Author of the Exercitatio III. The Time of the Writingof thisEpiffle to the Hebrews. The Vfi of theright flaring thereof. After his releafe out of Prifon. Before the Death' ofJames. Before the Second ofPeter. TheTime of Pauls coming toRome. The Condition of the affairs of the Jews at that time. The MartyrdomofJames. State of the Churches of the Hebrews. Confront in the Obfervationof Mofaical Inffitutions. Warned to leave Jerufalem. That Warning what, andhow given. Caufes of their teneiliingneßfo to do. The Occafton and Succefl of this Epefle. Q. r. HAT was not amifs obferved ofOld by Chryfofome Prafat. inCont. ad Epiff. adRom. that a due Obfervation of the Time and Seafon wherein the Epiffles of Paul were written' , doth give great light unto the underftanding of many palfagesinthem. This Barons« adA. C. 55.N.4z. well confirms by anintlance of theirmiflake, who fuppofe the Shipwreckof Paul arMileta, Ails 27. to have been that mentioned by him, zCor. s o. when he was a night anda day in the deep; that Epiffle beingwritten fome years before his fayling towards Rome. Andwemay well apply this ObfervationtothisEpiffle unto the Hebrews. A difcovery of the Time and feafou wherein itwas written, will both free usfrom fundry miftakes, and alto give us tome light into the occafion and defign of it. - This therefore we Bull now. inquire into. §. a. Some general intimations we have in the Epifle it felf leading us towards `this dif- covert', and fomewhat may be gathered from Come other places ofScripture : forAnti- quity will afford us little orno helpherein. AfterPauls beingbrought a Prifoner to,Rorne, Aces 28. two full years, hecontinued in that condition, v. 3o. at leaft fo long heconti- nued under reftraint, though inhis own hiredHorefe. This time was expired before the writing of this EpJk. For hewas not only abfent from Rome in fome other part of Italy when hewrote it, Chap. x3. 24. but alfo fo far at liberty and fui juris, as that he had entertained a Refolution of going into theRaft fo foon asTimothy fhould come unto him, Chap. 03.23. And it feems likewife to bewritten before the MartyrdomofJamesat Jerufalem, in that he affirms that the Church of the Hebrews had not yet refitted unto Blood, Chap. 02:4 it being very probable, that together with him many others were flain. Many great difficulties they had been exerciled withal, but as yet the Matter was not come to blood, which fhortly after it arrived unto. That is certain alfo, that it was notonly written, but communicated unto, and well known by all the believing yews, before the writing of the SecondEpigfle of Peter, who therein makes mention of it, as wehave declared. Much light I confers to the precife time of its writing, is not hence tobe obtained, becaufé of the uncertainty 'of the time wherein Peter wrote thatEpiJfle. Only it appearsfromwhat he affirms concerning the approaching ofthe time of his fuffering, Chap. r. 03. that it was not long before his death. This as is generally agreed, happened in the thirteenth year. of Nero, when a great progrefs was madein that War, which ended in the fatali and finall deftruEtion of the City and Temple. Q. 3. From thefe Obfervations itappears, that the belt guide we have tofindout the certain timeof the Writing ofthis Epk,is Paulsbeing fent'Prifoner unto Rome. Now this was in the firtt year of the Government ofFeffur,after hehad been two years detained in Pri- fon at C.efrea by Felix, Ads 24.27. Chap. í5.v.26,27. ThisFelixwas the Brother of Pal- lar who ruled all things under Claudius, and fell into fome difgracç in the very fiftt year ofNero, asTacitses informs us. But yet by thecountenance of Agrippina the Mo- ther ofNero, he continued in fome regard,until! the fifth or fixth year ofhis Raign, when together with his Mother hedeftroyed manyof herFriends and Favourites. Du, ring this timeofPallas his declenfion in power, it is moff probable that his Brother Felixwas difplaced from theRule ofhis Province, and Feßus fent in his room. That it was before his utter ruine in the fixth year ofNero isevident from hence, becaufe he made
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