External Evidence

Thus far we have been assuming that the Epistle was written by St Paul as it professes to be. But was it so indeed? The question having been raised by a large number of competent critics ought not to be left wholly unconsidered, though it is impossible within our limits to deal with it in any thorough manner.

It will be well to begin with looking quickly at the evidence afforded by the use of the Epistle in early writings. This does not directly touch authorship but only age. Since however most of those who dispute the genuineness of the Epistle place it in this or that generation much later than St Paul, the field of discussion may be greatly narrowed by evidence bearing on age. Of course we are concerned only with early evidence and that is almost always a little confused and vague. In due time we should get clear quotations and names of books, but by that time we should have reached a part of the second century unimportant for our purpose.

We begin with Clement of Rome, about 95—6 a.d. Many passages of his have been marked as derived from the Epistle to the Ephesians. None of them seem to me to be quite certain, but two or three admit of very little doubt.