Part 73

The Bible accords in a wonderful manner with universal history. There is nothing more common in history than the recognition of a God. Sacred and profane history alike involve this principle. The fictions of the poets respecting the different ages of the world coincide with Scripture facts. The first, or Golden Age, is described as a paradisiacal state, feebly representing the bliss of the first pair in Eden, Gen. ii. And the second, or Iron Age, described in the fiction of Pandora and her fatal box of evils, which overspread the earth, is in accordance with the history of the introduction of evil into the world, Gen. iii. The celebrated Vossius shows, with great ingenuity, the similitude there is between the history of Moses and the fable of Bacchus. The cosmogony of the ancient Phoenicians is evidently similar to the account of creation given by Moses, and a like assertion may be made respecting the ancient Greek philosophy. Travel north, south, east and west, and you find the period employed in creation used as a measure of time, though no natural changes point it out as a measure, as is the case with the month and year. Consult the heathen classics, the records of our Scythian ancestors, the superstitions of Egypt, of the Indies, both East and West, and, indeed, of all the varied forms in which superstition has presented herself, and in one or in all you meet with evidences of a universal flood, of man's fall, of the serpent having been the instrument in it, of propitiatory sacrifices, of the expectation of a great deliverer. The long lives of men in the early ages of the world are mentioned by Berosus, Manetho, Hiromus and Helanicus, as also by Hesoid and many other writers quoted by Josephus, and afterwards by Servius, in his notes on Virgil. Pausanius, Philostratus, Pliny and several other writers give us accounts of the remains of gigantic bodies which have been found in the earth, serving in some degree to confirm Moses' account of the antediluvian giants. Berosus, the Chaldean historian, quoted by Josephus, and Abidenus by Eusebius, Plutarch, Lucian, Molo, Nicholas Damascenus, as well as many of the heathen poets, mention the deluge; and some traditions respecting it are to be found among the Americans and Chinese; not to mention what some modern travelers have fabulously related concerning some ruins of the ark, said to remain on Mount Ararat, and to have been seen there a few centuries ago. Alexander Polyphistor quotes Artapanus and Eupolemus, as mentioning the Tower of Babel; and the former speaks of it as built by Belus. Strabo, Tacitus, Pliny, etc., give us an account of the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah and the neighboring cities, in the main agreeable to that of Moses. Herodotus, Diodorus, Strabo, etc., mention circumcision as a rite used by several of those nations into which, according to Moses, Abraham traveled, or which were descended from him. Berosus, and several others, make express and honorable mention of Abraham and some of his family. Eupolemus and Dius, as quoted by Eusebius and Grotius, mention many remarkable circumstances of David and Solomon, agreeing with the Old Testament story. As for the mention of Nebuchadnezzar, and some of the succeeding kings of Babylon, as well as of Cyrus and his successors, it is so common in ancient writers, as not to need a more particular notice of it. And very many passages of the Old Testament are mentioned by Celsus, and objections to Christianity formed upon them. Is not all this in favor of the credibility of the Old Testament? And with respect to the New Testament, we have the testimony of Tacitus and Suetonius to the existence of Jesus Christ, the Founder of the Christian religion, and to His crucifixion in the reign of Tiberius, and during the procuratorship of Pontius Pilate, the time in which the evangelists place that event. Porphyry, also, though an inveterate enemy to Christianity, not only allowed that there was such a person as Christ, but honored Him as a most wise and pious man, translated into heaven as being approved by the gods; and accordingly quotes some oracles, referring both to His sufferings and virtues, with their subsequent rewards. Celsus, likewise, an Epicurean philosopher, full of enmity to the Christian religion, mentions numberless circumstances in the history of Christ, indeed so many, that an abstract of the Christian history might almost be taken from the very fragments of his book preserved by Origen, and never pretends to dispute His real existence, or the truth of the facts recorded of Him. Hierocles, a man of learning and a magistrate, who wrote against the Christians, speaks of Jesus as extolled by the Christians as a god; mentions Peter and Paul by name; and refers both to the Gospels and to the Epistles. The Emperor Julian, in the fourth century, called "Apostate," writes of the birth of Jesus in the reign of Augustus; bears witness to the genuineness and authenticity of the Gospels, and the Acts of the Apostles; and allows that Jesus Christ wrought miracles. He aimed to overthrow the Christian religion, but has confirmed it. The slaughter of the infants at Bethlehem is attested by Macrobius; the darkness at the crucifixion is recorded by Phlegon, and quoted by Origen. The manners and worship of the primitive Christians are distinctly named by Pliny. The great dearth throughout the Roman world, foretold by Agabus, in the reign of Claudius (Acts xi. 28), is attested by Suetonius Dion, Josephus, and others. The expulsion of the Jews from Rome by Claudius (Acts xviii. 2) was occasioned, says Suetonius, by the insurrection they had made about Chrestus, which is his way of spelling Christ. It has been repeatedly proved, with laborious research, and profuse erudition, that vestiges of all the principal doctrines of the Christian religion are to be found in the monuments, writings, or mythologies of all nations and ages. And the principal facts contained in the Gospels are confirmed by monuments of great fame subsisting in every Christian country at this very day. For instance, baptism in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Ghost, the rite by which from the beginning men have been initiated into the Church of Christ, and the profession of Christianity. The Lord's Supper, celebrated in memory of the dying love of Christ. And the stated observation of the first day of the week, in honor of Christ's resurrection from the dead. Who can say, and prove, that this is not evidential of the truth and credibility of the New Testament? What but inspiration could have produced such internal harmony, and such external accordance?

