TESTIMONY OF MELITO, BISHOP OF SARDIS.
This father wrote about a. d. 177. We know little of this writer except the titles of his books, which Eusebius has preserved to us. One of these titles is this: “On the Lord’s Day.” But it should be remembered that down to this date no writer has called Sunday the Lord’s day; and that every one who certainly spoke of that day called it by some other name than Lord’s day. To say, therefore, as do first-day writers, that Melito wrote of Sunday, is to speak without just warrant. He uses τῆς κυριακῆς, “the Lord’s,” but does not join with it ἡμέρα, a “day,” as does John. He wrote of something pertaining to the Lord, but it is not certain that it was the Lord’s day. Moreover, Clement, who next uses this term, uses it in a mystical sense.