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"What am I? and from whence?-I nothing know,
But that I am: and since I am, conclude
Something eternal: had there e'er been nought,
Nought still had been: eternal there must be,
But what eternal ?-Why not human race?
And Adam's ancestors without an end?
That's hard to be conceiv'd. Yet grant it true.
Whence earth and these bright orbs?-Eternal too!
Grant matter was eternal, still these orbs
Would want some other father-much design
Is seen in all their motions, all their makes:
Design implies intelligence, and art;
That can't be from themselves, or man: that art
Man scarce can comprehend, could man bestow?
Who motion, foreign to the smallest grain,
Shot through vast masses of enormous weight?
Who bade brute matter's restive lump assume
Such various forms, and gave it wings to fly?
Has matter innate motion? then each atom,
Asserting its indisputable right

One principle of gravitation causes a stone to drop to- | tained their object. We cannot close them more fitly, wards the earth, and the moon to whee, round it. One perhaps, than by extracting a few lines from the powerlaw of attraction carries all the different planets round ful summing-up by the poet Young of the arguments on the sun. New countries are continually discovered, but this very subject. the old laws of nature are always found in them-new plants, perhaps, or animals, but always in company with plants and animals which we already know, and always possessing many of the same general properties. We never get amongst such original or totally different modes of existence, as to indicate that we are come into the province of a new Creator, or under the direction of a different will. In truth, the same order of things attends us wherever we go. There is every where a perfect uniformity in the laws which regulate the phenomena of nature. And this very fact, while forcibly illustrating the unity of that power by whose instrumentality all that we see was ordered and originated, demonstrates most strikingly, at the same time, the surpassing wisdom of the same creative being. What agency, but one endowed with omniscience, could have educed results so mighty, from a few simple and uniform laws?-could have instituted and set in action these laws at the first, assured that, without change, or shadow of change, they would fulfil to the last all the great objects connected with the progressive development of the scheme of the universe? Thus, all that we behold around us, all that we can learn of nature, impresses us with a sense at once of the unity and greatness of the creative being. If these pages have tended to strengthen that conviction, they have at

To dance, would form a universe of dust:
Has matter none? Then whence these glorious forms
And boundless flights, from shapeless, and reposed?
Has matter more than motion?-has it thought,
Judgment, and genius?-is it deeply learn'd
In mathematics? Has it fram'd such laws,
Which but to guess a Newton made immortal?-
If so, how each sage atom laughs at me,
Who think a clod inferior to man!

If art to form, and counsel to conduct.
And that with greater far than human skill,
Resides not in each block-a Godhead reigns
And if a God there is, that God how great!"

HISTORY OF THE BIBLE-CHRISTIANITY.

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THE Bible is the most remarkable work now in existence. In the libraries of the learned there are frequently seen books of an extraordinary antiquity, and curious and interesting from the nature of their contents; but none approach the Bible, taken in its complete sense, in point of age, while certainly no production whatever has any pretension to rival it in the dignity of composition, or the important nature of the subjects treated of in its pages. The word Bible is of Greek origin, and, in signifying simply the Book, is expressive of its superiority over all other literary productions. The origin and nature of this every way singular work-how it was pre

served during the most remote ages, and how it became known to the modern world in its present shape-form s highly interesting chapter of literary history.

The Bible comprehends the foundation of the religious belief of the Jews and Christians, and is divided into two distinct portions, entitled the Old and New Testament, the former being that which is esteemed by the Jewish nation, but both being essential in forming the faith of the Christian. The Old Testament is the largest department of the work, and appears a collection of detached histories, moral essays, and pious poetical compositions, all placed together in the order of time, or as they may serve for the purpose of mutual illustration. On taking a glance at the contents, the principal subject of narration seems to be the history of the Jews, commencing with an account of the creation of the world, and tracing their history, genealogically, through a series of striking vicissitudes and changes of situation. But when we examine the narratives minutely, it is found that there is another meaning than that of a mere historical elucidation. It is perceived that the whole train of events recorded, the whole of those lofty impassioned strains of poetry which distinguish the volume, are precursory and prophetic of a great change which, at a future period, was to be wrought on the moral character and fate of mankind, by the coming to the earth of a Messiah.

