as prececleu the translation of Elijah in the minds of his com panions and pupils (2 Kings ii. 1-7), the apostles
betook themselves to Jerusalem with hearts full of exalted expectations. Taught by the Iloly Spirit, which lie had breathed upon them in initial grace, thcy had doubtless corrected their hopes of an earthly dominion. A kingdom, however, they still looked for, spiritual in character and strength, having Israel for the focus of its glory. Of the things of that kingdom' they had been hearing for forty days (Acts i. 3) in the recorded and unre corded (see John xx. 3o) communications of their Lord. They seized their last opportunity earnestly to inquire (ernptbran, atirav is St. Luke's word, Acts i. 6) -whether 720171 was the tiine when he meant to set up his promised kingdom (civoicaSla TciveLs 7317, paon'Actav ; 1.e.) In his gracious answer Christ does not reprove their question as mato/ally erroneous, but corrects their views as to the time. The period of the revelation of his kingdom, and its epochs (xpOpous KalpoUs), the Almighty Father, to whose will lie once more (as always) refers every thing, reserves in his own power, as his own in communicable secret. But meanwhile the pre parations for that kingdom must be made, and here was a life-long work for them all. To em power them for that work he would endue them with the gifts of that Spirit of which they had often heard since they had first received their earliest yearnings for a new life from his faithful forerunner, whose name and baptism he loves once more to acknowledge (Acts i. 5). John from the beginning had announced the grandest of Christ's gifts ta man : He shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost' (Matt. iii. 18 ; Marlc S ; Luke iii. r6 ; John i. 33). For that gift thcy were now to tarry awhile ; it would soon be bestowed. In the endowments of that gift they should go fortb from Jerusalem, Judma, and Samaria, to the earth's utmost bounds ; unfurl the banner of their Lord's kingdom, and win subjects into it. As Christ was opening out to them this wonderful future, he was walking towards the beloved Bethany. While vet on the eastern slope of Olivet, near that village, he was in the act of once more blessing his disciples, with hands upraised towards the sky, when, lo ! he was parted from them. With intense and adoring gaze they beheld him as he was rising higher at. higher still (dpeOpero marks the gtadual ascent, Luke xxiv. 51), until a cloud received him out oi their sight. Two angelic monitors restrained theii curiosity and regret by the consolatory promise that the same yews should return in the same manner as they had just seen him ascend,' On ward ! has ever been the gospel word. From the incarnation men's look was directed to the cross ; from the cross to the resurrection ; from the resur rection to the ascension ; and now from the ascen sion to the ultimate return. The cloud hides him not from faith ; the sacred volume ends with the echo of the promise : 4 Even so, come, Lord Jesus' (Rev. xxii. 20). Nay, it hides him not from sight ! From his mediatorial throne lie has been seen by his holy servants in their need and peril. The protomartyr saw him standing at the right hand of God to succour all that suffer for him' (Collect for St. Stephen's day), and the be loved disciple saw him; he was clad with glory indeed too bright for mortal eye to scan without alann—but he was the same gracious Jesus still ; he laid his right hand upon the affrighted apostle, arid calmed his fears with the assumnce of his un changeable identity : saying, Fear not ; I am the first and the last ; I am he that liveth and NS'aS (lead ; and, behold, I am alive for evermore, Amen ; and have the keys of hell and of death' (Rev. i. 13-18).
Authorities.—ln writing this sketch of the Lord's life on earth, dose use has been made of the Sacred Biogmphies by the four Evangelists, especially in the 'harmonised' editions of Tischendorf (Synopsis Evangelica, 1854) and Robinson (Harmony of the Four Gospels, Tract Society). Greswell's works have been also consulted, especially his Harmony, Dissertations [2d ed.], and papers in the Bibliotheca Sacra [tS43]. Besides these, more or less use has been made of Bp. Ellicott's Hulsean Lectures 071 the Life of Christ [2c1 ed., 1861] ; the Commen taries of Alford, Wordsworth, Burgon, Is. Wil liams, Rosenmiiller, Bengel (Gnonzon), Olshausen [Clark], DeWette, Aleyer, Kuinoel, Lange [Clark], and Tholuck [Clark] ; Stier's Innis of the Lord yaws, and Words of the Angels [Clark] ; Heng stenberg's Christology [Clark]; Anger's Synopsis Evangelionem [1852]; Clerici, Harmonia Evan gelica ; Patritius, De Evangeliis [1853]; Das Le hen .7esu, by Lange, by Sepp, by Hofmann (nach den Apokryphen), by Hase (who treats most fully of the literature on the subject), and by Nean der [Bohn] ; Ewald's Christus ; Baumgarten's Ge schichte 7ests ; Bp. Jeremy Taylor's Life of Christ ; The Messiah' (an anonymous volume published by Mr. Murray) ; Andrews' Life of our Lord upon the Earth liS63]; Dr. Macbride's Lectures on the Diatessaron ; Townson's Discourses on the Four Gospds ; Wilson on the New Testament ; West and Michaelis on the Resurrection ; Sherlock's Trial of the Witnesses ; De Costa's Four Wit nesses ; Griesbach's Fontes Evangdiorum [In his Opuscula]; the Chronological Works of Wieseler and Ideler; Browne's OrdoSaclorum ; Abp. Thom son's .7enes Christ [in Smith's Bibl. Dia.]; Licht enstein's Yesus Chrictus, Abriss seines Lebens [in Herzog's R. E., vol. vi.]; Pearson 071 the Creea' ; Bp. Andresv's Sermons [folio] ; Bp. Hacket's Ser mons [folio] ; the Rabbinical Works of Schoettgen, Meuschen, Lightfoot [Pitman], Ugolini [in The sauro], Wagenseil, and Dr. Gill [Commentary, quarto ed., 1809]. Renan's Vie a'e "'sus has been consulted latterly. It contains, no doubt, much illustrative matter, written in a very interesting style. The author, however, throughout his work, treats our Lord's life before the grave (from which, alas ! he is supposed never to have arisen) in an entirely rationalistic point of view. A heathen might have written the work, so utterly are the phenomena of Christianity in its miraculous aspect effaced and rejected by Mon. Remit, who, pro fessing to receive the four gospels as his authority, retains or eliminates, at will, whatever pleases or embarrasses his critical instinct ! The nature of the subject has prohibited a con troversial cast in this article ; it may, however, be not improper to state, that this newest phase of scepticism is little more than old unbelief in a modern guise. Old works not only of our own authors on the evidences, but of M. Renan's own countrymen (especially Duguet, Principes de la Foi Chretienne, pp. ii. iii.), supply abundant materials for refuting the assumptions of his 4criti cisnz.' These are being well applied by Renan's opponents in France, such as Freppel (Examen critique de la Vie de 92;171S de M. Renan); Poujoulat (Examen de la V. de 7); Bp. Plantier of Nimes (Instruction Fastorale contre un ouvrage V. de y. par Ernest Renal)). In M. Nicholas' Eludes Philosophipes 3111' le Christianisme (vol.
iv. chaps. i. ii.), there is, by anticipation much help for answeting M. Renan's