THOMAS, DIDYMUS.Thesecond name of this apostle is only the Greek translation of the former, which is the Syriac and Hebrew word for a “twin-brother,” from which, therefore,oneimportant circumstance may be safely inferred about thebirthof Thomas, though unfortunately, beyond this, antiquity bears no record whatever of his circumstances previous to his admission into the apostolic fraternity.Nor is the authentic history of the apostles, much more satisfactory in respect to subsequent parts of Thomas’s history. A very few brief but striking incidents, in which he was particularly engaged, are specified by John alone, who seems to have been disposed to supply, by his gospel, some characteristic account of several of the apostles, who had been noticed only by name, in the writings of Matthew, Mark, and Luke. Those in particular who receive this peculiar notice from him, are Andrew, Philip, Nathanael, Thomas, and John himself,——of all whom, as well as of Peter, are thus learned some interesting matters, which, though apparently so trivial, do much towards giving a distinct impression of some of the leading traits in their characters. Among those facts thus preserved respecting Thomas, however, there is not one which gives any account of his parentage, rank in life, or previous occupation; nor do any other authentic sources bring any more facts to view on these points. The only conclusion presented even by conjecture, about his early history, is, that he was a publican, like Matthew,——a notion which is found in some of the Fathers,——grounded, no doubt, altogether on the circumstance, that in all the gospel lists, he is paired with Matthew, as though there were some close connection between them. This is only a conjecture, and one with even a more insignificant basis than most trifling speculations of this sort, and therefore deserving no regardwhatever. Of the three incidents commemorated by John, two at least, are such as to present Thomas in a light by no means advantageous to his character as a ready and zealous believer in Jesus; but on both these occasions he is represented as expressing opinions which prove him to have been very slow, not only in believing, but in comprehending spiritual truths. The first incident is that mentioned by John in his account of the death of Lazarus, where he describes the effect produced on the disciples by the news of the decease of their friend, and by the declaration made at the same time by Jesus, of his intention to go into Judea again, in spite of all the mortal dangers to which he was there exposed by the hatred of the Jews, who, enraged at his open declarations of his divine character and origin, were determined to punish with death, one who advanced claims which they pronounced absolutely blasphemous. This mortal hatred they had so openly expressed, that Jesus himself had thought it best to retire awhile from that region, and to avoid exposing himself to the fatal effects of such malice, until the other great duties of his earthly mission had been executed, so as to enable him, at last, to proceed to the bloody fulfilment of his mighty task, with the assurance that he had finished the work which his Father gave him to do.But in spite of the pressing remonstrances of his disciples, Jesus expressed his firm resolution to go, in the face of all mortal dangers, into Judea, there to complete the divine work which he had only begun. Thomas, finding his Master determined to rush into the danger, which, by once retreating from it for a time, he had acknowledged to be imminent, resolved not to let him go on, alone; and turning to his fellow-disciples, said, “Let us also go, that we may die with him.” The proposal, thus decidedly made, shows a noble resolution in Thomas, to share all the fortunes of him to whom he had joined himself, and presents his character in a far more favorable light than the other passages in which his conduct is commemorated. While the rest were fearfully expostulating on the peril of the journey, he boldly proposed to his companions to follow unhesitatingly the footsteps of their Master, whithersoever he might go,——thus evincing a spirit of far more exalted devotion to the cause.The view here taken differs from the common interpretation of the passage, but it is the view which has seemed best supported by the whole tenor of the context, as may be decided by a reference to the passage in its place, (Johnxi.16.) The evidenceon both views can not be better presented than in Bloomfield’s note on this passage, which is here extracted entire.“Here again the commentators differ in opinion. Some, as Grotius, Poole, Hammond, Whitby, and others, apply theαὐτουtoLazarus, and take it as equivalent to ‘let us go and die together with him.’ But it is objected by Maldonati and Lampe, that Lazarus wasalreadydead; and die like him they could not, because aviolentdeath was the one in Thomas’s contemplation. But these arguments seem inconclusive. It may with more justice be objected that the sense seems scarcely natural. I prefer, with many ancient and modern interpreters, to refer theαὐτουtoJesus, ‘let us go and die with him.’ Maldonati and Doddridge regard the words as indicative of the most affectionate attachment to our Lord’s person. But this is going into the other extreme. It seems prudent to hold a middle course, with Calvin, Tarnovius, Lyser, Bucer, Lampe, and (as it should appear) Tittman. Thomas could not dismiss the idea of the imminent danger to which both Jesus and they would be exposed, by going into Judea; and, with characteristic bluntness, and some portion of ill humor, (though with substantial attachment to his Master’s person,) he exclaims: ‘Since our Master will expose himself to such imminent, and, as it seems, unnecessary danger, let us accompany him, if it be only to share his fate.’ Thus there is no occasion, with Markland and Forster, apud Bowyer, to read the words interrogatively.” (Bloomfield’s Annotations,vol. III.p.426, 427.)In John’s minute account of the parting discourses of Christ at the Last Supper, it is mentioned, that Jesus after speaking of his departure, as very near, in order to comfort his disciples, told them, he was going “to prepare a place for them, in his Father’s house, where were many mansions.” Assuring them of his speedy return to bring them to these mansions of rest, he said to them, “Whither I go ye know, and the way ye know.” But so lost, for the time, were all these words of instruction and counsel, that not one of his followers seems to have rightly apprehended the force of this remark; and Thomas was probably only expressing the general doubt, when he replied to Jesus, in much perplexity at the language, “Lord, we know not whither thou goest; and how can we know the way?” Jesus replied, “I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man comes to the Father but by me.” But equally vain was this new illustration of the truth. The remark which Philip next made, begging that they might have their curiosity gratified by a sight of the Father, shows how idly they were all still dreaming of a worldly, tangible and visible kingdom, and how uniformly they perverted all the plain declarations of Jesus, to a correspondence with their own pre-conceived, deep-rooted notions. Nor was this miserable error removed, till the descent of that Spirit of Truth, which their long-suffering and ever watchful Lord invoked, to teach their still darkened souls the things which they would not now see, and to bring to their remembrance all which they now so little heeded.The remaining incident respecting this apostle, which is recorded by John, further illustrates the state of mind in which eachnew revelation of the divine power and character of Jesus, found his disciples. None of them expected his resurrection;——none would really believe it, until they had seen him with their own eyes. Thomas therefore showed no remarkable skepticism, when, hearing from the others, that one evening, when he was not present, Jesus had actually appeared alive among them, he declared his absolute unbelief,——protesting, that far from suffering himself to be as lightly deceived as they had been, he would give no credit to any evidence but that of the most unquestionable character,——that of seeing and touching those bloody marks which would characterize, beyond all possibility of mistake, the crucified body of Jesus. “Except I shall see in his hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the print of the nails, and thrust my hand into his side, I will not believe.” After eight days, the disciples were again assembled, and on this occasion Thomas was with them. While they were sitting, as usual, with doors closed for fear of the Jews, Jesus again, in the same sudden and mysterious manner as before, appeared all at once in the midst, with his solemn salutation, “Peace be with you!” Turning at once to the unbelieving disciple, whose amazed eyes now for the first time fell on the body of his risen Lord, he said to him, “Thomas! Put thy finger here, and see my hands; and put thy hand here, and thrust it into my side; and be not faithless, but believing.” The stubbornly skeptical disciple was melted at the sight of these mournful tokens of his Redeemer’s dying agonies, and in a burst of new exalted devotion, he exclaimed, “My Lord! and my God!” The pierced hands and side showed beyond all question the body of his “Lord;” and the spirit that could, of itself, from such a death, return to perfect life, could be nothing else than “God.” The reply of Jesus to this expression of faith and devotion, contained a deep reproach to this slow-believing disciple, who would take no evidence whatever of the accomplishment of his Master’s dying words, except the sight of every tangible thing that could identify his person. “Thomas! because thou hast seen me, thou hast believed: blessed are they, who though not seeing, yet believe.”“Put thy finger here.”——This phrase seems to express the graphic force of the original, much more justly than the common translation. The adverb of place,ὧδε, gives the idea of thevery placewhere the wounds had been made, and brings to the reader’s mind the attitude and gesture of Jesus, with great distinctness. The adverb “here,” refers to the print of the nails; and Jesus holds out his hand to Thomas, as he says these words, telling him to put his finger into the wound.Not seeing, yet believe.——This is the form of expression best justified by the indefinitenessof the Greekaorists, whose very name implies this unlimitedness in respect to time. The limitation to the past, implied in the common translation, is by no means required by the original; but it is left so vague, that the action may be referred to the present and the future also.Beyond this, the writings of the New Testament give not the least account of Thomas; and his subsequent history can only be uncertainly traced in the dim and dark stories of tradition, or in the contradictory records of the Fathers. Different accounts state that he preached the gospel in Parthia,——Media,——Persia,——Ethiopia,——and at last, India. A great range of territories is thus spread out before the investigator, but the traces of the apostle’s course and labors are both few and doubtful. Those of the Fathers who mention his journeys into these countries, give no particulars whatever of his