The authorship of the Old Testament has been univer sally ascribed, by both Jews and Christians, to pious men who were inspired or influenced by God to communicate to the world a correct knowledge of the foundations of religious belief and moral obligation. The Bible is hence called the Revealed Word of God, or the Sacred Scriptures. "We are to look to the Word of God, then, (says an able writer), as contained in the Scriptures of the

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Old and New Testaments, for the only sure rule of faith | last division includes more particularly the poetical parts and practice. But there is this singularity in the Sacred and some are of opinion that Jesus Christ alludes to this Scriptures, that we do not find in them a set treatise on division of the Scriptures, when he says that "all things any one of the interesting subjects which engage our at- must be fulfilled that were written in the Low of Moses, tention as moral and religious beings. No attempt is and in the Prophets, and in the Psalms, concerning him." made to prove the existence of a God; such an attempt For by the book of Psalms they understood all the books would have been entirely useless, because the fact is uni- of the third class. The Law comprehends the Pentateuch, versally admitted. The error of men consisted not in that is, Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deutedenying a God, but in admitting too many; and one ronomy-such including both a historical narrative, and great object of Scripture is to demonstrate that there is the injunctions forming the legal code of the Jews. The No metaphysical arguments, however, are em- prophetical books are eight: namely, 1. Joshua; 2. Judges, ployed for this purpose. The proof rests on facts recorded with Ruth; 3. Samuel; 4. Kings; 5. Isaiah ; 6. Jeremiah; in the history of the Jews, from which it appears that 7. Ezekiel; and 8. the twelve Lesser Prophets. The first they were always victorious and prosperous so long as four books of this division are called the Former Prophets, they served Jehovah, the name by which the Almighty and the last four the Latter Prophets. The Hagiographa, or made himself known to them; and uniformly unsuccess- Holy Writings, are nine, namely; 1. Job; 2. the Psalms, ful, when they revolted from him to serve other gods. 3. the Proverbs; 4. Ecclesiastes; 5. the Song of Songs, What argument could be so effectual to convince them 6. Daniel; 7. Chronicles; 8. Ezra, with Nehemiah; and that there was no God in all the earth but the God of 9. Esther. Israel? The sovereignty and universal providence of the Lord Jehovah, are proved by predictions delivered by the Jewish prophets, pointing out the fate of nations and of empires, specifying distinctly the cause of their rise, the duration of their power, and the reason of their decline; thus demonstrating that one God ruled, among the nations, and made them the unconscious instruments of promoting the purposes of his will.

"The writers, generally speaking, do not reason, but exhort and remonstrate; they do not attempt to fetter the judgment by the subtleties of argument, but to rouse the feelings by an appeal to palpable facts. But though there is no regular treatise in the Scriptures on any one branch of religious doctrine, yet all the materials of a regular system are there. The word of God contains the doctrines of religion in the same way as the system of nature contains the elements of physical science. In both cases, the doctrines are deduced from facts, which are not presented to us in any regular order, and which must be separated and classified before we can arrive at first principles, or attain to the certainty of knowledge; and in both cases, a consistent system can only be made out by induction and investigation. The very circumstance of no detailed system being given, renders it necessary to form one; for although a portion of religious and physical knowledge sufficient for the common purposes of life may be obtained by traditional information, and men inay work conveniently enough by rules without possessing much general knowledge; yet they who would teach with profit must generalize, and they who would explain the ways of God must arrange, the materials which are so amply furnished, but which are presented apparently without order or plan."*

The periods when the act of writing all or greater part of the Scriptures took place, as well as most of the Daines of those who were instrumental in forming the work, have been ascertained with considerable accuracy, both from written evidence in the narratives themselves, and from the well-preserved traditions of the Jews. Generally speaking, it cannot be said that the books of the Old Testament are of a less antiquity than from two thousand three hundred to four thousand years-an antiquity considerably greater than that of any profane history. At whatever time, however, the different books were written, they were not collected from the sacred depositories of the Jews, where they had been carefully placed, till long after their iminediate authors were deceased; and their present arrangement, as we shall afterwards explain, is of comparatively modern date.

