BARNABAS, Acts, Epistle, and Gospel of. (1) The 'Acts of Barnabas' are clearly apocryphal and of late date. They recount his missionary journeys and his martyrdom in Cyprus. (2) The 'Epistle of Barnabas' is one of the apocryphal books of the New Testament. At the end of the Codex Sinaiticus of the 4th century, there is an epistle of Barnabas. It is strongly anti-Jewish in tone, is full of alle gorical interpretations of the Old Testament. It once enjoyed quasi-canonical authority, as is borne out by Eusebius and by the comtnents of Clement, Origen and other early Christian writers, who also are unanimous in.ascribing it to Barnabas, the coworker of Paul. Internal evidence, however, renders this claim impos sible. Its authority was greatest at Alexandria, and it is clearly of Alexandrine origin and was directed, as its opening shows, to soine body of Christians in lower Egypt. Its date has been much debated as being from 70 to 130 A.D., but Lightfoot's interpretation of the apoc alyptic passage in chapter iv is really conclu sive for the reign of Vespasian (70-79 A.D.). This epistle is, therefore, the earliest of the Apostolic Fathers and, as such, is of special interest. Its central problem—the relation of Judaism and Christianity—of the old and new forms of a divine covenant—was one which gave the early Church much trouble, and was one which the Church failed to solve satisfactorily. (3) The existence of a (Gospel
of Barnabas) is inferred from references to it in several ancient writings, notably in the (Decretum Gelasii) (496 A.D.), but we have no lmowledge of its contents. There eldsts, how ever, in a single Italian manuscript, a long gospel with this title, written from a Moham medan standpoint, but embodying Gnostic ele ments. It has been edited, with an English translation by Lonsdale and Ragg (1907), who hold that it was the work of a Christian rene gade to Mohammedanism about the 13th-16th century. The work is highly imaginative and at times grotesque, but is pervaded with a high ethical enthusiasm. Consult Braunsberger, O., (Der Apostel Barnabas, sein Leber' und der ihm beigelegte Brief) (Mainz 1876); Cunning ham, (Epistle of Barnabas) (1877) ; Donaldson, J., (The Apostolic Fathers); Lightfoot, J. B., (Apostolic Fathers) (London 1893) ; Kriiger, G., (Early Christian Literature) (New York 1897); Reuss, E., (Theologic chretienne' ; and articles “Barnabas3 in Cheyne, 'Encyclopedia Biblica)• (New York 1899) ; and Hastings, (Dictionary of the Bible) (ib. 1898).