labors; and all that is now believed respecting these things, is derived from other, and perhaps still more uncertain sources.India is constantly asserted by the Fathers, from the beginning of the third century, to have very early received the gospel, and this apostle is named as the person through whom this evangelization was effected; but this evidence alone would be entitled to very little consideration, except from the circumstance, that from an early period, to this day, there has existed in India, a large body of Christians, who give themselves the name of “St.Thomas’s Christians,” of whose antiquity proofs are found in the testimony, both of very ancient and very modern travelers. They still retain many traditions of the person whom they claim as their founder,——of his place of landing,——the towns he visited,——the churches he planted,——his places of residence and his retreats for private devotion,——the very spot of his martyrdom, and his grave. A tradition, however, floating down unwritten for fifteen centuries, can not be received as very good evidence; and the more minute such stories are in particulars, the more suspicious they are in their character for truth. But in respect to the substance of this, it may well be said, that it is by no means improbable, and is in the highest degree consistent with the views, already taken, in former parts of this work, of the eastward course of the apostles after the destruction of Jerusalem. The great body of them, taking refuge at Babylon, within the limits of the great Parthian empire, the more adventurous might follow the commercial routes still farther eastward, to the mild and generally peaceful nations of distant India, whose character for civilization and partial refinement was such as to present many facilities for the introductionand wide diffusion of the gospel among them. These views, in connection with the great amount of respectable evidence from various other sources, make the whole outline of the story of Thomas’s labors in India very possible, and even highly probable.The earliest evidence among the Fathers that has ever been quoted on this point, is that of Pantaenus, of Alexandria, whose visit to what was then called India, has been mentioned above; (page363;) but as has there been observed, the investigations of Michaelis and others, have made it probable that Arabia-Felix was the country there intended by that name. The first distinct mention made of any eastward movement of Thomas, that can be found, is by Origen, who is quoted by Eusebius, (Church History,III.1,) as testifying, that when the apostles separated to go into all the world, and preach the gospel, Parthia was assigned to Thomas; and Origen is represented as appealing to the common tradition, for the proof of this particular fact. Jerome speaks of Thomas, as preaching the gospel in Media and Persia. In another passage he specifies India, as his field; and in this he is followed by most of the later writers,——Ambrose, Nicephorus, Baronius, Natalis,&c.Chrysostom (Oration on the 12 Apostles) says that Thomas preached the gospel in Ethiopia. As the geography of all these good Fathers seems to have been somewhat confused, all these accounts may be considered very consistent with each other. Media and Persia were both in the Parthian Empire; and all very distant countries, east and south, were, by the Greeks, vaguely denominated India and Ethiopia; just♦as all the northern unknown regions were generally called Scythia.♦removed duplicate “as”Natalis Alexander (Church History,IV.p.32,) sums up all these accounts by saying, that Thomas preached the gospel to the Parthians, Medes, Persians, Brachmans, Indians, and the other neighboring nations, subject to the empire of the Parthians. He quotes as his authorities, besides the above-mentioned Fathers, Sophronius, (A. D. 390,) Gregory Nazianzen, (A. D. 370,) Ambrose, (370,) Gaudentius, (A. D. 387.) The author of the imperfect work on Matthew, (A. D. 560,) says, that Thomas found in his travels, the three Magi, who adored the infant Jesus, and having baptized them, associated them with him, in his apostolic labors. Theodoret, (A. D. 423,) Gaudentius, Asterius, (A. D. 320,) and others, declare Thomas to have died by martyrdom. Sophronius (390,) testifies that Thomas died at Calamina, in India. This Calamina is now called Malipur, and in commemoration of a tradition, preserved, as we are told, on the spot, to this effect, the Portuguese, when they set up their dominion in India, gave it the name of the city ofSt.Thomas. The story reported by the Portuguese travelers and historians is, that there was a tradition current among the people of the place, that Thomas was there martyred, by being thrust through with a lance. (Natalis Alexander, Church History,vol. IV.pp.32, 33.)A new weight of testimony has been added to all this, by the statements ofDr.Claudius Buchanan, who, in modern times, has traced out all these traditions on the spot referred to, and has given a very full account of the “Christians ofSt.Thomas,” in his “Christian researches in India.”On this evidence, may be founded a rational belief, though not an absolute certainty, that Thomas actually did preach the gospel in distant eastern countries, and there met with such success as to leave the lasting tokens of his labors, to preserve through a course of ages, in united glory, his own name and that of his Master. In obedience to His last earthly command, he went to teach “nations unknown to Caesar,” proclaiming to them the message of divine love,——solitary, and unsupported, save by the presence of Him, who had promised to “be with him always,EVEN TO THE END OF THE WORLD.”