From an early period, it was the custom of the Jews to divide the books of the Old Testament into three classes, which they respectively designated the Law, the Prophets, and the Hagiographa, or Holy Writings, which

Edinburgh Encyclopædia, article THEOLOGY.

According to the order in which the books of the Old Testament now stand, those of an historical nature are appropriately placed at the beginning. The first five books, having a chain of connection throughout, are Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy. These are styled the Pentateuch, such being the Greek compound for five books. They are likewise entitled the Books of Moses, from the belief that that enlightened Jewish leader composed them.

The Jews, or Hebrews, take the name of the sacred books from the first word with which each begins; but the Greeks, whom our translators generally follow, take the names from the subject-matter of them. Thus, the first book is called by the Hebrews Iereshith, which sig nifies In the beginning, these being the first words; but the Greeks call it Genesis, which signifies Production, because the creation of the world is the first thing of which it gives an account. It likewise contains an account of the increase of mankind; of their corruption of manners, and its cause; of their punishment by the Deluge; of the origin of the Jewish people from Abraham; of the manner in which God was pleased to have them governed; and, particularly, of the, nature of the special superintendence vouchsafed to the Jewish nation by the Creator. This comprehensive narrative reaches from the creation of the world to the death of Joseph, or a period of 2369 years. (See article CHRONOLOGY.)

Exodus, the title of the second book of Moses, signifies in Greek, The going out, and was applied from the account which it gives of the Israelites going out of Egypt. In it are related the cruel Egyptian slavery under which the Jews groaned; their delivery by flight, and a passage through the Red Sea; the history of the establishment of their very peculiar law, and many remarkable transactions; concluding with the building of the Tabernacle, or place appropriated to the service of the Divinity. This book comprises the history of 145 years, from the death of Joseph till the building of the Tabernacle. The Hebrews call it Veelle Shemoth, that is, in English, These are the names, which are the words with which it begins.

The third book of Moses is called Leviticus, because it' contains the laws which God commanded should be observed by those of the tribe of Levi who ministered at the altar. It treats at large of all the functions of the Levites; of the ceremonial of religion; of the different sorts of sacrifices; of the distinction of clean and unclean beasts; of the different festivals; and of the year of jubilee, or continued holiday. It likewise presents us with an account of what happened to the Jews during the space of one month and a half; that is, from the time the Tabernacle was erected, which was the first day of the first month of the second year after the Israelites came out of Egypt, till the second month of the same year, when God commanded the people to be num

bered. The Hebrews call this book Voyirre, that is, And he called, these being the first words; they call it also the Law of the Priests.

In the fourth book, which we call Numbers, Moses numbers the Israelites, and that, too, in the beginning of the book, which shows whence it had its name. The Hebrews call it Vayedavber, that is, And he spake. This book contains the history of all that passed from the second month of the second year after the Israelites came out of Egypt, till the beginning of the eleventh month of the fortieth year; that is, it contains the history of thirty-nine years, or thereabouts. In it we have also the history of the prophet Balaam, whom the King of the Midianites brought to curse the people of God, and who, on the contrary, heaped blessings upon the Israelites, and foretold the coming of the Messiah. It particularly mentions, also, the two-and-forty encampments of the Israelites in the wilderness.

The fifth book is called Deuteronomy, a Greek term, which signifies The second law, or rather, The Repetition of the Law, because it does not contain a law different from that which was given on Mount Sinai; but it repeats the same law, for the sake of the children of those who had received it there, and were since dead in the wilderness. The Hebrews call it Elle-haddebarim, that is, These are the words. Deuteronomy begins with a short account of what had passed in the wilderness, and then Moses repeats what he had before commanded, in Exodus, Leviticus, and Numbers, and admonishes the people to be faithful in keeping the commandments of God. After this, he relates what had happened from the beginning of the eleventh month to the seventh day of the twelfth month of the same year, which was the fortieth after their leaving Egypt. The discourse which is at the beginning of this book was made to the people by Moses on the first day of the eleventh month. According to Josephus, he died on the first day of the twelfth; and the Israelites, the Scripture says, mourned for him in the plains of Moab thirty days, and, consequently, during the whole of the twelfth month.

