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we have made ourselves acquainted, in this way, with their actions, with the noble and heavenly work of love to which they devoted all their days, then we shape out to ourselves the character of these menalmost as clear and well-defined as if we had known them. We have a distinct and satisfactory idea of them, their temper and disposition, the kind of heart they had in them, the great human love which filled and moved them; and the idea we have gets expression in the words, Philanthropist, Christian!

We have multiplied these illustrations because we think they help to show us where the difficulty and the error lie in attempting to grasp the idea of God's personality, and to form to ourselves an intelligible and well defined conception of his character and attributes, and, so to speak, of his disposition, at least as it respects mankind. Of these persons whom we have named, and whom we have never seen or known - we are only able to shape out an intelligent judgment respecting their personal character, and mental attributes and peculiarities by learning first what they have done, whether the production of mind or hand; by studying their works and actions, and the part they have played in history. In this way we are sure of forming a tolerably correct opinion of their intellect, temper, peculiar genius and general character. And so; readily and certainly, we say of this one, he is an astronomer; of that one, he is a mechanic; and of the other, he is a philanthropist; and we both have, and convey to others, a clear and distinct idea of the mind, feel ings, and pursuits of each, a definitely marked and bounded personality of character.

So in regard to the Deity. If we expect to form a distinct idea of God as a personal Being, having fixed and intelligible attributes, and maintaining definite and established relations with nature and the human race; if we would bring the idea into anything like manageable and practical shape, we can only do it by studying his works, by considering what he has done as we see it ourselves, and as they have told us who speak with authority.

"The heavens declare the glory of God," etc. His works show us knowledge of Him. From these we may gather a very clear idea of the attributes of His character, and of His disposition toward us.

"The heavens declare his glory"—literally, "The heavens number out, or display, the glory of the strong God." The first thought in considering the number and vastness of the heavenly bodies within our reach, is that of Power; unlimited, Infinite Power. When we

contemplate the size, weight and velocity of such a globe as Jupiter, some fourteen hundred times larger than our earth, and rushing through the infinite void more than 30,000 miles an hour; and when we remember that this is only one of countless millions of similar bodies which have been created, and are still held in being, controlled and regulated by the infinite energy of the Divine will, we feel that "power belongeth unto God." His handy work gives, first of all, this knowledge of Him; and the more we examine and contemplate the immensity of His creation and the multitude of His mighty works, the more clearly and distinctly does the idea of Infinite Power stand out in our thought, and help us to give shape and personality to our idea of God.

We may not understand how the power or omnipotent energy of a purely spiritual Being acts on matter; but this difficulty applies equally to man. We do not understand how the mind or will moves the hand to write, or uses the tongue to speak; but this does not hinder from a clear conception of the fact; nor does it confuse in the least the idea of personality. So if we contemplate aright the great fact of creation, and duly consider the visible proof of the countless worlds that move in space, we are impressed with a strong idea of the almighty Power of God, though we may not clearly apprehend the method of its operation on matter.

So of the Wisdom of God. Day unto day uttereth speech of it, and night unto night showeth knowledge of it. "The firmament showeth his handy work": i. e. the celestial bodies show or display not only his power, but his handy-work, his skill and wisdom; and the alternation of light and darkness, heat and cold, sunshine and rain, witness to the same end.

When we examine the beautiful and perfect machinery of the steam-engine, or the complicate and wonderful mechanism of a powerloom, we are at once convinced of the ingenuity, skill and genius of the inventor. So if we study the glorious and indescribably beautiful mechanism of the heavens, and observe the precision of motion, the nice balance of parts, the order and regularity of their action, the certainty of result, the ages during which the vast machine has worked without break or confusion, or need of repair- if we so examine the works of God, we shall as readily be convinced of His wonderful skill and wisdom, and get a well-defined idea of these as the attributes and qualities of God as a Creator.

The same result will follow a diligent study of other works of His NEW SERIES. VOL. XXI. 24

the human frame, the structure of a plant or flower, the physical arrangements of the earth, etc. Look at the human frame, consider the exquisite and delicate work of the eye, the structure of the nervous and muscular systems, and of the bones, and that marvellous machine, the heart — and with what luminous distinctness does the idea of the wonderful wisdom and delicate skill of the Maker shape itself out in our thought.

And of the Divine Goodness: We form our conception of this in like manner, and by use of the same means. To get an idea of the goodness of Oberlin or Howard we examine their actions, as was stated; we look to the manifold deeds of kindness and mercy which they did, and their constant efforts to promote the welfare of those for whom they labored. So we must judge of God's goodness, by His works, by what He has done, and is doing, for the happiness and interest of His creatures. And the same works and arrangements which display His wisdom and knowledge, illustrate with equal point and fullness, His benevolence, His infinite, ever-active and everlasting Love.

The change of seasons, the regular return of day and night, the splendor of the starry heavens, the rain and sunshine, the fragrance of the flower, the concord of sweet sounds, the admirable and beneficent adaptation of the natural world to the wants of man; the multiplied fruits of the earth, the pleasures of sense, the divine powers of the intellect and the bliss of the affections,-all these help us to form an idea of the abounding goodness of God as our Creator, and to understand what it is, and how it acts.

And when we remember with what benevolence all nature is made tributary to our convenience and joy, with what tenderness God folds His protecting arm about us, bears with our weaknesses and follies, forgives our wrong and ingratitude, encourages our efforts for good and opens to us the path of peace, when we consider all these merciful acts of His, these works of beneficence, we cannot fail to frame to our minds a distinct conception of patient and enduring Goodness, of omnipotent and unalterable Love. And there is little difficulty in putting our idea of this goodness of God into definite and manageable shape, and imparting to it a personal element. Experience of it daily greatly helps us in this respect, and the works of Divine Goodness, and participation in their benefits, conjointly work up the conception of it into an individual and active form.

