CHAPTER XIX.

PAUL AND THE APOSTLES.

In this chapter will be presented some passages from Paul and the other Apostles pertaining to their writings, their teachings, and their characters, which affect the credibility of the remaining books of the New Testament.

1.

It is popularly supposed that Jesus and his twelve Apostles formulated the doctrines of Christianity and founded the Christian church. Paul was the real author of this religion and the founder of the church.

"Then departed Barnabas to Tarsus, for to seek Saul: and when he had found him, he brought him unto Antioch. And it came to pass, that a whole year they assembled themselves with the church, and taught much people. And the disciples were called Christians first in Antioch" (Acts xi, 25, 26).

Jesus Christ was a Jew. Peter, John, James, and the other Apostles in Palestine were not Christians, but Jews--orthodox Jews--who differed from other Jews chiefly in accepting Jesus as the expected Jewish Messiah. Paul and his followers were the first Christians. The Dutch critics frankly admit that "Christianity has to thank him more than any other for its existence," that he was "the founder of the Christian church," and that "without him it would have remained an insignificant or forgotten Jewish sect" (Bible for Learners, Vol. III. pp. 20, 642, 643).

2.

The conversion of Paul is described as follows:

"And as he journeyed, he came near Damascus: and suddenly there shined round about him a light from heaven: and he fell to the earth, and heard a voice saying unto him, Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me? And he said, Who art thou, Lord? And the Lord said, I am Jesus whom thou persecutest" (Acts ix, 3-5).

This was simply a hallucination; and upon this hallucination of the diseased mind of Paul the whole system of Christian theology is based.

3.

The effect of Paul's miraculous conversion upon his companions is thus related:

"And the men which journeyed with him stood speechless" (Acts ix, 7).

"We were all fallen to the earth" (xxvi, 14).

4.

"And the men which journeyed with him stood speechless, hearing a voice, but seeing no man" (Acts ix, 7).

"And they that were with me saw indeed the light, and were afraid; but they heard not the voice of him that spake to me" (xxii, 9).

5.

After his conversion Acts states that "straight-way he preached Christ in the synagogues" (ix, 20) at Damascus; that when, soon after, the Jews sought to kill him he escaped and went immediately to Jerusalem; that "Barnabas took him, and brought him to the apostles" (27); "And he was with them coming in and going out at Jerusalem" (28).

Paul denies this. Referring to his conversion he says:

"Immediately I conferred not with flesh and blood: neither went I up to Jerusalem to them which were apostles before me; but I went into Arabia, and returned again unto Damascus. Then after three years I went up to Jerusalem to see Peter and abode with him fifteen days. But other of the apostles saw I none, save James the Lord's brother" (Gal. i, 16-19).

6.

Paul declares that his mission was to the Gentiles alone.

"I am the Apostle of the Gentiles" (Rom. xi, 13).

"That I should be the minister of Jesus Christ to the Gentiles" (xv, 16).

According to Acts (ix, 20-22; xiii, 5, 14-43; xiv, 1; xvii, 1, 2, 10; xviii, 4, 19; xxviii, 17), from the beginning to the end of his ministry, he was continually preaching in the synagogues to the Jews.

7.

While Paul proclaims himself the apostle to the Gentiles he declares that Peter's mission was confined to the Jews.

"The gospel of the uncircumcision was committed unto me, as the gospel of the circumcision was unto Peter" (Gal. ii, 7).

Peter contends that his mission was to the Gentiles.

"And when there had been much disputing, Peter rose up, and said unto them, Men and brethren, ye know how that a good while ago God made choice among us, that the Gentiles by my mouth should hear the word of the gospel" (Acts xv, 7).

8.

The chief of Paul's theological teachings is Justification by Faith alone.

"Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified" (Gal. ii, 16).

"If righteousness come by the law, then Christ is dead in vain" (21).

"Therefore we conclude that a man is justified by faith without the deeds of the law" (Rom. iii, 28).

James declares this doctrine to be false and pernicious.

"But wilt thou know, O vain man, that faith without works is dead" (James ii, 20).

"For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also" (26).

"Ye see then how that by works a man is justified, and not by faith only" (24).