The Jews call the Pentateuch the Law, without doubt, because the law of God, which Moses received on Mount Sinai, is the principal part of it; and it is little to be doubted whether that great man was the writer of the Pentateuch. This is expressly declared both in Exodus and Deuteronomy. But as an account of the death of Moses is given in the last eight verses of this book, it is therefore thought that these verses were added either by Joshua or Ezra. The opinion of Josephus concerning them is very singular; he assumes that Moses, finding his death approaching, and being willing to prevent an error into which the veneration the people had for him might cause the Jews to fall, wrote this account himself; without | which the Jews would probably have supposed that God had taken him away, like Enoch.

After the death of Moses, Joshua, by the order of the Divine Being, took upon himself the conducting of the Hebrew people, and succeeded Moses, to whom he had been a faithful servant, and by whom he had been instructed in what he ought to do. It is uncertain whether the book which contains the history of this successor of Moses be called Joshua, from the subject of it, or from his having been the writer of it. But it is certain that it contains an account of what passed from the death of Moses to that of Joshua. Nevertheless, there are several things in it which did not come to pass till after the death of this great man, and which, consequently, could not have been written by him. The common opinion as to the length of time it contains is, that Joshua discharged his office only for seventeen years, and that, therefore, this book contains no more than the history of that number of years.

After the death of Joshua, the Israelites were governed by magistrates, who ruled under the general de

signation of Judges; and the book which contains the history of these rulers is called the Book of Judges. This history begins with the death of Josnua, and reaches to that of Samson. We here see the people of God often enslaved in punishment of their crimes, and often wonderfully delivered from slavery. Towards the end of it, we have some instances of this people's inclination to idolatry, and of the corruption of their manners, even before they had been brought into slavery. Such are the histories of Micah, and of the Benjamites who abused the Levite's wife. This book contains the history of about three hundred years.

During the time of the government of Judges, there was a great famine in the land of Israel, which forced Elimelech, a native of Bethlehem, to retire into the land of Moab, with his wife Naomi and two children. Elimelech died there, as also his two sons, who had married two Moabitish women, one of whom was named Ruth. Naomi, after the death of her husband and her children, returned to Bethlehem, accompanied by Ruth, her daughter-in-law, who was there married to Boaz, Elimelech's near relation, and the heir to his estate. The book which contains this history is called the Took of Ruth. The beginning of it shows that it happened in the time of the Judges, but under which of them is not certainly known some place it in the time of Shamgar or of Deborah. As to the writer of this book, some think that the books of Judges and Ruth were both writ ten by Samuel; others attribute them to Hezekiah, and others to Ezra. The Jews place the book of Ruth among the five books which they usually read on all the festi vals in the year. These five books are, the Song of Songs, Ruth, the Lamentations of Jeremiah, Ecclesiastes, and the book of Esther. In the Hebrew bibles they are printed or written apart by themselves, and are bound up together.

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The four books following Ruth are called by the Greeks, and also in some Latin bibles, the History of the Reigns. Others call them all the Fooks of Kings, be cause they give an account of the establishment of the monarchy, and of the succession of the kings who reigned over the whole kingdom at first, and over the kingdoms of Judah and Israel after its division. At the beginning of these books is the history of the prophet Samuel, which gives light to that of the kings. The Jews call the first two of these books the looks of Sa mucl, perhaps because they contain the history of the two kings who were both anointed by Samuel, and he cause what is said of Saul in the first, and of David in the second, proves the truth of Samuel's prophecies. They give the name of the Fooks of Kings only to the other two, which in the Latin and French bibles are called the third and fourth Books of Kings.

The first Book of Kings, or the first of Samuel, contains the history of the high-priest Eli, of Samuel, and of Saul; and extends over a period of nearly eighty years.

The second contains the reign of David which is the history of about forty years. It is commonly believed that Samuel, Nathan, and Gad, were the writers of these two books; and indeed they are called, in the end of the first book of Chronicles, David's historians.

The third, or, according to the Hebrews, the first Book of Kings, begins with a relation of the manner in which Solomon came to the throne, and contains the whole of his reign. After that, an account follows of the division of the kingdom, and the history of four kings of Judah and eight kings of Israel. All these reigns, including that of Solomon, which occupies the first forty years, comprise the space of 126 years.