[Illustration: FRIEZE FROM THE ARCH OF TITUS.]

Of the monuments, none is more striking than the Arch of Titus. This celebrated structure was erected by the Senate and the people of Rome in estimation of the services of Titus in conquering the Jews. It is probable that the monument was completed after the death of Titus. It consists of a single arch of Grecian marble, of exquisite proportions, with fluted columns on each side. The frieze, which gives it special interest and value, is on the right-hand side passing under the arch going towards the Coliseum. It represents the triumphal procession of captive Jews, the silver trumpets, the tables of shew-bread, and the golden candlestick, with its seven branches. The candlestick itself is said to have been thrown into the Tiber from the Milvina Bridge, on the occasion of the battle between Maxentius and Constantine. Should the proposal to turn the course of the Tiber be carried into effect it is not impossible that this precious relic may yet be recovered.

_No book was ever produced by chance._ Every volume in the world is indebted for its existence to some being or beings. And the Bible, we are assured, could not but have had an intelligent author. But within the range of intelligence there exist only bad beings, good beings, and God. Hence, among these must be found whatever originates in intelligence, for this classification includes all beings that are intelligent. Now that bad beings--wicked men and infernal spirits--could not have originated a book so full of goodness, is a reasonable opinion; for it bears no resemblance to such an origin. It commands all duty, forbids all sin, and pronounces the heaviest penalties against all unholy conduct; and as darkness can not originate light, so neither can evil originate good. Nor would it help the matter to suppose that good beings--pious men and holy angels--were the contrivers of these well-arranged records; for they neither could nor would write a book, ascribing their own inventions to divine inspiration; especially as such forgeries are most severely reprobated in every part of it. As therefore God is the only remaining being within the range of intelligence to whom the Scriptures can be reasonably ascribed, they must, of necessity, have been written by Him. And, indeed, the Bible is a work as much exceeding every effort of mere man as the sun surpasses those scanty illuminations by which his splendor is imitated, or his absence supplied.

We are now conducted, by fair and consecutive reasoning, to our last general proposition, which is this: _God was the author of the Bible._

By the Bible we mean, of course, both the Old and New Testaments. "The two Testaments," says one, "may be likened to the double-doors of the Temple--the Old is the New infolded--the New is the Old unfolded." The New Testament distinctly recognizes the Old as a revelation from God; and, referring to the Canon as received by the Jews, declares the books of which it consists genuine and credible. And by God being the author of the Bible we mean that it was "given by inspiration of Him." It may be necessary here to define certain terms which either have been, or may be, hereafter, employed in this essay. And these are:--Scripture; Testament; Inspiration; Gospel; Christianity; and Religion. Scripture, from scriptura, signifies writing--applied by way of eminence to what is written in the Bible. Testament, from testamentum, a deed or will; but according to another rendering the appropriate name of the Bible is, the Old and New Covenants; namely, the Mosaic and the Christian. Inspiration, from spiro, signifies I breathe. "By the divine inspiration of the Holy Scriptures," says an able writer, "I mean, such an immediate and complete discovery, by the Holy Spirit to the minds of the sacred penmen, of these things which could not have been otherwise known, and such an effectual superintendency as to those matters of which they might be informed or by other means, as entirely to preserve them from all error, in every

## particular which could in the least affect any of the doctrines or

commandments contained in their writings." Gospel, from god, good, and spell, a history, a narrative, or message; and which denotes good news, glad tidings, news from God--applied emphatically to the book which contains the recital of our Saviour's life, miracles, death, and so on. Christianity, from christianitas, signifies the religion of Christians. And Religion, from religare, signifies to tie or bind, because by true religion the soul is tied or bound, as it were, to God and His service. These things being premised, we shall be justified in proceeding to establish our proposition; namely, that God was the author of the Bible. And we hold this to be demonstrable.