Nor is there any reason why our conception of the personal relations which God sustains to man should be any more confused or

vague than that of the relation sustained by Howard, to the hundreds who were blessed by his bountiful goodness, without ever having seen him. The reality of the bounty; and the fact of the existence and relations of the Benefactor, are not affected by the fact that He is unseen, that His bounty comes indirectly, or through one channel rather than another.

CONTEMPORARY LITERATURE.

1. Quotations in the New Testament. By Crawford Howell Toy, Professor in Harvard University. Charles Scribner's Sons. $3.50.

Even the Biblical student, we think, and certainly the ordinary reader, will be surprised on consulting this volume to find how often the Old Testament has been directly quoted and referred to by the writers of the New and how largely Christian thought has been affected by its passage through Hebrew forms of speech. There are given here more than eight hundred passages from the Old Testament which are directly quoted by the New Testament writers, beside some two hundred more to which they refer. These Prof. Toy has classified under four heads, I. Those which agree both with the Hebrew and the Septuagint; 2. Those which agree with the Septuagint against the Hebrew; 3. Those which agree with the Hebrew against the Septuagint; 4. Those which agree with neither the Hebrew nor the Septuagint.

The author gives the original texts with English translations, and as exact an explanation as possible of the meaning, so that the precise thought of the Old Testament may be compared with the use made of it in the New, and the reader thus have all the material for drawing his own conclusions. A great part of the leading ideas of both Testaments comes under discussion, and the citations mark the transition from the old dispensation to the new. Nearly every book of the Jewish Scriptures is quoted, the exceptions being Obadiah, Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther. There are allusions only to Ruth, Jonah, Judges, and two or three others. The Psalms and Isaiah are each cited about one hundred and fifty times. The Pauline Epistles make about one hundred and fifty citations, or, if we include Hebrews, over two hundred. Revelation, though making no formal quotations, either borrows phrases or metaphors, or puts its thought into Old Testament language, mostly from the prophets, in some two hundred and fifty or more instances.

Prof. Toy tells us that the quotations in the New Testament are never made from the Hebrew, but always from the Septuagint Greek, or the Aramaic version of the Old Testament. "The evangelists and apostles, writing in Greek for a Greek-speaking public accustomed to a Greek version, naturally cited the Scripture from this version. There are not many of the quotations in which the influence of the Septuagint is not evident." The Hebrew he regards as a dead language in the time of Christ, as not probably known to any of the New Testament writers except Paul, and his citations are almost uniformly from the Greek. "Where, then, freedom of quotation will not explain the New Testament deviations from the Septuagint, it is more natural to refer the citations, not to the Hebrew, but to the only other popular version of the

Old Testament in existence — the Aramaic." The statements regarding the Septuagint and the Aramaic versions given in the Introduction, are full of interest and instruction to the Bible reader and student, and help to picture to us the condition of things at that transition period of language and thought and literature.

"The New Testament furnishes abundant evidence of modification of the Old Testament texts by its writers, sometimes unintentional, as would be natural in quoting from memory; sometimes intentional, to bring out into prominence an idea supposed to be contained in the original, or to obtain a form adapted to the purposes of the discourse, — a freedom perfectly consistent with the desire and purpose to be faithful to the original." Evangelists and apostles regarded the Old Testament as authority, a divine revelation, a law of life to the Christian and Jew according to the spirit, if not according to the letter. Sometimes, when his argument required it, Paul spiritualized the text to an extent not always sustained by the letter. Many passages, too, are quoted by different writers in an accommodated sense, as illustrations of the events or doctrines in hand, rather than as prophecies spoken with express reference to these. The differences between the New Testament reading and the Hebrew on the one hand, and the Septuagint on the other, show great freedom in quotation, or marked changes in the translation from the original Hebrew into the popular tongue. The following, taken from the conclusion of his Preface, will discover the critical drift of Prof. Toy:

"No honest student of the Bible can object to a careful and honest sifting of its words, and no believer in God can fear that such a procedure will do harm. I ask from those to whom some of the views presented may seem strange, a careful examination of the grounds on which they are based. I believe that the ethical religious power of the Bible will be increased by perfectly free, fair-minded dealing, and by a precise knowledge of what it does and does not say. As its friends we ought not to wish anything else than that it should be judged strictly on its own merits; for to wish anything else is a confession of weakness. There is too much reason to suppose that the belief which is so prevalent in the mechanical infallibility of the Bible is seriously diminishing its legitimate influence over the minds and lives of men."

The Introduction is an admirable example of concise and critical statement; to be read with care, and not without some thoughtful questioning. The learning and exact scholarship of the work greatly honor American Biblical literature.

2. Darwinism, stated by Darwin himself. Selected and Arranged by Nathan Sheppard. D Appleton & Co.

Here are several hundreds of excerpts from the various works of Darwin, giving his opinions and beliefs on all the various questions which he has discussed with so much ability and learning. We have here not what this man or that man thinks Darwin believed and taught, but his own testimony in each case, given in his own words, without abridgment, note or comment from the compiler. Darwin has been charged with opinions he never entertained, and held responsible for absurdities advocated only by hot-headed admirers who hastened to outrun their master. And many persons have regarded him as an enemy of religion, and essentially atheistic. All such will now have an opportunity of knowing exactly what he has believed and taught regarding these matters. And no one need be ignorant of his religious views; no one need misunderstand his thought respecting the influence of his discoveries in natural science on religious faith and life.

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