The fourth of these books contains the history of sixteen kings of Judah and twelve kings of Israel; and embraces a period of three hundred years. It likewise gives an account of the prophets who lived during this

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time. It is quite uncertain who were the writers of the composed by him: some of them are more ancient, and two last-mentioned books. They are, by some, attri- others are of a later date than his time; some of them buted to Jeremiah or Ezra, but no very convincing being ascribed to Moses, Samuel, and Ezra. Speaking proofs have been adduced in support of this opinion. It of the dedication of the second temple, Prideaux says, is evident, indeed, that these books form a varied collec- "In this dedication, the 146th, the 147th, and the 148th tion of several particular histories. Psalms seem to have been sung; for, in the Septuagint versions, they are styled the Psalms of Haggui and Zachariah, as if they had been composed by them for this occasion; and this, no doubt, was from some ancient tradition; but in the original Hebrew, these psalms have no such title prefixed to them, neither have they any other to contradict it." It is not probable, however, that all those whose names they bear were the true authors of them: it is more likely that these are only the names of those to whom they were first given to sing.

The name of Paralipomena, which, in Greek, signifies the history of things omitted, is given to the two books which follow those of the Kings. These form, in fact, a supplement, containing what had been omitted in the Pentateuch, and the books of Joshua, Judges, and Kings, or rather they contain a fuller description of some things which had been therein only briefly related. Some give them the name of Chronicles, because they are very exact in mentioning the time when every transaction happened. We divide them into two books, as do also the Jews, who call them Dibere Hayamim, that is, an Historical Journal, the matters of which they treat havang been taken from the Journals of the Kings. In the original language, however, the word days often signifies the year, and in this sense we may understand the term to signify properly Annals. The generally received opinion is, that Ezra was the compiler of these. In the first book, he begins with a succinct historical abridgment, from the creation of Adam to the return of the Jews from their captivity; and then he resumes the history of David, and carries it on to the consecration of Solomon, that is, down to the year before Christ, 1015. The history contained in the second book reaches down to the year before Christ, 536, when, upon the expiration of the seventy years of the captivity, Cyrus gave the Jews leave to return to their own country.

Ezra wrote the history of the return of the Jews from the captivity of Babylon into Judea. It is the history of about eighty-two years, from the year of the world 3468, when Cyrus became master of the eastern empire, by the death of his father Cambyses in Persia, and his father-in-law Cyaxeres in Media, to the year, 3550, | which was the twentieth year of the reign of Artaxerxes, surnamed Longimanus. This book bears the name of Ezra, who was the writer of it.

The next book is a continuation of that of Ezra, and, therefore, it is by some called the Second Took of Ezra. It was Nehemiah, however, whose name it also bears, who wrote it, as is said, by the advice of Ezra. It contains the account of the re-establishment of Jerusalem, and of the Temple, and the worship of God. It is believed by some writers to be the history of about thirtyone years; but its chronology is exceedingly uncertain.

After this general history of the Jews, follow two histories of particular persons, namely, Esther and Job. The first contains the account of a miraculous deliverance of the Jews, which was accomplished by means of the heroine named Esther. The history of Job is not only a narration of his actions, but contains also the entire discourses which this pious man had with his wife and his friends, and is, indeed, one of the most eloquent and poetic books in the Holy Scriptures. It is uncertain who was the author.

Next to the historical books of Scripture, follow those of a moral nature. The first of these is the book of Psalms, which are likewise in some measure historical; for they recite the miracles which God had wrought, and contain, as it were, an abridgment of all that had been done for the Israelites, and that had happened to them. The Hebrews call them the Book of Praises, by which they mean, of the praises of God. The word psalm is Greek, and properly significs the sound of a stringed instrument of music. The Hebrews sung the psalms with different instruments. We make but one book of them all, but the Hebrews divide them into five parts, which all end with the words Amen, Amen. Though the Psalms bear the name of David, yet they were not all VOL. II-27

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After the Psalms are the Proverbs, which are a collection of moral sentences, of which Solomon was the writer. This name is given them by the Greeks, but the Hebrews call them Misle, that is Parables, or Comparisons; and the word may also signify Sentences, or Maxims. It is a collection of divine precepts, proper for every age and every condition of life.

