Gamaliel and Theudas, Acts 5

Verse 36: “For before these days rose up Theudas, boasting himself to be somebody; to whom a number of men, about four hundred, joined themselves: who was slain; and all, as many as obeyed him, were scattered, and brought to nought.”

Modernists seek to use Gamaliel’s mention of Theudas to question the historical reliability of Luke-Acts.[1] For example:

“A well known historical error has Gamaliel speak of the rebel Theudas, whom the first century Jewish historian assigns to the time of the procurator Cuspius Fadus (44-46 CE) several years after the death of Gamaliel.”[2]

This is in fact “well known,” but it is not an historical error.[3] The “first century Jewish historian” is Josephus, who mentions a Theudas who lived after the time of Gamaliel.[4] The speech made by Gamaliel, recorded in Acts 5, occurred in the reign of Tiberius Caesar (AD 14 to AD 37), about ten years before the rebellion of Josephus’s Theudas. The Theudas mentioned by Josephus lived under Claudius Caesar (AD 41 to AD 54). The discrepancy is created by the assumption that both Luke and Gamaliel, as well as Josephus, intend the same Theudas, and further, if they do, that Josephus and not Luke must be correct![5]

Contrasting the two Theudases

• the Theudas of Gamaliel was boasting himself to be somebody
• the Theudas of Josephus was a magician a (false) prophet
• the Theudas of Gamaliel led about four hundred men
• the Theudas of Josephus led a great multitude of the people
• the Theudas of Gamaliel was slain and all his followers were scattered
• the Theudas of Josephus was captured in battle and later beheaded; had many followers slain in battle, and many taken alive as prisoners
• the revolt of Theudas of Gamaliel took place before the birth of Jesus [6]
• the revolt of Theudas of Josephus took place around AD 45

Writing circa AD 62, Luke could not have been dependent on and misreading Josephus – as some suppose – because Luke’s writing is earlier than Josephus. In order to fulfill their designs, modernists must revise the dating of Luke backward – which they often do even to as late as AD 130. In this scenario, they must also deny that Luke is the author of the book of Acts. This they do on their own recognizance, assuming as fact that a later writer of Acts read and used The Antiquities of the Jews by Flavius Josephus, which he completed circa AD 94. There is no reason to suppose there could not be two men who led rebellions within some fifty years. Theudas is a form of the Aramaic Thaddæus or the Greek Theodorus, and was a common enough name. From Matthew 10:3 and Luke 6:16 it appears the names Judas and Thaddaeus (or Theudas) might be interchangeable (if not two different names for the same person). Even Josephus said, “at this time there were ten thousand other disorders in Judea,” most of which he did not undertake to record.[7] A simple fact apparently not considered by the convolutors is that a later writer using Josephus as a source would not have put those words in Gamaliel’s mouth! Josephus said his Theudas lived “while Fadus was procurator of Judea.” This would have been an easily detectable error for a later writer using Josephus as a reference. On the other hand, Luke had no reason to worry over such a misunderstanding, since the second rebel Theudas had not yet led a rebellion at the time Gamaliel spoke.

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[1] Liberals use the identity of Theudas to attack the historicity of Acts. Nevertheless, it appears that Eusebius may be the first to conflate as one the two men with the same name. Ecclesiastical History, p. 46.
[2] “Does Acts Portray Paul Fairly,” by Dick Harfield, p. 2. https://www.academia.edu/s/3953e9edc1 Accessed 27 October 2020 8:45 am.
[3] Around AD 248 in writings answering the pagan philosopher Celsus, Origen mentions Theudas living before the birth of Christ. “But since it is in the spirit of truth that we examine each passage, we shall mention that there was a certain Theudas among the Jews before the birth of Christ, who gave himself out as some great one, after whose death his deluded followers were completely dispersed.” Contra Celsus (or Against Celsus) Book I, Chapter 57. http://www.earlychristianwritings.com/text/origen161.html Accessed 27 October 2020 10:12 am.
[4] “Now it came to pass, while Fadus was procurator of Judea, that a certain magician, whose name was Theudas, persuaded a great part of the people to take their effects with them, and follow him to the river Jordan; for he told them he was a prophet, and that he would, by his own command, divide the river, and afford them an easy passage over it; and many were deluded by his words. However, Fadus did not permit them to make any advantage of his wild attempt, but sent a troop of horsemen out against them; who, falling upon them unexpectedly, slew many of them, and took many of them alive. They also took Theudas alive, and cut off his head, and carried it to Jerusalem. This was what befell the Jews in the time of Cuspius Fadus’s government.” “Antiquities of the Jews,” Book XX 5:1, translated by William Whiston, p. 418. See also: http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.01.0146%3Abook%3D20%3Asection%3D97 Accessed 27 October 2020 9:30 am.
[5] The design of this objection is to discredit the Bible, since the attackers always attack Luke’s credibility rather than Josephus’s.
[6] Before the uprising of Judas the Galilean in the days of the taxing (Acts 9:37; cf. Luke 2:2).
[7] “Antiquities of the Jews,” Complete Works, Whiston, Book XVII 10:4, p. 371.

