But their vain malice was presently defeated; for, at midnight, PAUL and Silas praying and finging psalms, the doors of the prison flew open, and their bonds were unloosed, attended by an earthquake, that shook the foundations of the prison. This convulfion of nature roused the keeper, who, believing his prisoners were escaped, at first in despair was going to kill himself; but was afterwards converted, and baptized, with all his family; and the next day the magistrates themselves came and prayed them to depart the city. Hence ST. PAUL continued his journey towards the west, till they came to Theffalonica, about an hundred and twenty miles from Philippi; where he disputed in the synagogues of the Jews, mighti ly convincing them of the truth of his doctrine. Here he is again perfecuted, and obliged to fly, by night, to Berea, a city about fifty miles fouth of Thessalonica, and foon after he arrived at Athens; where, endeavouring to convince the philosophers of their errors and delufions, and declaring unto them, that "Αλνώσος Θεος, unknown God, whom they had, under false notions, blindly worshipped, he converted Dionyfius, the Areopagite, and some others: and from thence passed to Corinth, a very populous place, and famous for its trade. Here he found Aquila, and Priscilla his wife, lately come from Italy, having been banished Rome by the decree of the emperor Claudius against all Jews; and, they being of the same trade he himself had learned in his youth, that of a tent-maker, he wrought with them, that he might not be troublesome to the new converts. PAUL, after a stay of a year and fix months, de parted in a ship from Corinth, and passed to Ephe fus, thence to set out by fea towards Jerufalem, that he might be there at the feast of the passover. Landing, therefore, at Cesarea, he went first to Jerufalem, and then down to Antioch, he came into the the regions of Galatia and Phrygia, confirming the disciples in all those places. He then returned to Ephefus, and difputed daily in the school of Tyrannus, and continued preaching thereabouts, till Demetrius, a silversmith at Ephesus, raised a mob upon PAUL, who were appeased by the town-clerk: but PAUL departed into Macedonia, to gather a contribution for the relief of the faints at Jerusalem. In his return out of Greece, he fails down the Ægean Sea from Philippi to Troas in five days, and then coafted down to Affos; and from thence to Mitylene. Next day they came over-against the isle of Chios, and arrived the next at Samos; and the day after came to Miletus. Setting fail from Miletus, they came in a straight course to the small ifsland of Coos, and the day following to the island of Rhodes, and from thence to Patara, the metropolis of Lycia, where they went on board another vessel bound for Tyre in Phanicia. Here they staid seven days; when, failing from Tyre, they staid a day at Ptolemais, and the next landed at Cesarea; from whence, in carriages, they went to Jerufalem. Soon after PAUL was come to Jerufalem, he was apprehended in the temple, and secured in the castle; where, claiming the privilege of a Roman, he escaped scourging: and afterwards pleaded his cause before Ananias the high-priest. Next day, being again brought before the council of the Jews, when Claudius Lyfias, the Roman chief captain there, understood that above forty Jews had bound themselves under a curse, neither to eat nor drink till they had killed PAUL, he sent him under a guard of two centurions, with two hundred foot foldiers, seventy horse, and two hundred spearmen, immediately away in the night, to Felix, governor of the province, before whom he was accused by Tertullus the orator; and Felix, foon after going out of his office, to gratify the Jews left PAUL in prifon. 1 Felix Felix being fucceeded in the government by Portius Festus, the Jews came to Cesarea to renew their complaints against Paul, who answered for himself; but found it necessary to appeal to Cafar *. King AGRIPPA being then come to Cesarea, Festus opened the whole matter to him; and PAUL made his defence in his presence; who thereby is almost perfuaded to be a Christian, and the whole company pronounce him innocent; Agrippa declaring to Festus, that he saw no reasonable objection to his release, except the impracticability of it after an appeal. • This was a privilege belonging to Roman subjects; that, upon any fufpicion of foul dealing, they had liberty to remove a cause out of an inferior court, and refer it to the judgment of the emperor in person. THE ! I T being thus finally determined that PAUL should be fent to Rome, he was, with several other prifoners of confequence, committed to the care of Julius, commander of a company belonging to Cafar's own legion. In September 56 or 57, he embarked on board a ship of Adramyttium *, and failed to Sidon. After a short stay, they failed from thence for Cyprus, and arrived at a place near Myra, a city in Lycia; where the centurion, finding a ship of Alexandria bound for Italy, put into it the prisoners. In which ship, being a flow failer, and the winds contrary, they were many days in getting againft Cnidus. From whence, failing paft the isle of Rhodes, under the island of Crete, over-against the promontory of Salmone, which they passed with difficulty, they came to a place called the Fair Havens, nigh to the city Lafea in Crete; where, when much time * Now L'Andramiti, or Endramiti, a port near Troas. was spent, the winter being come in, and failing dangerous, PAUL, fearing not only the loss of the ship and lading, but also of their lives, admonished them to stay. But the master of the ship being of a contrary opinion, and that haven not commodious enough to winter in, the centurion and the reft advised them to depart thence, to get, if poffible, as far as Phenice, another haven of Crete, on the fouth-west and north-west. Having, therefore, a gentle south-west wind, hoping it would do, they loofed from thence, and coasted by Crete. But not long after, rose a direct contrary wind, and a most prodigious tempeft, which tossed them up and down in the Mediterranean for fourteen days and nights; when the mariners imagining they drew near some land, they threw out their plumb-line to found, and found it twenty fathoms; going a little further, they found it but fifteen fathoms. Then, fearing they should fall on some rocks, they cast out four anchors abaft, and let down the boat, under the pretence of casting more anchors out of the fore-castle; but their design was to row off in the boat: which PAUL perceiving, faid to the centurion and foldiers, If the failors go out of the ship, we are all loft. On which the foldiers immediately cut the ropes, and fet the boat adrift. At break of day PAUL, assuring them they would all fave their lives, eat himself, and perfuaded them, in all two hundred and seventy-fix fouls, to eat likewife, having now fafted fourteen days. They then lightened the ship by casting the wheat, &c. into the fea. But when it was day-light, they knew not the land; however, they foon took up their anchors, loofed the rudder-bands, hoifted their main-fail to the wind, and made toward shore; when, falling into a place where two seas met, they ran the ship aground; and the forecastle stuck faft, but the hinder part was beat to pieces by the waves. The foldiers would have killed their prifoners, I |