The book which follows is also a moral one, and was likewise composed by Solomon. The Greeks call it Ecclesiastes, which answers to the name of Koheleth, which it bears in the Hebrew. Both these words signify, in our language, a preacher, or one who speaks in an assembly. In this book is given an admirable picture of the vanity of worldly expectations.

Among the moral books is also reckoned the Song of Songs; that is to say, according to the Hebrew manner of speaking, a most excellent song. It is an inspired production of Solomon, in the allegorical form of an epithalamium, or nuptial song significant of the mar riage and fellowship between Christ and his people : "Its majestic style, its power on men's consciences to promote holiness and purity, the harmony of its language with that of Christ's parables, and of the book of Revelation; the sincerity of the bride in acknowledging her faults, and, in fine, its general reception by the Jewish and Christian church, sufficiently prove its authenticity."-Brown.

In regard to the Prophets, it may be observed, that all the Old Testament is considered to be in substance one continued prophecy of the coming of a Messiah; so that all the books of which it consists are understood to be in some sense prophetical. But this name is more especially given to those books which were written by persons who had a clearer knowledge of futurity, who forewarned both kings and people of what would happen to them, and who, at the same time, pointed out what the Messiah was to accomplish, whom they who are acknowledged to have been prophets had always in view; and this is what ought most especially to be taken notice of in their writings.

The Prophecies bear the names of those to whom they belong. Some learned men are of opinion that the Prophets made abridgments of the discourses which they had written, and fixed them up at the gates of the Tem ple, that all the people might read them; and that after this the ministers of the Temple might take them away, and place them among the archives, which is the reason why we have not the prophecies in the order in which they were written. But the interpreters of Scripture have long since laboured to restore that order, according to the course of their history.

The works of the Prophets are divided into two parts, the first of which contains the Greater, and the second, the Lesser Prophets. This distinction, of course, does not apply at all to the persons of the prophets, but only to the bulk of their works. The Greater Prophets are Isaiah, Ezekiel, Daniel, and Jeremiah. The Lomentutions of Jeremiah make a separate book by themselves, containing that prophet's descriptions of the destruction

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of the city of Jerusalem and of the captivity of the people. The Lesser Prophets are Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Habbakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, and Malachi They were formerly contained in one single volume, which the Hebrews call Thereaser, which means Twelve, or the Book of the Twelve.

The dates of many of the prophecies are uncertain, but the earliest of them was in the days of Uzziah, King of Judah, and Jeroboam the Second, his contemporary, King of Israel, about two hundred years before the captivity, and not long after Joash had slain Zechariah, the son of Jehoiada, in the court of the temple. Hosea was the first of the writing prophets, and Joel, Amos, and Obadiah published their prophecies about the same time.

Isaiah began his remarkable prophecies a short time afterwards, but his book is placed first, because it is the largest of them all, and is more explicit respecting the advent of Christ than any of the others. The language of this eminent writer is exceedingly sublime and affect ing; so much so, that it has never been equalled by any profane poet either in ancient or modern times. It is impossible to read some of the chapters without being struck by the force of the prophetic allusions to the character and sufferings of the Messiah; and in consequence of these prevailing characteristics, the author is ordinarily styled the Evangelical Prophet, and by some of the ancients, a Fifth Evangelist. The Jews say that the spirit of prophecy continued forty years during the second Temple; and Malachi they call the Seal of the Prophecy, because in him the succession or series of prophets broke off, and came to a period. The book of Malachi, therefore, appropriately closes the sacred record of the Old Testament.

By referring to our historical sketch of the Jewish people, it will be observed that the glory of Israel vanished at the period of the conquest and captivity of the nations about six hundred years before Christ. As a consequence, though not an immediate one, the inspired writings of the Old Testament were concluded soon after this event, or probably four hundred years before the coming of the Messiah. Thus a period of from four to five centuries elapsed from the time when Malachi concluded his prophetic enunciations, till that in which the Evangelists penned the books descriptive of Christ's life and ministrations.