_From its great antiquity._ It is acknowledged to be the oldest book in the world. Its records embrace the creation of the world, the origin of man, the introduction of evil, the fall and recovery of our race; and it contains the only rational account ever given of these momentous matters. We can trace the Bible to the time of the Cæsars, beyond that to the translation of the Septuagint, and beyond that we can carry the proof up to the separation of the Jews and Samaritans; we can ascend up to the time when we discover that the law must have been given by a person called Moses to a people in the wilderness, at a time when idolatry was universal, and just as we have the facts recorded in the nineteenth and twentieth chapters of the book of Exodus. And if Moses did not get the law from God, the getting it at all--the having it then as it is--is just as great a miracle as its coming from God Himself; and you may take your choice of the miracles--for the one is as great a miracle as the other. Tatian, one of the Greek fathers, tells us, that "Though Homer was before all poets, philosophers, and historians, and was the most ancient of all profane writers, yet Moses was more ancient than Homer himself." Tertullian, another celebrated writer of the second century, speaks to the same effect. "The Pagans themselves have not denied that the books of Moses were extant many ages before the states and cities of Greece; before their temples and gods; and also before the beginning of Greek letters." He moreover adds, "Moses lived five hundred years before Homer's time; and the other prophets who came a long time after Moses were yet more ancient than any of the wise men, lawgivers, and philosophers of Greece. And as the writings of Homer were a pattern to them, so in like manner he followed the writings of the prophets, as they were then known and spread abroad in the world." And the excellent and learned Sir W. Jones, adverting to the same point, remarked, "The antiquity of these writings no man doubts."

_From its uncorrupted preservation._ Though it has been hated and held in utter detestation by thousands, yet it has been preserved amidst all the revolutions of time, and handed down from generation to generation, even until now. And that it is in all essential points the same as it came originally from the hands of its authors, we have the most satisfactory evidence that can be required. "With regard to the Old Testament," says the late learned William Greenfield, "the original manuscripts were long preserved among the Jews, who were always remarkable for being most faithful guardians of their sacred books, which they transcribed repeatedly, and compared most carefully with the originals, of which they even numbered the words and letters. That the Jews have neither mutilated nor corrupted these writings is fully proved by the silence of the prophets as well as of Christ and His apostles, who, though they bring many heavy charges against them, never once accuse them of corrupting one of their sacred writings; and also by the agreement, in every essential point, of all the versions and manuscripts, amounting to nearly 1,150, which are now extant, and which furnishes a clear proof of their uncorrupted preservation."

[Illustration: PENTATEUCH, WRITTEN 3200 YEARS AGO.]

One of the most wonderful and ancient of these is the Pentateuch, as represented in the cut below. Mr. Mills says of it: "The roll itself is of what we would call parchment, but of a material much older than that, written in columns twelve inches deep and seven and a half wide. The writing is in a fair hand but not nearly so large or beautiful as the book copies which I had previously examined. The writing being rather small each column contains from seventy to seventy-two lines. The name of the scribe is written in a kind of acrostic, and forms part of the text, running through three columns and is found in the book of Deuteronomy. It was the work of the great grandson of Aaron, as indicated in the writing. The roll has all the appearance of a very high antiquity, and is wonderfully well preserved, considering its venerable age.

"One of the halves of the metal cylinder is very curious and deserves more attention than it has received at the hands of Biblical archæologists. It is of silver, about two feet and six inches long, by ten or twelve inches in diameter, and is covered with embossed work with a descriptive legend attached to each portion. It proves to be the Tabernacle of the Wilderness.

"In fact, the constant reading of the sacred books, which were at once the rule of their faith and of their political constitution, in public and private; the numerous copies of the original as well as of the Septuagint version, which was widely spread over the world; the various sects and parties into which the Jews were divided after their canon was closed, as well as their dispersion into every part of the globe, concurred to render any attempt at fabrication impossible before the time of Christ, and after that period, the same books being in the hands of the Christians, they would instantly have detected the fraud of the Jews if they had endeavored to accomplish such a design, while the silence of the Jews, who would not have failed to notice the attempt if it had been made, is a clear proof that they were not corrupted by the Christians.

