Keowee courier. [volume] (Pickens Court House, S.C.) 1849-current, 1899-08-10
ST. PAUL THE APOSTLE,
BY Rev. J. r. Pfobst, A.. N.

has jet been assigned, was born a
Tarsus, the principal city Of Cilioia
BY birth he was botha Jow and {
o.tizon of Rome. He was of the
tribe Of Benjamin, and of the sect
of the Pharisees. In his youth, i,
appears, he was taught the art OF
trade of tent.making. 1t seems tc
have been a custom among the Jews
even in the higher ranks of life
along with a liberal education, tc
have their sons also taught some
mechanical trade. 1t is probable
that Paul laid the foundation OF
those, high literary attachments, fol
which ho was so eminent in the lat.
ter part of his life, at his native city
Of Tarsus. Afterward he studied
the law of Moses and tho tradition
of the elders, under the tutorship of
Gamaliel, celebrated rabbi at Jcru-
salem.
Paul is not mentioned in the Cos
pels, nor is it known whether he ever
heard our Saviour speak, or saw him
perform a single miracle. His name
first occurs in the Acts, at the martyr
dom of Stephen, to which he is said
to have consented. On that occasion
he is called young man, but we arc
no where informed what was his,
precise age. :,
The death of Stephen was followed
bya severe persecution of the church
at Jerusalem, and Paul then distin-
guished himself among its enemies
by his activity and violence.
Not content with showing his
hatred to the Gospel in Judca, he
obtained authority from the chief
priests to go to Damascus and to
bring back with him bound any Jew
ish converts to Christianity whom he
might find in that city. 1t was on
this journey that his miraculous
conversion took place. The circum-
stances attending it are recorded in
the Acts of the Apostles, and arc
frequently alluded to by himself in
his epistles.
Soon after PauPs conversion, and
a call from the voice of his Divine
Master out of heaven to minister in
his Gospel, he was baptized at Da-
mascus and from thence went into
Arabia, but it is not stated how long
he remained there. Afterward he
returned to Damascus.
Tho boldncss and success with
which he enforced the truths of
Christianity so irritatcd the unbc-
lieving Jews that they resolved to
put him to death. Their design,
however, becoming known to the
disciples, they conveyed him pri-
Votely out of Damascus and he went
- jerusalem. But at Jerusalem, the
brethren not having heard of his
conversion, at first refused to receive
him, but being assured of it by Bar
na1as, tney received and acknowl-
edged him as a disciple. lie re-
manned among them only fifteen
days, and then vert ont on the du-
ties he. was called to discharge.
At Jerusalem, as well as at Da-
mascus, tho zeal with which the
Apostle preached brought down upon
him the same rindictivc spirit which
he had inflicted upon others, so that
they here also consulted how they
might kill him. BY advice of the
brethren he left the city and went
from thence to Syria and Cilicia and
faithfully preached that same Gospel
which he had formerly prosecuted.
Until the time Just referred to,
tho preaching of Paul, as well as of
the other apostles and teachers, had
been confined to the Jews. But the
extraordinary conversion Of Cornc-
lius, Gentle, together with the
circumstances which attended it.,
fully convinced all the apostles that
to the Gentiles also "God had grant.
cd repentance unto lifc." Soon aftcI
this Paul came with Barnabas from
Tarsus to Antioch, where both be-
gan to preach the Gospel. Here
their labors in the Word were at
tended with great success. The first
Gentle church was now established
at Antioch. Here also it was where
the disciples were first called Christ.
\ ians.
When these two apostles mad been
4 thus employed about one year, q
= prophet, called Agabus, forctold an
8 approaching famine which would
q affect the whole land Of Judca. Or
the prospect of this calamity the
Christians of Antioch made q contri
button for their brethren in Judci
e Pnd the money was sent to the elders
SAT Jerusalem by the hands of Pau