NEW TESTAMENT.

The second and lesser division of the Bible, as has been said, relates entirely to the Christian religion, or the fulfilment of that which was predicted and prefigured in the more ancient department of the work. This division of the Sacred Scriptures is generally styled the New Testament, or that which has been a later revelation and bequest; that portion of it which relates to the history of the life of Christ is called the Gospel, and by some the Evangel, both these words having the same meaning, and implying good news, or glad tidings, from the circumstance that the narratives contain an account of things which are to benefit mankind.

The New Testament, like the Old, is a compilation of books written by different inspired individuals, and all put together in a manner. so as to exhibit a regular account of the birth, actions, and death of Christ-the doctrines to be promulgated—and the prophecies regarding the future state of the church which he founded. The historical books are the four Gospels and the Acts of the Apostles, all these being of the character of narratives of events; the doctrinal are the Epistles of Paul, and some others; the prophetic book is the last, and is called

See artic HISTORY OF THE JEWS-HOLY LAND-ARABIA PETREA

the Revelations or Apocalypse of St. Jom, having been written by that apostle while he was in the island of Patmos.

The four Evangelists, or writers, are Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John; these having, as is generally believed, been companions of Christ during his ministrations, and therefore personally acquainted with his life and character. Each of the four books is principally a repetition of the history of Christ, yet they all possess a difference of style, and each mentions some circumstances omitted by the others, so that the whole is essential in making up a complete life of the Messiah. These distinctions in the tone of the narratives, and other peculiarities, are always considered as strong circumstantial evidence in proof of their authenticity, and of there having been no collusion on the part of the writers. But, indeed, the events they record are detailed in so exceedingly simple and unaffected a manner, that it is impossible to suppose that they were written with a view to impose on the credulity of mankind. The veracity and actual belief of the Evangelists themselves are placed beyond a doubt.

The first book is written by Matthew, who was by birth a Jew, and exercised the profession of a publican that is, a collector of the public tax or assessment imposed upon the Jewish people by their conquerors the Romans. Matthew, who was also called by the name of Levi, was one of the twelve apostles of Christ, and he is said to have written his narrative from thirty to forty years after the departure of his Master from the earth. Many of the ancients say that he wrote it in the Hebrew or Syriac language; but it is more probable that there were two originals-one in Hebrew, and the other in Greek, the former written a. D. 37 or 38, and the latter A. D. 61: and that these were respectively designed for the Hebrew and Gentile nations.

With regard to Mark, the writer of the second Gospel, it may be observed, that although Mark and Marcus was a common Roman name, there is reason to believe that this Evangelist was a Jew, who had changed his original appellation on being converted to the faith of Christ. Jerome says, that, after the writing of this Gospel, he went into Egypt, and was the first that preached the Gospel at Alexandria, where he founded a church, to which he offered an example of holy living.

The Gospel of St. Mark is much shorter than that of Matthew, not giving so full an account of Christ's sermons as that did, but insisting chiefly on his miracles; and in regard to these also, it is very much a repetition of what we have in Matthew, many remarkable circum stances being added to the incidents they related, but not many new matters. There is a tradition that it was first written in Latin, because it was written at Rome; but this is generally thought to be without foundation, and that it was written in Greek, as was St. Paul's epistle to the Romans, the Greek being the more universal language. The Gospel of Mark was written at a somewhat later period than that of Matthew.

Luke, the name of the third Evangelist, is considered by some to be a contraction of Lucilius; and he is said by St. Jerome to have been born at Antioch. Some think that he was the only one of all the penmen of the Scriptures that was not of the Israelites; that he was a Jewish proselyte, and was converted to Christianity by the ministry of St. Paul at Antioch; and that, after the coming of Paul into Macedonia, Luke was his con stant companion. He had employed himself in the study and practice of physic; and hence Paul calls him Luke the beloved Physician. It is deemed probable that Luke wrote both his gospel and his narrative of the Acts of the Apostles at Rome, when he was there a prisoner with Paul, preaching in his own hired house-circumstances alluded to at the conclusion of the latter work. If this be the case, Luke's Gospel may be dated about thirty years after Christ's departure, or a. D. 63. Jerome

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