"Equally satisfactory is the evidence for the integrity and incorruptness of the New Testament. The multiplication of copies, both of the original and of translations into a variety of languages, which were read, not only in private, but publicly in the religious assemblies of the early Christians; the reverence of the Christians for these writings; the variety of sects and heresies which soon arose in the Christian Church, each of whom appealed to the Scriptures for the truth of their doctrines, rendered any material alteration in the sacred books utterly impossible; while the silence of their acutest enemies, who would most assuredly have charged them with the attempt if it had been made, and the agreement of all the manuscripts and versions extant, are positive proofs of the integrity and incorruptness of the New Testament; which are further attested by the agreement with it of all the quotations which occur in the writings of the Christians from the earliest age to the present time. In fact, so far from there having been any gross adulteration in the Sacred Volumes, the best and most able critics have proved that, even in lesser matters, the Holy Scriptures of the New Testament have suffered less from the injuries of time and the errors of transcribers than any other ancient writings whatever; and that the very worst manuscript extant would not pervert one article of our faith, nor destroy one moral precept."

Add to this the testimony of the British Critic. "Not one syllable penned by eight obscure authors of the Scriptures of the New Testament, received by the Church as canonical at the death of John, has been lost in the course of eighteen centuries. Yet of the historical works of Tacitus half at least are wanting; out of the one hundred and forty-four books of Livy only thirty-five exist; the collections of Atticus have entirely perished; the orations of Hortensius are known only through the allusions of his rival; and the literary fame of the great dictator survives but in two narratives, one of which has sometimes been doubted. 'Where is the wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the disputer of this world?' May it not be the power of God which, amidst this wreck of eloquence and learning, has preserved unmutilated, even to these later days, the simple and unstudied compositions of the illiterate Galileans--the impassioned but rugged addresses of the tent-maker of Cilicia?" Dr. Adam Clarke, no mean judge, pronounced by the late Rev. Robert Hall to have been "an ocean of learning," said, "I have diligently examined the question, and I can conscientiously say that we have the Sacred Oracles, at least in essential sum and substance, as they were delivered by God to Moses and the prophets; and to the Church of Christ by Jesus, His evangelists and apostles; and that nothing in the various readings of the Hebrew and Greek manuscripts can be found to strengthen any error in doctrine or obliquity in moral practice. All is safe and sound--all is pure and holy." And the judicious Selden, whom Grotius calls "the glory of the English nation," in his "Table Talk," speaking of the Bible, says, "The English translation of the Bible is the best translation in the world, and renders the sense of the original best; taking in for the English translation the Bishop's Bible as well as King James'. The translators in King James' time took an excellent way. That part of the Bible was given to him who was most excellent in such a tongue, and then they met together, and one read the translation, the others holding in their hands some Bible, either of the learned tongues, or French, Spanish, or Italian, etc. If they found any fault they spoke, if not he read on."[24]

_From its important discoveries._ It makes discoveries to man on the most momentous subjects, which natural reason never could have made. One of the ancients said, "The Bible is the history of God." It reveals all that is needful to be known of the existence, nature, perfections, relations, mind and will of God. It discloses the whole history of man--opening with his creation, continuing with his present state, and closing with his eternal destiny. It lays open the amazing love of God to man, the plan of redemption, the means of salvation and the cleansing nature of the blood of Christ. It furnishes answers to the most interesting and perplexing questions ever suggested to man by himself, or propounded to him by his fellow-beings; and thus supplies him with that information which no other volume can impart. It points a second life, unveils eternity, and speaks of the resurrection of the body--the immortality of the soul--a judgment to come--a heaven, the gift of redeeming love--and a hell, the dire desert of sin. In one word, it is God's heart opened to man--a map of heaven--an infallible rule of life--an immovable ground of hope--an everlasting spring of consolation--and the only sure guide to eternal life and happiness. A fine old writer beautifully remarks, "What is there not in the holy Scriptures? Are we poor? There is a treasury of riches. Are we sick? There is a shop of soul-medicines. Are we fainting? There is a cabinet of cordials. Are we Christless? There is the star that leads to Christ. Are we Christians? There are the bands that keep in Christ. Are we afflicted? There is our solace. Are we persecuted? There is our protection. Are we deserted? There is our recovery. Are we tempted? There are our sword and victory. Are we young? There is our beauty. Are we old? There is our wisdom. While we live, here is the rule of our conversation; when we die, here is the hope of our glorification. So that I may say with Tertullian, 'I adore the fullness of the Scripture.' Oh blessed Scriptures! Who can know them and not love them? Who can love them and not delight to meditate in them night and day? Who can meditate in them and not desire to love them, love to desire them, and both desire and love to understand them? This is the Book of books, as David said of Goliah's sword, 'There's none like that.'" The Bible is, indeed, what that great philosopher, the Honorable Robert Boyle, called it, "that matchless book." We have often thought that the sublime descriptions which it gives of God, the humbling and exalting doctrines which it reveals, and the high-toned morality which it inculcates, are of themselves proofs decisive of its divine authority. For, certainly, there is nothing like them in the most admired productions of the most celebrated authors, either in ancient or modern times.