Verse 16
16. A holy kiss (Luke 7:45.) Paul mentions the holy kiss, (1 Thessalonians 5:26;) Peter the kiss of charity, (1 Peter 5:14.) Tertullian mentions the kiss of peace, and Justin Martyr tells us that the early Christians used the brotherly kiss after the close of prayer in their congregations. The custom is still continued in the Greek Church. The Romanists at mass perform what they call a “Pax, or kissing one another.” All the churches The word all, omitted from our English version, is sustained by the amplest authority. It was doubtless omitted in some manuscripts because the copyists understood not how Paul could answer for all the Churches. Lange thinks that it was because the eastern Churches knew that Paul was about writing to Rome, and had received so many commissioned salutations that he spoke for all. We suppose, however, that he speaks only for the region whence he is writing, namely, Corinth and its adjacent circuit.
The Churches, many of them, were the groups or congregations worshipping in some room of a private house.
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