Thesecond name of this apostle is only the Greek translation of the former, which is the Syriac and Hebrew word for a “twin-brother,” from which, therefore,oneimportant circumstance may be safely inferred about thebirthof Thomas, though unfortunately, beyond this, antiquity bears no record whatever of his circumstances previous to his admission into the apostolic fraternity.Nor is the authentic history of the apostles, much more satisfactory in respect to subsequent parts of Thomas’s history. A very few brief but striking incidents, in which he was particularly engaged, are specified by John alone, who seems to have been disposed to supply, by his gospel, some characteristic account of several of the apostles, who had been noticed only by name, in the writings of Matthew, Mark, and Luke. Those in particular who receive this peculiar notice from him, are Andrew, Philip, Nathanael, Thomas, and John himself,——of all whom, as well as of Peter, are thus learned some interesting matters, which, though apparently so trivial, do much towards giving a distinct impression of some of the leading traits in their characters. Among those facts thus preserved respecting Thomas, however, there is not one which gives any account of his parentage, rank in life, or previous occupation; nor do any other authentic sources bring any more facts to view on these points. The only conclusion presented even by conjecture, about his early history, is, that he was a publican, like Matthew,——a notion which is found in some of the Fathers,——grounded, no doubt, altogether on the circumstance, that in all the gospel lists, he is paired with Matthew, as though there were some close connection between them. This is only a conjecture, and one with even a more insignificant basis than most trifling speculations of this sort, and therefore deserving no regardwhatever. Of the three incidents commemorated by John, two at least, are such as to present Thomas in a light by no means advantageous to his character as a ready and zealous believer in Jesus; but on both these occasions he is represented as expressing opinions which prove him to have been very slow, not only in believing, but in comprehending spiritual truths. The first incident is that mentioned by John in his account of the death of Lazarus, where he describes the effect produced on the disciples by the news of the decease of their friend, and by the declaration made at the same time by Jesus, of his intention to go into Judea again, in spite of all the mortal dangers to which he was there exposed by the hatred of the Jews, who, enraged at his open declarations of his divine character and origin, were determined to punish with death, one who advanced claims which they pronounced absolutely blasphemous. This mortal hatred they had so openly expressed, that Jesus himself had thought it best to retire awhile from that region, and to avoid exposing himself to the fatal effects of such malice, until the other great duties of his earthly mission had been executed, so as to enable him, at last, to proceed to the bloody fulfilment of his mighty task, with the assurance that he had finished the work which his Father gave him to do.But in spite of the pressing remonstrances of his disciples, Jesus expressed his firm resolution to go, in the face of all mortal dangers, into Judea, there to complete the divine work which he had only begun. Thomas, finding his Master determined to rush into the danger, which, by once retreating from it for a time, he had acknowledged to be imminent, resolved not to let him go on, alone; and turning to his fellow-disciples, said, “Let us also go, that we may die with him.” The proposal, thus decidedly made, shows a noble resolution in Thomas, to share all the fortunes of him to whom he had joined himself, and presents his character in a far more favorable light than the other passages in which his conduct is commemorated. While the rest were fearfully expostulating on the peril of the journey, he boldly proposed to his companions to follow unhesitatingly the footsteps of their Master, whithersoever he might go,——thus evincing a spirit of far more exalted devotion to the cause.
Thesecond name of this apostle is only the Greek translation of the former, which is the Syriac and Hebrew word for a “twin-brother,” from which, therefore,oneimportant circumstance may be safely inferred about thebirthof Thomas, though unfortunately, beyond this, antiquity bears no record whatever of his circumstances previous to his admission into the apostolic fraternity.
