original
promulgation of the Gospel, these three forged narratives superseded a
Gospel which would have been, in the matter of our Lord's Birth, Death,
and Resurrection, a complete and perfect harmony? I leave the author of
"Supernatural Religion" to explain so unlikely a fact. One explanation
is, however, on our author's own showing, inadmissible, which is, that
our present Synoptics were adopted because they pandered more than the
superseded one to the growing taste for the supernatural, for the
earlier Gospel or Gospels contained supernatural incidents which are
wanting in our present Synoptics.

SECTION VII.

THE PRINCIPAL WITNESS.--HIS TESTIMONY RESPECTING THE MORAL TEACHING OF
OUR LORD.

One more class of apparent quotations from our Synoptic Gospels must now
be considered, viz., the citations in Justin of the moral teaching or
precepts of Christ. Those are mostly to be found in one place, in one
part of the First Apology (chapters xv.-xviii.), and they are introduced
for the express purpose of convincing the Emperor of the high standard
of Christ's moral teaching.

The author of "Supernatural Religion" gives very considerable extracts
from these chapters, which I shall give in his own translation:--

"He (Jesus) spoke thus of chastity: 'Whosoever may have gazed on a
woman, to lust after her, hath committed adultery already in the
heart before God.' And, 'If thy right eye offend thee cut it out,
for it is profitable for thee to enter into the kingdom of heaven
with one eye (rather) than having two to be thrust into the
everlasting fire.' And, 'Whosoever marrieth a woman, divorced from
another man, committeth adultery.'"

* * * * *

"And regarding our affection for all He thus taught: 'If ye love
them which love you what new thing do ye? for even the fornicators
do this; but I say unto you, pray for your enemies, and love them
which hate you, and bless them which curse you, and offer prayer for
them which despitefully use you.' And that we should communicate to
the needy, and do nothing for praise, He said thus: 'Give ye to
every one that asketh, and from him that desireth to borrow turn not
ye away, for, if ye lend to them from whom ye hope to receive, what
new thing do ye? for even the publicans do this. But ye, lay not up
for yourselves upon the earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and
robb