Are we then deliberately to believe, (for to this necessity we are logically reduced,) that the Epistle which occupies the fifth place among S. Paul's writings, and which from the beginning of the second century,--that is, from the very dawn of Historical evidence,--has been known as "the Epistle to the Ephesians," was an "Encyclical," "Catholic" or "General Epistle,"--addressed { ~GREEK SMALL LETTER TAU~}{ ~GREEK SMALL LETTER OMICRON~}{ ~GREEK SMALL LETTER IOTA WITH PERISPOMENI~}{ ~GREEK SMALL LETTER FINAL SIGMA~} { ~GREEK SMALL LETTER ALPHA WITH PSILI~}{ ~GREEK SMALL LETTER GAMMA~}{ ~GREEK SMALL LETTER IOTA WITH OXIA~}{ ~GREEK SMALL LETTER OMICRON~}{ ~GREEK SMALL LETTER IOTA~}{ ~GREEK SMALL LETTER FINAL SIGMA~} { ~GREEK SMALL LETTER TAU~}{ ~GREEK SMALL LETTER OMICRON~}{ ~GREEK SMALL LETTER IOTA WITH PERISPOMENI~}{ ~GREEK SMALL LETTER FINAL SIGMA~} { ~GREEK SMALL LETTER OMICRON~}{ ~GREEK SMALL LETTER UPSILON WITH PSILI AND OXIA~}{ ~GREEK SMALL LETTER SIGMA~}{ ~GREEK SMALL LETTER IOTA~}, { ~GREEK SMALL LETTER KAPPA~}{ ~GREEK SMALL LETTER ALPHA~}{ ~GREEK SMALL LETTER IOTA WITH VARIA~} { ~GREEK SMALL LETTER PI~}{ ~GREEK SMALL LETTER IOTA~}{ ~GREEK SMALL LETTER SIGMA~}{ ~GREEK SMALL LETTER TAU~}{ ~GREEK SMALL LETTER OMICRON~}{ ~GREEK SMALL LETTER IOTA WITH PERISPOMENI~}{ ~GREEK SMALL LETTER FINAL SIGMA~} { ~GREEK SMALL LETTER EPSILON WITH PSILI~}{ ~GREEK SMALL LETTER NU~} { ~GREEK CAPITAL LETTER CHI~}{ ~GREEK SMALL LETTER RHO~}{ ~GREEK SMALL LETTER IOTA~}{ ~GREEK SMALL LETTER SIGMA~}{ ~GREEK SMALL LETTER TAU~}{ ~GREEK SMALL LETTER OMEGA WITH PERISPOMENI AND YPOGEGRAMMENI~} { ~GREEK CAPITAL LETTER IOTA WITH PSILI~}{ ~GREEK SMALL LETTER ETA~}{ ~GREEK SMALL LETTER SIGMA~}{ ~GREEK SMALL LETTER OMICRON~}{ ~GREEK SMALL LETTER UPSILON WITH PERISPOMENI~}? There does not live the man who will accept so irrational a supposition. The suggestion therefore by which it has been proposed to account for the absence of the words { ~GREEK SMALL LETTER EPSILON WITH PSILI~}{ ~GREEK SMALL LETTER NU~} { ~GREEK CAPITAL LETTER EPSILON WITH PSILI~}{ ~GREEK SMALL LETTER PHI~}{ ~GREEK SMALL LETTER EPSILON WITH OXIA~}{ ~GREEK SMALL LETTER SIGMA~}{ ~GREEK SMALL LETTER OMEGA WITH YPOGEGRAMMENI~} in Ephes. i. 1 is not only in itself in the highest degree improbable, and contradicted by all the evidence to which we have access; but it is even inadmissible on critical grounds, and must be unconditionally surrendered.(182) It is observed to collapse before every test which can be applied to it.
Demographics Review
The Last Twelve Verses of the Gospel According to S. Mark — Part 82
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