different systems
of the age. Of his undoubtedly genuine works, there remain to us two
Apologies (defences of Christianity) and a Dialogue with Trypho a Jew,
designed to defend the Christian religion against its Jewish opponents.
In these he quotes the gospel of Matthew very abundantly; next in number
are his quotations from Luke. His references to Mark and John are much
fewer, but enough to show his acquaintance with them. He never quotes
the evangelists by name, but designates their writings as "The Memoirs
of the Apostles;" and more fully, "The memoirs which I affirm to have
been composed by his"--our Lord's--"apostles and their followers,"
Dialog., ch. 103, "which," he elsewhere says, "are called gospels,"
Apol. 1. 66, and in a collective sense, "the gospel," Dialog., ch. 10.
It should be carefully noticed that he speaks in the plural number both
of the apostles who composed the gospels and their followers. This
description applies exactly to our canonical gospels--two written by
apostles, and two by their followers.

The attempt has been made in modern times to set aside Justin's
testimony, on the alleged ground that he quotes not from our
canonical gospels, but from some other writings. The
groundlessness of this supposition is manifest at first sight.
Justin had visited the three principal churches of Rome,
Alexandria, and Ephesus. It is certain that he knew what gospels
were received by them in his day as authentic, and that these
are the very gospels which he quotes, affirming that they were
the writings of apostles and their followers. Now, that the
gospels which Justin used should have been wholly supplanted by
others in the days of Irenaeus, who was of full age at the time
of Justin's death, is incredible. But Irenaeus, in common with
Clement, Tertullian, and others, quotes our four canonical
gospels as alone possessing apostolic authority, and as having
been always received by the churches. It follows that the
"Memoirs" of Justin must be the same gospels. We cannot conceive
that in this brief period an entire change of gospels should
have been made throughout all the different and distant
provinces of the Roman empire, at a time when concerted action
through general councils was unknown; and that, too, in so
silent a manner that no record of it remains in the history of
the church. The supposition that the gospels know