Nor is the authentic history of the apostles, much more satisfactory in respect to subsequent parts of Thomas’s history. A very few brief but striking incidents, in which he was particularly engaged, are specified by John alone, who seems to have been disposed to supply, by his gospel, some characteristic account of several of the apostles, who had been noticed only by name, in the writings of Matthew, Mark, and Luke. Those in particular who receive this peculiar notice from him, are Andrew, Philip, Nathanael, Thomas, and John himself,——of all whom, as well as of Peter, are thus learned some interesting matters, which, though apparently so trivial, do much towards giving a distinct impression of some of the leading traits in their characters. Among those facts thus preserved respecting Thomas, however, there is not one which gives any account of his parentage, rank in life, or previous occupation; nor do any other authentic sources bring any more facts to view on these points. The only conclusion presented even by conjecture, about his early history, is, that he was a publican, like Matthew,——a notion which is found in some of the Fathers,——grounded, no doubt, altogether on the circumstance, that in all the gospel lists, he is paired with Matthew, as though there were some close connection between them. This is only a conjecture, and one with even a more insignificant basis than most trifling speculations of this sort, and therefore deserving no regardwhatever. Of the three incidents commemorated by John, two at least, are such as to present Thomas in a light by no means advantageous to his character as a ready and zealous believer in Jesus; but on both these occasions he is represented as expressing opinions which prove him to have been very slow, not only in believing, but in comprehending spiritual truths. The first incident is that mentioned by John in his account of the death of Lazarus, where he describes the effect produced on the disciples by the news of the decease of their friend, and by the declaration made at the same time by Jesus, of his intention to go into Judea again, in spite of all the mortal dangers to which he was there exposed by the hatred of the Jews, who, enraged at his open declarations of his divine character and origin, were determined to punish with death, one who advanced claims which they pronounced absolutely blasphemous. This mortal hatred they had so openly expressed, that Jesus himself had thought it best to retire awhile from that region, and to avoid exposing himself to the fatal effects of such malice, until the other great duties of his earthly mission had been executed, so as to enable him, at last, to proceed to the bloody fulfilment of his mighty task, with the assurance that he had finished the work which his Father gave him to do.
But in spite of the pressing remonstrances of his disciples, Jesus expressed his firm resolution to go, in the face of all mortal dangers, into Judea, there to complete the divine work which he had only begun. Thomas, finding his Master determined to rush into the danger, which, by once retreating from it for a time, he had acknowledged to be imminent, resolved not to let him go on, alone; and turning to his fellow-disciples, said, “Let us also go, that we may die with him.” The proposal, thus decidedly made, shows a noble resolution in Thomas, to share all the fortunes of him to whom he had joined himself, and presents his character in a far more favorable light than the other passages in which his conduct is commemorated. While the rest were fearfully expostulating on the peril of the journey, he boldly proposed to his companions to follow unhesitatingly the footsteps of their Master, whithersoever he might go,——thus evincing a spirit of far more exalted devotion to the cause.
The view here taken differs from the common interpretation of the passage, but it is the view which has seemed best supported by the whole tenor of the context, as may be decided by a reference to the passage in its place, (Johnxi.16.) The evidenceon both views can not be better presented than in Bloomfield’s note on this passage, which is here extracted entire.
“Here again the commentators differ in opinion. Some, as Grotius, Poole, Hammond, Whitby, and others, apply theαὐτουtoLazarus, and take it as equivalent to ‘let us go and die together with him.’ But it is objected by Maldonati and Lampe, that Lazarus wasalreadydead; and die like him they could not, because aviolentdeath was the one in Thomas’s contemplation. But these arguments seem inconclusive. It may with more justice be objected that the sense seems scarcely natural. I prefer, with many ancient and modern interpreters, to refer theαὐτουtoJesus, ‘let us go and die with him.’ Maldonati and Doddridge regard the words as indicative of the most affectionate attachment to our Lord’s person. But this is going into the other extreme. It seems prudent to hold a middle course, with Calvin, Tarnovius, Lyser, Bucer, Lampe, and (as it should appear) Tittman. Thomas could not dismiss the idea of the imminent danger to which both Jesus and they would be exposed, by going into Judea; and, with characteristic bluntness, and some portion of ill humor, (though with substantial attachment to his Master’s person,) he exclaims: ‘Since our Master will expose himself to such imminent, and, as it seems, unnecessary danger, let us accompany him, if it be only to share his fate.’ Thus there is no occasion, with Markland and Forster, apud Bowyer, to read the words interrogatively.” (Bloomfield’s Annotations,vol. III.p.426, 427.)