9

The two great miracles of the Gospels are the immaculate conception and the bodily resurrection of Jesus. The Evangelists teach the doctrine of the immaculate conception. Paul and Peter declare Jesus to be simply a man.

Paul: "The man Christ Jesus" (1 Tim. ii, 5).

Peter: "A man approved of God" (Acts ii, 22).

10.

The Evangelists teach the resurrection of the natural body--a body of flesh and blood. Paul teaches a spiritual resurrection only.

"It is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body" (1 Cor. xv, 44).

"Flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God" (50).

11.

Paul both affirms and denies the immortality of man: "Glory and honor and immortality" (Rom. ii, 7). "This mortal must put on immortality" (1 Cor. xv, 53).

"The King of kings, and Lord of lords [Christ]; who only hath immortality" (1 Tim. vi, 15, 16).

12.

Paul: "Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith. But after that faith is come we are no longer under a schoolmaster" (Gal. iii, 24, 25).

"But now we are delivered from the law" (Rom. vii, 6).

Jesus: "Think not that I am come to destroy the law.... I am not come to destroy, but to fulfill. For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law" (Matt. v, 17, 18).

13.

"We which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep. For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven, ... and the dead in Christ shall rise first: then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds" (1 Thes., iv, 15-17).

Paul believed that Christ had appeared to him. It was a delusion. He expected Christ to come again. He was mistaken.

14.

The following is an example of Paul's reasoning:

"Wherefore tongues are for a sign, not to them that believe, but to them that believe not; but prophesying serveth not for them that believe not, but for them which believe. If, therefore, the whole church be come together into one place, and all speak with tongues, and there come in those that are unlearned, or unbelievers, will they not say ye are mad? But if all prophesy, and there cometh in one that believeth not, or one unlearned, he is convinced of all" (1 Cor. xiv, 22-24).

Speaking with tongues is for the unbeliever. Therefore if you speak with tongues the unbeliever is not convinced.

Prophesying is not for the unbeliever. Therefore if you prophesy the unbeliever is convinced.

"Paul also according to the wisdom given unto him hath written unto you; as also in all of his epistles, speaking in them of these things; in which are some things hard to be understood" (2 Peter iii, 15, 16).

The Duke of Somerset says: "There is scarcely a single passage in the Pauline Epistles, or a single doctrine in the Pauline theology, which is not darkened or embroiled by the ambiguity of the expression" (Christian Theology and Modern Scepticism, p. 116).

15.

The following passage of seven verses from Paul (Rom. iii, 12-18) is borrowed from six different chapters of the Old Testament. Is it a medley of misquotations, or a mosaic of plagiarisms?

"They are all gone out of the way, they are together become unprofitable; there is none that doeth good, no, not one.

"Their throat is an open sepulchre; with their tongues they have used deceit; the poison of asps is under their lips.

"Whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness.

"Their feet are swift to shed blood.

"Destruction and misery are in their ways.

"And the way of peace have they not known.

"There is no fear of God before their eyes."

"They are all gone aside, they are all together become filthy: there is none that doeth good, no, not one" (Ps. xiv, 3).

"Their throat is an open sepulchre; they flatter with the tongue (Ps. v, 9). Adders' poison is under their lips" (cxl, 3).

"His mouth is full of cursing and deceit" (Ps. x, 7).

"Their feet run to evil and they make haste to shed innocent blood" (Is. lix, 7).

"Wasting and destruction are in their paths" (Ibid).

"The way of peace they know not" (8).

"There is no fear of God before his eyes" (Ps. xxxvi, 1).

16.

The following words are ascribed to Jesus by Paul:

"Remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he said, It is more blessed to give than to receive" (Acts xx, 85).

No such words are to be found in the recorded sayings of Jesus.

"But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him" (1 Cor. ii, 9).

The above is quoted by Paul as scripture, but the scriptures do not contain this passage.

17.

"Who his [Christ's] own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree" (1 Peter ii, 24).

The Epistles of Peter are devoted largely to Christ's suffering and death, but no mention is made of his crucifixion. The words "cross" and "crucify" are not to be found in them. In Acts Peter speaks of Jesus' death as follows:

"Jesus, whom ye slew and hanged on a tree" (v, 30).

