If even this were conceded, the passage does not add
one iota to our knowledge of the authorship and credibility of the
Gospel. Dr. Lightfoot says "The author of _Supernatural Religion_
maintains, on the other hand, that only twelve years before, at the
outside, the very Church to which Irenaeus belonged, in a public
document with which he was acquainted, betrays no knowledge of our
canonical Gospels, but quotes from one or more apocryphal Gospels
instead. He maintains this though the quotations in question are
actually found in our canonical Gospels." [144:1] Really, Dr. Lightfoot
betrays that he has not understood the argument, which merely turns
upon the insufficiency of the evidence to prove the use of particular
documents, whilst others existed which possibly, or probably, did
contain similar passages to those in debate.
VII.
_TATIAN'S 'DIATESSARON.'_
I need not reply at any length to Dr. Lightfoot's essay on the
_Diatessaron_ of Tatian, and I must refer those who wish to see what
I had to say on the subject to _Supernatural Religion_. [145:1] I may
here confine myself to remarks connected with fresh matter which has
appeared since the publication of my work.
An Armenian translation of what is alleged to be the Commentary of
Ephraem Syrus on Tatian's _Diatessaron_ was published as long ago as
1836, but failed to attract critical attention.
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