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LAST WORDS IN JUDEA.

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altogether such as I am, except these bonds." peroration reaches sublimity-so brief is it and so compact-sweeping round the bench and the audience, and ending with a touching allusion to his own captivity. The apostle's reply may be rendered-"I could pray to God, that not only thou, but also all that hear me this day, might become, both in little and in much, such as I am, except these bonds;" or, with another reading, "I could pray to God that whether (persuaded) with ease or with difficulty, not only thou, but all that hear me this day, might become such as I am, except these bonds." The answer corresponds to the statement, and is to be understood accordingly. The apostle could pray, or found it in his heart to pray-could at once pour out an ardent supplication, were it convenient at that moment; and the prayer is, that all that heard him might become as he was

-a genuine, decided, active, and patient Christian—wholly Christ's, and wholly in His work as he was, or precisely in his condition. But he checks himself at once, and admits one exception—“ these bonds "—as he points to the fetter upon his arm, or lifts it to view; "except these bonds"and by an instinctive movement of his arm, the words found an echo in the clang of his chain. What better prayer could the apostle present-what nobler wish could he entertain? His prayer could not be that Festus should be transferred to a richer province, that Agrippa should succeed to a larger kingdom, or that the aristocracy of Cesarea should enjoy the coveted patronage of the emperor. But it was that their hearts should be as his, their ambition as his, and their life as his-vitalized by the

truth and Spirit of Christ, for then they should possess peace, joy, and hope-working for Him who had blessed them, and preparing to pass into His presence and be crowned with His rewards. Yet filled as his soul was with ecstacy, he forgot not his loss of liberty, and referred to it with a delicacy which pleaded for him more powerfully than an open and bitter complaint.

On the assembly breaking up, a favourable opinion was expressed of his character-he had not spoken in vain. Agrippa uttered the formal decision-"This man might” or "could have been set at liberty, if he had not appealed unto Cæsar." That is, he ought to have been released prior to his appeal; and Felix and Festus are virtually condemned for their partiality or carelessness. But his discharge was impossible, now that an appeal had been taken; for an appeal could not be withdrawn, even with the consent of both parties. His appeal, however, secured the visit to Rome on which his heart was set, and by which he should have the honour of proclaiming the gospel for a long period in the eternal city.

XVII. PAUL ON THE VOYAGE TO ROME.

ACTS xxvii.

THE great goal of the apostle's life is now to be reached. The name of Rome must have been familiar to him from his youth. Images of its military and architectural grandeur must have often floated before him; the City of the Seven Hills must have stood out to him as the centre of the world's pomp and power. Wherever he had been, at home in Tarsus, in Judea, in the Levant, in Asia Minor, and in Europe, Roman authority and law prevailed. Roman roads had been often trodden by him, and he had seen the eagles of Rome under every sky. He longed to visit the great metropolis, and he had already written a large and argumentative letter to the church there. He did not reach it so soon as he had anticipated, or by such a journey as he might originally contemplate. But God had promised it, and the divine promise was in God's own way fulfilled. In self-defence he had appealed to Cæsar, and he must sail for Italy to prosecute his appeal.

The time of departure at length came, and Paul and certain other prisoners-of a different class, were placed under the care of Julius, "a centurion of Augustus' band;" perhaps a captain in the imperial life-guards returning to Italy. The ship in which they embarked at Cesarea belonged to Adramyttium, and was apparently on its

homeward voyage, "meaning to sail by the coasts of Asia," the usual route for vessels engaged in this traffic. Several of the apostle's friends were with him-Luke the narrator, and Aristarchus the Macedonian, whom he afterwards names his "fellow-labourer" and "fellow-prisoner." On touching at Sidon the next day, the centurion, who, from the report of Festus, must have been aware of the frivolous charges preferred against him, "courteously entreated Paul," and allowed him to go on shore to see his friends and refresh himself—the reference in the last word being to corporeal frailty, perhaps increased by sea-sickness. Leaving Sidon, they sailed under Cyprus, that is, under the lee of Cyprus, or to the east of it, the direct course being to the south of it; for so the contrary winds compelled them, and they might take advantage of a strong current which, running with great strength to the westward, would enable them to make way against the gale. They thus "sailed over the sea of Cilicia and Pamphylia," and "came to Myra, a city of Lycia." At Myra vessels were changed, and the prisoners were put into a "ship of . Alexandria sailing into Italy "-probably a corn-ship, and, like others of the class, a regular trader, of large size and with a well-appointed crew. On loosing from Myra, the wind was adverse. Small progress was made, and after "many days" they had with difficulty come opposite to Cnidus, a distance of not more than one hundred and thirty miles. The prevailing wind in those regions, and at that season of the year the close of summer-is still the north-west wind, against which the ship could scarcely work up. In consequence of this they ran under the lee

WARNINGS OF DANGER.

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of Crete, or to the east of it, so as to be sheltered by it. Having with difficulty rounded the point of Salmone"hardly passing it," they coasted the south side of the island, and, unable to pass Cape Matala, where the shore suddenly trends to the north, they put in to the Fair Havens, not far from Lasea-a town, the ruins of which were for the first time identified in 1856 by Mr. Tennent, a merchant of Glasgow, and the friends who were cruising with him in his yacht.

The season was, however, far advanced-" the fast was now already past"-it was the end of September or beginning of October, and therefore perilous to undertake a long voyage. Navigation was not actually interrupted till about six weeks later, but sailing "was now dangerous." Warning comes from an unexpected quarter. It is not the centurion in anxiety for his charge, the captain afraid of his ship, nor the owner apprehensive about his cargo. It is not the crew who refuse to put to sea, nor the passengers who protest on account of the roughness of the weather. It is one of the prisoners who takes it upon him to warn them, and to foretell disaster-damage to the cargo and ship, and the jeopardy of their own lives. The apostle was no coward himself, and he knew that he should reach Rome. But he had regard to those who were with him. He knew the dangers of the season, and may have had a supernatural intimation. He felt that no one should tempt Providence, and he was willing to remain, though assured of a divine safeguard. Nor was he without previous experience— "Thrice I suffered shipwreck, a night and a day have I been in the deep." This is the first time he speaks, and

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