tween the article, the, and its participial adjective, given. To him is consequently, in Greek, emphatic. The emphasis makes St Paul, represented by to him, the large recipient of Divine revelations. By placing, therfore, to him in the attributive and emphatic position, St. Peter assigns to St. Paul the reception of superabundant revelations from God.

Super abundant revelations pervade the Epistle to the Hebrews in the New Testament. No Epistle of St. Paul, bearing his name, contains such numerous Messianic revelations as appear in the Epistle to the Hebrews.

Indeed, if we read correctly, we find in St. Paul's acknowledged Epistles no Messianic explanations whatever, save these three: one in 1 Cor. 15. 27, one in Gal. 3. 16, and one in Eph. 4. 8.

These facts respecting the superabundant revelations in the Epistle to the Hebrews, and respecting the fewness of Messianic references in St. Paul's Epistles, so named, impart both new meaning and new evidential force to St. Peter's declaration concerning his fellow Apostle, "Our beloved brother Paul, according to the wisdom given abundantly unto him," by means of unparalleled revelations respecting our Lord Jesus Christ, "hath written unto you" Christian Israelites.

Additional Revelations in the Epistle to the Hebrews.

But Messianic revelations are by no means all the new revelations respecting our Lord there are in the Epistle t the Hebrews.

Nowhere are there, in the Epistles acknowledged to be St. Paul's, such clear and full revelations as abound in the Epistle to the Hebrews, respecting the

(a) Divine nature of our Lord; His

(b) Infinite superiority to angels; His (c) Full humanity; His

(d) Divine pre-eminence over Moses and the Levitical priests; and, above all, respecting our Lord's

(e) Propitiatory sacrifice and personal offering and oblation; His

Present life; His

(g) Ever living sacerdotal intercession.

What facts are thus far demonstrated, establishing the identity between St. Peter's St. Paul's Epitomized Epistle and the New Testament Epistle to the Hebrews?

These are the great and conclusive facts :

(a) According to St. Peter, St. Paul's Epistle to the Israelitish Christians contained superabundant revelations from God concerning our Lord Jesus Christ.

(b) Our present Epistle to the Hebrews actually contains revelations concerning Christ in such numbers as do not occur in any other book of the New Testa

ment.

We put these two facts together-what do they prove? They prove the identity of the two Epistles in all the revelations which relate to our Lord. These revelations Occupy very large portions of the New Testament Epistle to the Hebrews. In very large portions of their contents, then, the two Epistles are thus proved to be one and the same Epistle, and, therefore, the sole composition of the same author, St. Paul himself.

4. THE FOURTH TOPICAL COINCIDENCE: THE LONGSUFFERING OF OUR LORD.

"The long-suffering of our Lord is salvation.'

2 Peter 3. 15.

In the Greek expression, the phrase, "" our Lord," is, because standing between the article, the, and its noun, long-suffering, the attributive position.

The attributive, "our Lord," is an intensification, and thus describes our Lord's long-suffering as peculiar and exclusive. This peculiar and exclusive character of our Lord's long-suffering, St. Paul expresses in this precious declaration, "The love of Christ passeth knowledge."Eph. 3. 19.

The exact counterpart of this characteristic long-suffering of our Lord Jesus Christ we find pervading everywhere the Epistle to the Hebrews of the New Testament.

The exact counterpart is this account of the great design of our Lord's miraculous Incarnation: "In all things it behoved Jesus to be made a partaker of flesh and blood, like unto His brethren, that He might be a merciful and faithful High Priest in things pertaining to God, to make, through death, reconciliation for the sins of the people."-Heb. 2. 14, 17.

Of our Lord's long-suffering there can possibly be no

stronger and no more impressive and affecting evidence than His Incarnation and Death for our sins.

St. Peter, as we have seen, intensifies by the attributive, "our Lord," the long-suffering of the Incarnate and dying Christ.

The fact must not surprise us: The author of our Epistle to the Hebrews has in chapter 2, 14th and 17th verses, the very same intensification. He not only, like St. Peter, recounts the "mercy" (identical in general meaning with "long-suffering") of Jesus, but, like St. Peter, he intensifies this mercy.

The proof of this intensification we now give :

(a) The English word "merciful," Heb. 2. 17, translates the Greek adjective, herpwv, derived from the Greek verb, lɛew, to show mercy. But Donaldson, in his Greek Grammar (p. 323), thus defines this adjective: "Adjectives of this ending-uw-make the action of the verb the prominent attribute of the person."

But what is the prominence of the personal attribute?" It can be nothing else than intensification of the personal action of the verb, to show mercy.