Spiritualizing geographical Israel?

I am a friend of the nation of Israel as a chosen people of God and as an ally of the United States. Nevertheless, I think that there is a lot of false “spiritualizing” of the geography of Israel. This morning I heard a preacher on the radio claim that “a trip to Israel is a spiritual experience.” He made that statement in the context of promoting his ministry’s tours of Israel. If you go to Israel “you will invest in your spiritual walk” and “your Bible reading will never be the same.” The trip “enhances your entire biblical view and personal Christian perspective” and “will be a source of inspiration and spiritual growth.”

I will not criticize anyone for taking a trip to Israel, neither will I assert that a person going there will learn nothing. But, pardon me for thinking that this spiritualizing mumbo-jumbo sounds more like a sales pitch than sound theology based on God’s Bible!

If you have an opportunity to visit Israel and can afford to do so – go. Enjoy the vacation, see the sights, and learn all you can. Do not come back thinking you are a spiritual giant towering over the Lilliputians who can only afford to buy an imitation leather Bible and can only learn of Jesus and his ways by faithfully reading it, while praying and seeking God’s face and the leadership of his Spirit. 

John 4:24 God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.

The Twelve Articles of the Peasants

Interesting bit of history

The Twelve Articles of the Peasants -- "The fundamental and correct chief articles of all the peasants and of those subject to ecclesiastical lords, relating to these matters in which they feel themselves aggrieved."
A Reply to the Twelve Articles of the Peasants in Swabia -- "...almost all of the articles are framed in their own interest and for their own good, though not for their best good."

Scriptural View of the Atonement: a Review, of Sorts

Cyrus White, A Scriptural View of the Atonement, Milledgeville, GA: Office of the Statesman & Patriot, 1830. Page references are to the copy I own, a reprint from 2010 by the Georgia Free Will Baptist Historical Society (24 pages; original book was 19 pages). This is a reprint of an original book held at Tarver Library, Mercer University, Macon, Georgia. “Due diligence was maintained to reproduce Rev. White’s original work intact including his writing style. Only the size of the lettering was enlarged for ease of reading. A copy of his original work is on file in the Georgia Free Will Baptist Historical Archives.”

Cyrus White was undoubtedly a well-known, popular and effective minister among the Baptists of Georgia. He was, with Jesse Mercer, one of the ministers involved in organizing the General Association in Georgia in 1822 (now the Georgia Baptist Convention). He served as an evangelist of this association. In 1830 Cyrus White made quite a splash among Georgia Baptists when he published his booklet, A Scriptural View of the Atonement. His “scriptural view” was different from the “scriptural view” of the majority of Georgia Baptists. In the “Introduction” (dated December 8, 1829) White gives 3 reasons for issuing this pamphlet: his view had been misrepresented; some orderly church members has been “excluded from their Churches” for believing in a full atonement (as opposed to a limited atonement); and he believed limited atonement was an error with serious consequences – particularly telling sinners no provision was made for them rather than commanding them to “Repent ye, and believe the Gospel.”

The theme of this book on the view of the atonement is 1 John 2:2 And he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world. White divides his presentation into two parts: the nature of the atonement and the extent of the atonement. The nature of the atonement – a sacrifice necessary in order for God to pardon, to satisfy God’s justice and render God propitious; and the atonement made not in view of debt, but in view of law, in which Jesus’s death is “considered a full satisfaction of it” -- is a brief presentation to provide the foundation for the bulk of the booklet, which is about the extent of the atonement.