"God anointed Jesus of Nazareth ... whom they slew and hanged on a tree" (x, 38, 93).

18.

"For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word and the Holy Ghost; and these three are one" (1 John v, 7).

This is the chief text relied upon to support the doctrine of the Trinity, and this text all Christian scholars admit to be a forgery.

19.

"And Enoch also, the seventh from Adam, prophesied of these, saying, Behold, the Lord cometh with ten thousand of his saints" (Jude 14).

Jude's scriptural authority is an apocryphal book.

Genesis, Chronicles, and Luke all agree that Enoch was not the seventh, but the sixth from Adam.

"Adam ... begat ... Seth" (Gen. v, 3); "Seth ... begat Enos" (6); "Enos ... begat Cainan (9); "Cainan ... begat Mahalaleel" (12); "Mahalaleel ... begat Jared" (15); "Jared ... begat Enoch" (18).

"Adam, Sheth, Enoch, Kenan, Mahalaleel, Jared, Henoch" (1 Chron. i, 1-3).

"Which was the son of Enoch, which was the son of Jared, which was the son of Maleleel, which was the son of Cainan, which was the son of Seth, which was the son of Adam" (Luke iii, 37, 38).

20.

"Now Peter sat without in the palace: and a damsel came unto him, saying, Thou also wast with Jesus of Galilee. But he denied before them all, saying, I know not what thou sayest" (Matt. xxvi, 69, 70).

"And again he denied with an oath, I do not know the man" (72).

"Then began he to curse and to swear, saying, I know not the man" (74).

"But when Peter was come to Antioch, I [Paul] withstood him to the face, because he was to be blamed. For before that certain came from James, he did eat with the Gentiles; but when they were come, he withdrew and separated himself, fearing them which were of the circumcision. And the other Jews dissembled likewise with him" (Gal. ii, 11-13).

"Thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church" (Matt. xvi, 18).

21.

"Him [Timothy] would Paul have to go with him, and took and circumcised him because of the Jews which were in those quarters" (Acts xvi, 3).

"Thou seest, brother [Paul], how many thousands of Jews there are which believe, and they are all zealous of the law.... Do therefore this that we say to thee: We have four men which have a vow on them; them take and purify thyself with them. Then Paul took the men, and the next day purifying himself with them entered into the temple" (Acts xxi, 20-26).

Paul rebuked Peter for his hypocrisy. But if he practiced circumcision, and took the vow of a Nazarite, as claimed, he was a greater hypocrite than Peter; for Saul the Jew was not more violently opposed to the religion of Christ than Paul the Christian was to the religion of the Jews. That he was addicted to hypocrisy and dissimulation is shown by the following admissions in his genuine epistles:

"Being crafty I caught you with guile" (2 Cor. xii, 16).

"Unto the Jews I became as a Jew, that I might gain the Jews" (1 Cor. ix, 20).

"I am made all things to all men" (22).

22.

John impeaches the credibility of Paul and denounces him as a liar. Critics agree that portions of Revelation, including the following, are aimed directly at Paul:

"Thou hast tried them which say they are apostles, and are not, and hast found them liars" (ii, 2).

23.

"And he saith unto me, Seal not the sayings of the prophecy of this book: for the time is at hand" (Rev. xxii, 10).

Among much that is unintelligible, the writer of Revelation clearly predicts the destruction of Rome (xvii, 16, 18); asserts that Nero, who was really dead, was yet alive (xiii, 3); proclaims the immediate coming of Christ (i, 7; xxii, 7, 12), the avenging of the persecuted prophets and apostles (xviii, 20), the binding of Satan for a thousand years (xx, 2), and the establishment of God's kingdom (xxi).

"We know how completely these expectations were disappointed. Jerusalem, where the temple at least was never to be violated, fell utterly, and the sanctuary was laid low never to rise again; while Rome, instead of being turned to a desert, still held her rank and fame. Nero, the Antichrist, was dead and never returned to life; but neither did the Christ come back to earth. The martyrs were not avenged, but fresh persecutions awaited the faithful. The kingdom of Satan held its own, and the kingdom of God came not" (Bible for Learners, Vol. III., p. 655).