(b) We discover, in still another portion of the Epistle to the Hebrews, the same intensified counterpart to St. Peter's expression, the long-suffering of our Lord.' This additional intensified counterpart, like the first, is, in the Epistle to the Hebrews, connected with the High Priesthood of Christ.

Seeing, then, that we have a great High Priest, that is passed into the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast our profession.' Only here is our Lord called "Great High Priest," great in the sense of greatest. He is the greatest and the most efficient of all other High Priests. Thus intensified is He in His person and office by the writer of the Hebrews.

(c) Christ is also, by this writer, intensified in His work He does for us, prompted by His tender sympathy. For we have not a High Priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities." An intensified form of saying, We actually have and possess the greatest and most efficient High Priest, who is really and always touched with a sympathizing feeling with our infirmities. But was in all points tempted like as we are, yet with

out sin." Since without sin, when tempted Himself, He can keep us from sin, when we are tempted. "Let us, therefore, come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need."-Heb. 4. 14-16.

In this sympathetic work, the supreme High Priesthood of Christ is, therefore, a twofold intensification. Mercy" is intensified by "grace," and advances onward to it. "Grace" is intensified by "help," and thus reaches this full consummation of succor and deliver

ance.

(d) Indeed we have, in the Epistle to the Hebrews, the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ proclaimed by a perpetual intensification. His mercy is magnified, not merely a few times, but so repeatedly that we hear again in effect this oft-reiterated refrain of Psalm 136, His mercy endureth forever."

Our Lord's mercy in His Incarnation, His mercy in His Teaching, His mercy in His Miracles, His mercy in His Death and Sacrifice, His mercy in His Resurrection, His mercy in His present Life, the source of our new spiritual life, His mercy in His unceasing Intercession in heaven for us, these are the prominent truths pervading almost the entire Epistle to the Hebrews. All the other truths of the Epistle centre around these characteristic verities of the Gospel. To these truths all the other verities of the Epistle contribute their life and power. But the mercy of Christ, which fills the Epistle to the Hebrews, is identical with "the long-suffering of our Lord" Christ, which St. Peter attributes to the de

scriptive pen of the Apostle St. Paul. Identity of work discloses and establishes identity of authorship. ST. PAUL WROTE THE EPISTLE TO THE HEBREWS.

5. THE FIFTH TOPICAL COINCIDENCE: THE SALVATION IN ST. PETER'S EPITOME, AND IN THE EPISTLE TO THE HEBREWS.

"The long-suffering of our Lord is salvation."<-2 Peter 3. 15.

To the term " salvation," St. Peter, I Epistle 1. 9, adds this definition: "The salvation of your souls; salvation from the judgment and condemnation of God. Judgment must begin at the House of God." If the

righteous scarcely be saved, where shall the ungodly and sinner appear?"-1 Peter 4.. 17, 18. Both "the long-suffering and the salvation of our Lord" St. Peter emphasizes, by placing them before the verb "account,' which governs these expressions. This fact is not to be overlooked. The fact renders the resemblance between the two Epistles we are now comparing, the Epistle St. Peter attributes to St. Paul, and the New Testament Epistle to the Hebrews, the more complete. When emphasized and intensified the long-suffering and salvation of St. Peter accord more fully with these graces as portrayed by the Epistle to the Hebrews.

The exact counterpart to this "salvation" thus defined and emphasized by St. Peter is most amply furnished by the author of our Epistle to the Hebrews.

Of the mercy portrayed in the Epistle to the Hebrews our Lord is the sole Author and Giver. So the salvation by St. Peter attributed to Him in this Epistle is His own creation and gift.

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Of these assertions the following passages in the Epistle are undoubted proofs : Being made perfect, he became the AUTHOR of eternal salvation unto all them that obey him, called of God a high priest, after the order of Melchisedek."-Hebrews 5. 9, 10. "This Jesus, because He continueth ever, hath an unchangeable priesthood. Wherefore He is able to save them to the uttermost" (salvation intensified) "that come unto God by Him, seeing He ever liveth" (as glorified High Priest) to make intercession for them," Heb. 7. 24, 25. Unlike all other intercessions, the intercession of our enthroned High Priest, Christ Jesus, knows no cessation.

Between Heb. 2, 14, where our Lord Incarnate is first introduced as merciful High Priest, and Heb. 7. 24, 25, where as High Priest in glory, He is on His throne in heaven, and is there ever dispensing mercy, grace, and help, and is ever saving to the uttermost, there intervene in the Epistle to the Hebrews not less than six chapters, one half of the whole Epistle, all of which are occupied with this most attractive subject to us ruined and helpless sinners, the forbearance and long-suffering of our precious Saviour. These absorbing truths underlie and penetrate all the references to Scripture, all the argu