White argues positively and negatively to prove his view of the extent of the atonement. If I mistake not, his preferred terminology for his belief is “full atonement.” In the negative, he argues against what he calls the limited scheme, sometimes investigating the sense of verses when the word “elect” is substituted for the word “world” (e.g. John 3:16, p. 7). In the positive, White presents “a few plain texts of Scripture [that] ought to be thought sufficient” (p. 6) – such as John 3:16-17; 1 Timothy 2:5-6; John 1:29; 2 Peter 3:9; Hebrews 2:9; and 1 Corinthians 5:14-15.

White’s position is that “JESUS has made full satisfaction to law and justice” (p. 9). He believes that full atonement is implied in the invitations of the Gospel (p. 18). The unjust are subject to Christ in the bodily resurrection and judgment, indicating they are accountable to him (p. 20). “The fullness of the atonement no more depends upon those who receive an application of it, than the fullness of a river depends upon the number of those who drink of its waters. The belief or unbelief of the world effects not the atonement; it is like a river or sea, full, whether they believe it or not” (p. 20). White concludes his booklet with a plea to sinners “to fly to the outstretched arms of a bleeding SAVIOUR” (p. 24). Cyrus White writes with a plain and distinct style, depending on exposition of Scripture as opposed to explaining and defending a systematized theology. Whether or not readers agree with him, they should be able to understand his belief system. It flatly denies a limited “scheme” of the atonement and promotes an unlimited “scheme” (one which I more commonly refer to as “general provision”). It is much easier to follow than Jesse Mercer’s more complicated reply.

Wyatt Vaughn

The following genealogical information was written by me, and is taken from page 419 of Rusk County History by the Rusk County Historical Commission. I have made a minor edits with updated information.

Wyatt Vaughn came to Texas before the Civil War. Wyatt came from Greene County, Georgia and settled in Rusk County. He had a half-sister, Rebecca Astin. Wyatt bought land in the Stockman League in October of 1854 from Clinton D. Holleman, and again in February 1860 from James King.[i]

Wyatt Vaughn married Eliza Jane Parker while they lived in Georgia. Wyatt was born January 11, 1820, and Eliza was born February 22, 1829, with daughter of William Parker and Eunice Jane Nelson. Rebecca Astin married Edwin S. Parker, a brother of Eliza. In Georgia (Greene County) they were members of Smyrna (now Siloam) Baptist Church and White Plains Baptist Church.

Eight children were born to Wyatt and Eliza: John W., December 1, 1845; Susan E., March 5, 1851; Vincent Thornton, November 10, 1848; Olenza Burma, June 5, 1851 (all in Georgia); and Nancy Jane, February 24, 1854; William Thomas, May 1, 1856; Marshall Lewis, May 24, 1858; and Jabez C., February 26, 1861 (all in Texas).

Wyatt and his son John joined the Texas State Guards (Company B), and both died of typhoid fever at Galveston (March 28 and March 25, 1864, respectively) during the Civil War. Eliza Vaughn died January 8, 1887 and was buried in the Shiloh Cemetery.

The church was the center of interest for many of the Vaughns. The children of Wyatt and Eliza were active members of the Smyrna Baptist Church in the Oak Flat Community. V. T. and M. L. were ministers, and W. T. (called “Bud”) was a deacon. William W. Vaughn, son of V. T.; Benjamin L., son of M. L.; Raymond R. Scruggs, son of Olenza Vaughn Scruggs; and Roe T. Holleman, son of Nancy Jane Vaughn Holleman, were Baptist ministers. John F. Vaughn, son of W. T., was a deacon at Smyrna. M. L. Vaughn had two grandsons who served as deacons at Smyrna and one grandson who was a Baptist preacher (all now deceased). There are also two living great-grandsons and one great-great grandson of M. L. who are Baptist ministers.

John W. is buried at Galveston. Susan E. married Wylie M. Pierce and is believed to be buried at Shiloh Cemetery in an unmarked grave. V. T. Vaughn is buried at Shiloh. Burma, Jane, W. T., M. L., and Jabez are buried at Holleman Cemetery.

At the time this history was written, the oldest living descendant of Wyatt Vaughn was Simeon Levi Vaughn, son of M. L., and the youngest Vaughn descendant was Zechariah, great-great-grandson of M. L. Vaughn. Uncle Levi has since passed away, and others have been born.

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[i] “Brother Wiatt Vaun” applied for letters of dismission from White Plains Church for himself and Eliza on November 12, 1852. Since he both bought land and had a daughter born in Texas in 1854, we might guess that they lived with relatives until they were able to purchase land and build a home. Vincent Thornton Vaughn was named after Baptist preacher Vincent Thornton.