In John’s minute account of the parting discourses of Christ at the Last Supper, it is mentioned, that Jesus after speaking of his departure, as very near, in order to comfort his disciples, told them, he was going “to prepare a place for them, in his Father’s house, where were many mansions.” Assuring them of his speedy return to bring them to these mansions of rest, he said to them, “Whither I go ye know, and the way ye know.” But so lost, for the time, were all these words of instruction and counsel, that not one of his followers seems to have rightly apprehended the force of this remark; and Thomas was probably only expressing the general doubt, when he replied to Jesus, in much perplexity at the language, “Lord, we know not whither thou goest; and how can we know the way?” Jesus replied, “I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man comes to the Father but by me.” But equally vain was this new illustration of the truth. The remark which Philip next made, begging that they might have their curiosity gratified by a sight of the Father, shows how idly they were all still dreaming of a worldly, tangible and visible kingdom, and how uniformly they perverted all the plain declarations of Jesus, to a correspondence with their own pre-conceived, deep-rooted notions. Nor was this miserable error removed, till the descent of that Spirit of Truth, which their long-suffering and ever watchful Lord invoked, to teach their still darkened souls the things which they would not now see, and to bring to their remembrance all which they now so little heeded.The remaining incident respecting this apostle, which is recorded by John, further illustrates the state of mind in which eachnew revelation of the divine power and character of Jesus, found his disciples. None of them expected his resurrection;——none would really believe it, until they had seen him with their own eyes. Thomas therefore showed no remarkable skepticism, when, hearing from the others, that one evening, when he was not present, Jesus had actually appeared alive among them, he declared his absolute unbelief,——protesting, that far from suffering himself to be as lightly deceived as they had been, he would give no credit to any evidence but that of the most unquestionable character,——that of seeing and touching those bloody marks which would characterize, beyond all possibility of mistake, the crucified body of Jesus. “Except I shall see in his hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the print of the nails, and thrust my hand into his side, I will not believe.” After eight days, the disciples were again assembled, and on this occasion Thomas was with them. While they were sitting, as usual, with doors closed for fear of the Jews, Jesus again, in the same sudden and mysterious manner as before, appeared all at once in the midst, with his solemn salutation, “Peace be with you!” Turning at once to the unbelieving disciple, whose amazed eyes now for the first time fell on the body of his risen Lord, he said to him, “Thomas! Put thy finger here, and see my hands; and put thy hand here, and thrust it into my side; and be not faithless, but believing.” The stubbornly skeptical disciple was melted at the sight of these mournful tokens of his Redeemer’s dying agonies, and in a burst of new exalted devotion, he exclaimed, “My Lord! and my God!” The pierced hands and side showed beyond all question the body of his “Lord;” and the spirit that could, of itself, from such a death, return to perfect life, could be nothing else than “God.” The reply of Jesus to this expression of faith and devotion, contained a deep reproach to this slow-believing disciple, who would take no evidence whatever of the accomplishment of his Master’s dying words, except the sight of every tangible thing that could identify his person. “Thomas! because thou hast seen me, thou hast believed: blessed are they, who though not seeing, yet believe.”
In John’s minute account of the parting discourses of Christ at the Last Supper, it is mentioned, that Jesus after speaking of his departure, as very near, in order to comfort his disciples, told them, he was going “to prepare a place for them, in his Father’s house, where were many mansions.” Assuring them of his speedy return to bring them to these mansions of rest, he said to them, “Whither I go ye know, and the way ye know.” But so lost, for the time, were all these words of instruction and counsel, that not one of his followers seems to have rightly apprehended the force of this remark; and Thomas was probably only expressing the general doubt, when he replied to Jesus, in much perplexity at the language, “Lord, we know not whither thou goest; and how can we know the way?” Jesus replied, “I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man comes to the Father but by me.” But equally vain was this new illustration of the truth. The remark which Philip next made, begging that they might have their curiosity gratified by a sight of the Father, shows how idly they were all still dreaming of a worldly, tangible and visible kingdom, and how uniformly they perverted all the plain declarations of Jesus, to a correspondence with their own pre-conceived, deep-rooted notions. Nor was this miserable error removed, till the descent of that Spirit of Truth, which their long-suffering and ever watchful Lord invoked, to teach their still darkened souls the things which they would not now see, and to bring to their remembrance all which they now so little heeded.
The remaining incident respecting this apostle, which is recorded by John, further illustrates the state of mind in which eachnew revelation of the divine power and character of Jesus, found his disciples. None of them expected his resurrection;——none would really believe it, until they had seen him with their own eyes. Thomas therefore showed no remarkable skepticism, when, hearing from the others, that one evening, when he was not present, Jesus had actually appeared alive among them, he declared his absolute unbelief,——protesting, that far from suffering himself to be as lightly deceived as they had been, he would give no credit to any evidence but that of the most unquestionable character,——that of seeing and touching those bloody marks which would characterize, beyond all possibility of mistake, the crucified body of Jesus. “Except I shall see in his hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the print of the nails, and thrust my hand into his side, I will not believe.” After eight days, the disciples were again assembled, and on this occasion Thomas was with them. While they were sitting, as usual, with doors closed for fear of the Jews, Jesus again, in the same sudden and mysterious manner as before, appeared all at once in the midst, with his solemn salutation, “Peace be with you!” Turning at once to the unbelieving disciple, whose amazed eyes now for the first time fell on the body of his risen Lord, he said to him, “Thomas! Put thy finger here, and see my hands; and put thy hand here, and thrust it into my side; and be not faithless, but believing.” The stubbornly skeptical disciple was melted at the sight of these mournful tokens of his Redeemer’s dying agonies, and in a burst of new exalted devotion, he exclaimed, “My Lord! and my God!” The pierced hands and side showed beyond all question the body of his “Lord;” and the spirit that could, of itself, from such a death, return to perfect life, could be nothing else than “God.” The reply of Jesus to this expression of faith and devotion, contained a deep reproach to this slow-believing disciple, who would take no evidence whatever of the accomplishment of his Master’s dying words, except the sight of every tangible thing that could identify his person. “Thomas! because thou hast seen me, thou hast believed: blessed are they, who though not seeing, yet believe.”
