the
evidence to which we have access; but it is even inadmissible on critical
grounds, and must be unconditionally surrendered.(182) It is observed to
collapse before every test which can be applied to it.

III. Altogether marvellous in the meantime it is to me,--if men must needs
account for the omission of the words {~GREEK SMALL LETTER EPSILON WITH PSILI~}{~GREEK SMALL LETTER NU~} {~GREEK CAPITAL LETTER EPSILON WITH PSILI~}{~GREEK SMALL LETTER PHI~}{~GREEK SMALL LETTER EPSILON WITH OXIA~}{~GREEK SMALL LETTER SIGMA~}{~GREEK SMALL LETTER OMEGA WITH YPOGEGRAMMENI~} from this place,--that they
should have recourse to wild, improbable, and wholly unsupported theories,
like those which go before; while an easy,--I was going to say the
obvious,--solution of the problem is close at hand, and even solicits
acceptance.

Marcion the heretic, (A.D. 140) is distinctly charged by Tertullian (A.D.
200), and by Jerome a century and a half later, with having abundantly
mutilated the text of Scripture, and of S. Paul's Epistles in particular.
Epiphanius compares the writing which Marcion tampered with to a
moth-eaten coat.(183) "Instead of a stylus," (says Tertullian,) "Marcion
employed a knife." "What wonder if he omits syllables, since often he
omits whole pages?"(184) S. Paul's Epistle to the Ephesians, Tertullian
even singles out by name; accusing Marcion of having furnished it with a
new title. All this has been fully explained above, from page 93 to page
96.

Now, that Marcion recognised as S. Paul's Epistle "_to the Ephesians_"
that Apostolical writing which stands fifth in our Canon, (but which stood
seventh in his,) is just as certain as that he recognised as such S.
Paul's Epistles to the Galatians, Corinthians, Romans, Thessalonians,
Colossians, Philippians. All this has been fully explained in a preceding
page.(185)

But it is also evident that Marcion put forth as S. Paul's _another_
Epistle,--of which all we know for certain is, that it contained portions
of the Epistle to the Ephesians, and purported to be addressed by S. Paul
"to the Laodiceans." To ascertain with greater precision the truth of this
matter at the end of upwards of seventeen centuries is perhaps impossible.
Nor is it necessary. Obvious is it to suspect that not only did this
heretical teacher at some period of his career prefix a new heading to
certain copies of the Epistle to the Ephesians, but also that some of his
followers industriously erased fro