Family of Vincent Thornton Vaughn

“God comforts the afflicted and afflicts the comfortable”

“God comforts the afflicted and afflicts the comfortable” and variations of this often make the rounds of Christian quotes. A few people may even think it is in the Bible. The Dictionary of Christianese tells us “It wasn’t until 1987 that someone applied this catchy expression to the work of God and the work of the church.” The first religious use they found was in Religion and Republic: The American Circumstance (Martin E. Marty, Boston, MA: Beacon Press, 1987, p. 82). The use there was not yet reduced to the pithy quote, but part of his description of two roles of the church -- “priestly” and “prophetic.” The priestly “comforts the afflicted,” and the prophetic “afflicts the comfortable.”

Before appropriated by Marty, it was (and is still yet) an expression used by journalists to describe their perceived role -- “The job of the newspaper is to comfort the afflicted and afflict the comfortable.”

The origin of the quote goes back to the complaint of a fictional Irish bartender in Observations by Mr. Dooley (Finley Peter Dunne, New York, NY: R. H. Russell, 1902, p. 240). He observed:

“Th’ newspaper does ivrything f’r us. It runs th’ polis foorce an’ th’ banks, commands th’ milishy, controls th’ ligislachure, baptizes th’ young, marries th’ foolish, comforts th’ afflicted, afflicts th’ comfortable, buries th’ dead an’ roasts thim aftherward.”

The newspapers appropriated a complaint against them to serve themselves, and then Martin Marty appropriated it for the Lord’s service!

Christianismus primitivus, and other historical links

The posting of links does not constitute an endorsement of the sites linked, and not necessarily even agreement with the specific posts linked.

• Christianismus primitivus -- "Christianismus primitivus: or, The ancient Christian religion, in its nature, certainty, excellencey, and beauty (internal and external) particularly considered, asserted, and vindicated, from the many abuses which have invaded that sacred profession, by humane innovation or pretended revelation"
• George W. Orser and the "Orserites" -- "...the kindly and honest Primitive Baptists--New Brunswick's first and only native denomination. (pp. 214-237)"
• Osgood C. Wheeler -- "After organizing the First Baptist Church in San Francisco in 1849, Mr. Wheeler went to San Jose and organized the First Baptist Church there, and then came to Sacramento where he organized the First Baptist Church on Sept. 14, 1850."
• The Baptist Library, A Collection of Rare Books and Association Minutes -- "The Baptist Library is focused on locating and preserving historical church documents, books, bibles, periodicals, pamphlets, booklets and songbooks."
• The Office of "Messenger" amongst British Baptists in the Seventeenth and Eighteenth Centuries -- "...in various passages they are called apostles, or in English, messengers of the churches. They thought it probable that the angels or messengers of the seven churches in Asia to whom the author of the Revelation addressed his epistles were also of the same order."
• Thomas Grantham: Christianismus Primitivus -- "Thomas Grantham lived in an age when kings were beheaded, national church structures were dissolved, and Baptists were regularly imprisoned."
• Thomas Jefferson Simmons -- "Elder Thomas Jefferson Simmons, the Baptist war-horse of the Pacific coast, has gone to his reward."
• 10 Fascinating Bastard Children Of Popes -- "...Popes usually came with offspring in Renaissance Italy."

Two Ships from Southampton

On August 5, 1620 two ships set sail from Southampton, England -- destination America, the New World. Many of the "The Pilgrims" had been living in Leiden, in the Netherlands and hired the Speedwell to bring them to Southampton. There they met the Mayflower, a ship that had been hired in London. This ship was about 80 feet long on deck, and 100–110 feet long overall. There were several false starts on the voyage, due to the Speedwell leaking and needing repair. After docking twice, finally at Plymouth, England, they decided to leave the un-seaworthy Speedwell behind.  The Mayflower probably had about 65 passengers in the beginning, but after the Speedwell's unfortunate demise, they stuffed 102 passengers and about 30 crewmen abroad. The Mayflower left for America alone, departing on September 6. At this time the Pilgrims had left England, they had already been living on board the two ships for almost a month and a half. From that time the voyage across the Atlantic Ocean took 66 days till they sighted Cape Cod (Massachusetts, well north of their intended landing) on November 9th. The difficulties of the voyage included mostly sea-sickness in the beginning. Later they encountered many very treacherous storms. There were two deaths on the journey.