“Put thy finger here.”——This phrase seems to express the graphic force of the original, much more justly than the common translation. The adverb of place,ὧδε, gives the idea of thevery placewhere the wounds had been made, and brings to the reader’s mind the attitude and gesture of Jesus, with great distinctness. The adverb “here,” refers to the print of the nails; and Jesus holds out his hand to Thomas, as he says these words, telling him to put his finger into the wound.
Not seeing, yet believe.——This is the form of expression best justified by the indefinitenessof the Greekaorists, whose very name implies this unlimitedness in respect to time. The limitation to the past, implied in the common translation, is by no means required by the original; but it is left so vague, that the action may be referred to the present and the future also.
Beyond this, the writings of the New Testament give not the least account of Thomas; and his subsequent history can only be uncertainly traced in the dim and dark stories of tradition, or in the contradictory records of the Fathers. Different accounts state that he preached the gospel in Parthia,——Media,——Persia,——Ethiopia,——and at last, India. A great range of territories is thus spread out before the investigator, but the traces of the apostle’s course and labors are both few and doubtful. Those of the Fathers who mention his journeys into these countries, give no particulars whatever of his labors; and all that is now believed respecting these things, is derived from other, and perhaps still more uncertain sources.India is constantly asserted by the Fathers, from the beginning of the third century, to have very early received the gospel, and this apostle is named as the person through whom this evangelization was effected; but this evidence alone would be entitled to very little consideration, except from the circumstance, that from an early period, to this day, there has existed in India, a large body of Christians, who give themselves the name of “St.Thomas’s Christians,” of whose antiquity proofs are found in the testimony, both of very ancient and very modern travelers. They still retain many traditions of the person whom they claim as their founder,——of his place of landing,——the towns he visited,——the churches he planted,——his places of residence and his retreats for private devotion,——the very spot of his martyrdom, and his grave. A tradition, however, floating down unwritten for fifteen centuries, can not be received as very good evidence; and the more minute such stories are in particulars, the more suspicious they are in their character for truth. But in respect to the substance of this, it may well be said, that it is by no means improbable, and is in the highest degree consistent with the views, already taken, in former parts of this work, of the eastward course of the apostles after the destruction of Jerusalem. The great body of them, taking refuge at Babylon, within the limits of the great Parthian empire, the more adventurous might follow the commercial routes still farther eastward, to the mild and generally peaceful nations of distant India, whose character for civilization and partial refinement was such as to present many facilities for the introductionand wide diffusion of the gospel among them. These views, in connection with the great amount of respectable evidence from various other sources, make the whole outline of the story of Thomas’s labors in India very possible, and even highly probable.
Beyond this, the writings of the New Testament give not the least account of Thomas; and his subsequent history can only be uncertainly traced in the dim and dark stories of tradition, or in the contradictory records of the Fathers. Different accounts state that he preached the gospel in Parthia,——Media,——Persia,——Ethiopia,——and at last, India. A great range of territories is thus spread out before the investigator, but the traces of the apostle’s course and labors are both few and doubtful. Those of the Fathers who mention his journeys into these countries, give no particulars whatever of his labors; and all that is now believed respecting these things, is derived from other, and perhaps still more uncertain sources.
