" FEED MY SHEEP " ADDRESSED TO ALL APOSTLES. 87 stance, when St Paul exhorts the bishops at Ephesus " to feed the church of God," may it thence be collected that each of them wasan universal governor ofthewhole church, "which Christ hath purchased with his own blood ?" Acts xx. 28. 3. By these words no new power is (assuredly at least) granted or instituted by our Lord :1 for the apostles before this had their warrant and authority consigned to them, when our Lord inspired them, and solemnly commissionated them, saying, "As the Father bath sent me, so I send you," John xx. 21; to which commission, these words (spoken occasionally, before a few of the disciples) did not add or de- rogate. At most, thewords do only, as St Cyril says, " renew the for- mer grant of apostleship," afterhisgreat offence of denying our Lord.' 4. These words do not seem institutive or collative of power, but rather only admonitive or exhortative to duty, implying no more but the pressing a common duty before incumbent on St Peter, upon a special occasion, in an advantageous season, that he should effect- ually discharge the office which our Lord had committed to him. Our Lord, I say, presently before his departure, when his words were like to have a strong impression on St Peter, earnestly directs and warns him to express that special ardency of affection which he observed in him, in an answerable care to perform his duty of feed- ing (that is, of instructing, guiding, edifying, in faith and obedience) those sheep of his (that is, those believers who should be converted to embrace his religion), as he should find opportunity.' 5. The same office certainly belonged to all the apostles, who, as St Jerome speaks, " were the princes of our discipline, and chieftains of the Christian doctrine;"' they at their first vocation had a com- mission and command to " go unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel, that were scattered abroad like sheep not havinga shepherd," Matt. x. 6, ix. 36; they before our Lord's ascension were enjoined to " teach all nations" the doctrines and preceptsof Christ, chap. xxviii 19, 20; to receive them into the fold, to feed themwith good instruc- tion, to guide and govern their converts with good discipline: hence " all of them," as St Cyprian says, " were shepherds, but the flock ap- peared one,which wasfedbythe apostleswith unanimousagreement"' ' KEViparÓV,770 ¿huy ?ll srpò; env 5s;ra, ,iwroo'r'Xfn á¡.'oÚ ea."; ieipns pra9nen7, flh C,yril. in loc. ' Peter was ordained to the holy apostleship together with the rest of the disciples." 2 0sú ái ?oÚ (pm TN KÚp1ov, ¡Óe, u ?ú ápvIts ávav[mosg ISeersp 47.1; 741; n+n Salden; iaaro, ,Xih aúTiÿ yníeica vos7aan.Cyril., ibid. 3 Paulus apostolus boni pastoris implebat officium, quando Christum preedicabat. Aug. in Jolt., tr. xlvii. "Paul fulfilled the office of a good pastor, when he preached Christ." s Principes disciplinas nostrte, et Christiani dogmatis dures.Hier. in Jozin., i. 14. s Pastores aunt manes, sed grex unus ostenditur, qui ab apostolis omnibus unanimi consensione pascatur.Cypr. de Un. Eccl.
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