Nearly 300 years later, April 10, 1912, the remarkable, massive and "unsinkable" RMS Titanic set out on her maiden voyage from Southampton, England to New York City. The ship was over 882 feet long. Her maximum breadth was a little over 92 feet and her total height was 104 feet. She was the largest ship afloat at the time. On this maiden voyage the ship included about 885 crew members and carried over 1300 passengers -- about 1/3 of her capacity. Five days out to sea -- early a.m. April 15, 1912 -- she collided with an iceberg and sank into the North Atlantic Ocean. Over 1500 met their fate in those icy waters, and some survivors died afterwards. The unsinkable ship that sank remains one of the deadliest peacetime maritime disasters in modern history.

Remembering the past

George Santayana wrote, "Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it." Someone else said, similarly, “Those who do not study history are doomed to repeat it." A third party waggishly replied, "Those few who do study history are doomed to stand by helplessly while everyone else repeats it."

* Did Edmund Burke ever say, "Those who don't know history are destined to repeat it." (Some sources say he did, but it is hard to confirm.)

Isaac Watts

At the age of seven, the one-day-to-be-Father-of-English-hymnody Isaac Watts wrote an acrostic poem spelling out the letters of his name. It was as follows:

"I" - I am a vile, polluted lump of earth 

"S" - So I've continued ever since my birth 

"A" - Although Jehovah, grace doth daily give me 

"A" - As sure this monster, Satan, will deceive me 

"C" - Come therefore, Lord, from Satan's claws relieve me.

"W" - Wash me in Thy blood, O Christ 

"A" - And grace divine impart 

"T" - Then search and try the corners of my heart 

"T" - That I in all things may be fit to do 

"S" - Service to Thee, and Thy praise too.

History quotes

"Very few things happen at the right time, and the rest do not happen at all: the conscientious historian will correct these defects." -- Herodotus

"If you want to understand today, you have to search yesterday." -- Pearl S. Buck

Some write a narrative of wars and feats,
Of heroes little known, and call the rant
A history.
--William Cowper

"All that the historians give us are little oases in the desert of time, and we linger fondly in these, forgetting the vast tracks between one and another that were trodden by the weary generations of men." -- John Alfred Spender

Woe unto the defeated,
whom history treads
into the dust.
--Arthur Koestler

"The past actually happened, but history is only what someone wrote down." -- A. Whitney Brown

"It might be a good idea if the various countries of the world would occasionally swap history books, just to see what other people are doing with the same set of facts." -- Bill Vaughan

"History teaches us the mistakes we are going to make." -- Unknown

"It is not worthwhile to try to keep history from repeating itself, for man's character will always make the preventing of the repetitions impossible." -- Mark Twain

"History is the witness of time, the lamp of truth, the embodied soul of memory, the instructress of life, and the messenger of antiquity." -- Cicero

History and the making

The posting of links does not constitute an endorsement of the sites linked, and not necessarily even agreement with the specific posts linked.

* 1000-year old Viking treasure hoard found in Scotland -- "Derek McLennan, a retired businessman, uncovered the 100 items in a field in Dumfriesshire, southwest Scotland, in September."
* Britain to hunt for King Harold's body to test theory about his death -- "King Harold II, the last Anglo-Saxon king of England, has long been thought to have been killed at the Battle of Hastings in 1066."
* Forgotten facts about George Washington’s private life -- "At one time, Washington’s distillery produced 11,000 gallons of whiskey in one year."
* Kennewick Man, an ambassador from the past -- "Eighteen years ago two teenagers made news when they found a skull on the bank of the Columbia River near Kennewick, Wash. Suspecting foul play, they called the police who thought the skull looked very old."
* The Diario of Christopher Columbus (October 11-15, 1492) -- "All of them go around as naked as their mother bore them; and the women also, although I did not see more than one quite young girl. And all those that I saw were young people, for none did I see of more than 30 years of age. They are all very well formed, with handsome bodies and good faces. Their hair coarse—almost like the tail of a horse—and short. They wear their hair down over their eyebrows except for a little in the back which they wear long and never cut. Some of them paint themselves with black, and they are of the color of the Canarians, neither black nor white; and some of them paint themselves with white, and some of them with red, and some of them with whatever they find."
* Why Columbus Day isn’t really a national holiday -- "A federal holiday is a day off with pay for people who work for the federal government in what are classified as non-essential positions...Many states have chosen to honor some of the federal holidays, and in the long run, it is the states, and not the federal government, that control the observance of the holidays within their borders."