India is constantly asserted by the Fathers, from the beginning of the third century, to have very early received the gospel, and this apostle is named as the person through whom this evangelization was effected; but this evidence alone would be entitled to very little consideration, except from the circumstance, that from an early period, to this day, there has existed in India, a large body of Christians, who give themselves the name of “St.Thomas’s Christians,” of whose antiquity proofs are found in the testimony, both of very ancient and very modern travelers. They still retain many traditions of the person whom they claim as their founder,——of his place of landing,——the towns he visited,——the churches he planted,——his places of residence and his retreats for private devotion,——the very spot of his martyrdom, and his grave. A tradition, however, floating down unwritten for fifteen centuries, can not be received as very good evidence; and the more minute such stories are in particulars, the more suspicious they are in their character for truth. But in respect to the substance of this, it may well be said, that it is by no means improbable, and is in the highest degree consistent with the views, already taken, in former parts of this work, of the eastward course of the apostles after the destruction of Jerusalem. The great body of them, taking refuge at Babylon, within the limits of the great Parthian empire, the more adventurous might follow the commercial routes still farther eastward, to the mild and generally peaceful nations of distant India, whose character for civilization and partial refinement was such as to present many facilities for the introductionand wide diffusion of the gospel among them. These views, in connection with the great amount of respectable evidence from various other sources, make the whole outline of the story of Thomas’s labors in India very possible, and even highly probable.
The earliest evidence among the Fathers that has ever been quoted on this point, is that of Pantaenus, of Alexandria, whose visit to what was then called India, has been mentioned above; (page363;) but as has there been observed, the investigations of Michaelis and others, have made it probable that Arabia-Felix was the country there intended by that name. The first distinct mention made of any eastward movement of Thomas, that can be found, is by Origen, who is quoted by Eusebius, (Church History,III.1,) as testifying, that when the apostles separated to go into all the world, and preach the gospel, Parthia was assigned to Thomas; and Origen is represented as appealing to the common tradition, for the proof of this particular fact. Jerome speaks of Thomas, as preaching the gospel in Media and Persia. In another passage he specifies India, as his field; and in this he is followed by most of the later writers,——Ambrose, Nicephorus, Baronius, Natalis,&c.Chrysostom (Oration on the 12 Apostles) says that Thomas preached the gospel in Ethiopia. As the geography of all these good Fathers seems to have been somewhat confused, all these accounts may be considered very consistent with each other. Media and Persia were both in the Parthian Empire; and all very distant countries, east and south, were, by the Greeks, vaguely denominated India and Ethiopia; just♦as all the northern unknown regions were generally called Scythia.
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Natalis Alexander (Church History,IV.p.32,) sums up all these accounts by saying, that Thomas preached the gospel to the Parthians, Medes, Persians, Brachmans, Indians, and the other neighboring nations, subject to the empire of the Parthians. He quotes as his authorities, besides the above-mentioned Fathers, Sophronius, (A. D. 390,) Gregory Nazianzen, (A. D. 370,) Ambrose, (370,) Gaudentius, (A. D. 387.) The author of the imperfect work on Matthew, (A. D. 560,) says, that Thomas found in his travels, the three Magi, who adored the infant Jesus, and having baptized them, associated them with him, in his apostolic labors. Theodoret, (A. D. 423,) Gaudentius, Asterius, (A. D. 320,) and others, declare Thomas to have died by martyrdom. Sophronius (390,) testifies that Thomas died at Calamina, in India. This Calamina is now called Malipur, and in commemoration of a tradition, preserved, as we are told, on the spot, to this effect, the Portuguese, when they set up their dominion in India, gave it the name of the city ofSt.Thomas. The story reported by the Portuguese travelers and historians is, that there was a tradition current among the people of the place, that Thomas was there martyred, by being thrust through with a lance. (Natalis Alexander, Church History,vol. IV.pp.32, 33.)
A new weight of testimony has been added to all this, by the statements ofDr.Claudius Buchanan, who, in modern times, has traced out all these traditions on the spot referred to, and has given a very full account of the “Christians ofSt.Thomas,” in his “Christian researches in India.”
On this evidence, may be founded a rational belief, though not an absolute certainty, that Thomas actually did preach the gospel in distant eastern countries, and there met with such success as to leave the lasting tokens of his labors, to preserve through a course of ages, in united glory, his own name and that of his Master. In obedience to His last earthly command, he went to teach “nations unknown to Caesar,” proclaiming to them the message of divine love,——solitary, and unsupported, save by the presence of Him, who had promised to “be with him always,EVEN TO THE END OF THE WORLD.”
On this evidence, may be founded a rational belief, though not an absolute certainty, that Thomas actually did preach the gospel in distant eastern countries, and there met with such success as to leave the lasting tokens of his labors, to preserve through a course of ages, in united glory, his own name and that of his Master. In obedience to His last earthly command, he went to teach “nations unknown to Caesar,” proclaiming to them the message of divine love,——solitary, and unsupported, save by the presence of Him, who had promised to “be with him always,EVEN TO THE END OF THE WORLD.”