y a sarcasm besides George III.'s on the occasion of Bishop
Watson's book, "I did not know that the Bible needed an apology!"

II. _Apologetics in the Bible._--The Old Testament does not argue in
support of its beliefs, unless when (chiefly in parts of the Wisdom
literature) it seeks to rebut moral difficulties (cf. T.K. Cheyne, _Job
and Solomon_; A.S. Peake, _Problem of Suffering in the Old Testament_,
1904). The New Testament reflects chiefly controversy with Jews. Great
emphasis is laid upon alleged fulfilments--striking or fanciful, but
very generally striking to that age--of Old Testament prophecy (Matt.
especially; rather differently Ep. to Heb.). The miracles of Jesus are
also canvassed. Jews do not deny their wonderful character, but
attribute them to black art (Mark iii. 22 &c., &c.). On the other hand,
Christians and Jews are pretty well agreed on natural theology; so the
New Testament tends to take its theism for granted. However, Rom. i. 20
has had great influence on Christian theology (e.g. Thomas Aquinas) in
leading it to base theism upon reason or argument. One apologetic
contention, aimed at Gentile readers, is found among the motives of
Acts. Christianity is not a lawless but an excellent law-abiding faith.
So (it is alleged) rulers, both Jewish and Gentile, have often admitted
(xviii. 14; xix. 37; xxiii. 9; xxvi. 32).

III. _Early Christian._--When we leave the New Testament, apologetics
becomes conspicuous until the political triumph of Christianity, and
even somewhat later. The atmosphere is no longer Jewish but fully Greek.
True there are, as always, Jewish controversialists. Justin Martyr
writes a _Dialogue with Trypho_; Origen deals with many anti-Christian
arguments borrowed by Celsus from a certain nameless Jew. Yet Greece was
the sovereign power in all the world of ancient culture. And so
Christianity was necessarily Hellenized, necessarily philosophized. One
result was to bring natural theology into the forefront. A pure
morality, belief in one God, hopes extending beyond death--these
appealed to the age; the Church taught them as philosophically true
_and_ divinely revealed. But, further still, philosophy offered a
vehicle which could be applied to the contents of Christianity. The
Platonic or eclectic theism, which adopted the conception of the Logos,
made a place for Christ in terms of philosophy within the Godhead. (John
i. 1 may or may not be affected by Philo; it is almost or quite solit