CHAPTER NINTH.

THE HOLY SCRIPTURES.

THIS Would seem to be the place in which to present the proof of the authenticity of the Holy Scriptures, as a revelation from God. This, however, being only a particular exemplification of the general laws of evidence, it belongs to the course of instruction in Intellectual Philosophy. It must therefore be here omitted. We shall, in the remainder of these remarks, take it for granted, that the Scriptures of the Old and New Testament contain a .revelation from God to man, and that these books contain all that God has been pleased to reveal unto us by language; and, therefore, all which is recorded in language that is ultimate in morals, and that is, by its own authority, binding upon the conscience. Taking this for granted, we shall in the present chapter consider, 1st, what the Scriptures contain; and, 2d, how we may ascertain our duty from the Scriptures.

SECTION I.

A VIEW OF THE HOLY SCRIPTURES.

The Holy Scriptures are contained in two separate volumes, entitled the Old and the New Testament. These volumes have each a distinct object, and yet their objects are in perfect harmony; and, together, they contain all that could be desired in a revelation to the human race.

The design of the Old Testament mainly is, to reveal a system of simple law; to exhibit the results of such a system

upon the human race, and to direct the minds of men to the remedial dispensation which was to follow. In accomplishing this design, it contains several distinct parts.

1. An account of the creation of the world, of the creation and fall of man, and a brief history of the race of man until the deluge. The cause of this deluge is stated to be, the universal and intense wickedness of man.

2. The account of the separation of a particular family, the germ of a nation, designed to be the depositaries of the revealed will of God; and the history of this nation, from the call of Abraham until the return from the captivity in Babylon, a period of about fifteen hundred years.

3. The system of laws which God gave to this nation. These laws may be comprehended under three classes: Moral laws, or those which arise from the immutable relations existing between God and man.

Civil laws, or those enacted for the government of civil society; adapted specially to the Jewish Theocracy, or that form of government in which God was specially recognised as King.

Ceremonial laws. These were of two kinds: First, those which were intended to keep this nation separate from other nations; and, second, those intended to prefigure events which were to occur under the second or new dispensation.

4. Various events in their history, discourses of prophets and inspired teachers, prayers, odes of pious men; all tending to illustrate what are the effects of a system of moral law upon human nature, even when placed under the most favorable circumstances; and also, to exhibit the effects of the religious principle upon the soul of man under every variety of time and condition.

The result of all this series of moral means seems to be this. God, in various modes, suited to their condition, made known his will to the whole human race. They all, with the exception of a single family, became so corrupt, that he destroyed them by a general deluge. He then selected a single family, and gave them his written law, and, by peculiar enactments, secluded them from all other nations, that the experiment might be made under the most favorable

circumstances. At the same time, the effects of natural religion were tried among the heathen nations that surrounded them. The result was, a clear demonstration that, under the conditions of being in which man was created, any reformation was hopeless, and that, unless some other conditions were revealed, the race would perish by its own vicious and anti-social tendencies, and enter the other world to reap the reward of its guilt for ever. While this is said to be the main design of the Old Testament, it is not to be understood that this is its whole design. It was intended to be introductory to the new dispensation, and, also, to teach those, to whom it was addressed, the way of salvation. Hence, allusions to the principal events in the new dispensation, are every where to be met with. Hence, also, assurances of pardon are made to the penitent, and God is represented as ready to forgive; though the procuring cause of our pardon is not explicitly stated; but only alluded to in terms which could not be fully understood, until the remedial dispensation was accomplished.

The design of the New Testament is, to reveal to the race of man the new conditions of being, under which it is placed, by virtue of a remedial dispensation.

In pursuance of this design, the New Testament contains,

1. A narrative of the life and death, resurrection and ascension, the acts and conversations, of Jesus of Nazareth; a Being in whom the divine and human natures were mysteriously united; who appeared on earth to teach us whatever was necessary to be known of our relations to God; and, by his obedience to the law, and voluntary sufferings and death, to remove the obstacles to our pardon, which, under the former dispensation, existed in consequence of the holiness of God.

2. A brief narrative of the facts relating to the progress of the Christian religion, for several years after the ascension of Jesus of Nazareth.

3. The instructions which his immediate followers, or apostles, by divine inspiration, gave to the men of their own time, and which were rendered necessary in consequence

of their ignorance of the principles of religion, or the weakness of their virtue, and the imperfection of their faith.

The whole of this volume, taken together, teaches us the precepts, the sanctions, and the rewards of the law of God, with as great distinctness as we could desire; and also a way of salvation, on different grounds from that revealed both by natural religion and by the Old Testament; a way depending for merit, upon the doings and sufferings of another, but yet available to us on no other conditions than those of supreme, strenuous, and universal moral effort after perfect purity of thought, and word and action.

This, being a remedial dispensation, is, in its nature, fixed. We have no reason to expect any other; nay, the idea of another would be at variance with the belief of the truth of this. And, hence, the Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments contain all that God has revealed to us by language respecting his will. What is contained here alone, is binding upon the conscience. Or, in the words of Chillingworth, "THE BIBLE, THE BIBLE, THE RELIGION OF PROTESTANTS."

SECTION II.

IN WHAT MANNER ARE WE TO ASCERTAIN OUR DUTY FROM THE HOLY SCRIPTURES?

Taking it for granted that the Bible contains a revelation of the will of God, such as is stated in the preceding section, it will still be of importance for us to decide how we may ascertain, from the study of it, what God really requires of us. Much of it is mere history, containing an unvarnished narration of the actions of good and of bad men. Much of it has reference to a less enlightened age, and to a particular people, set apart from other people, for a special and peculiar purpose. Much of it consists of exhortations and reproofs, addressed to this people, in reference to the laws

then existing, but which have been since abrogated. Now, amidst this variety of instructions, given to men at different times, and of different nations, it is desirable that the prin ciples be settled, by which we may decide what portion of this mass of instruction is binding upon the conscience, at the present moment. My object, in the present section, is to ascertain, as far as possible, the principles by which we are to be guided in such a decision.

When a revelation is made to us by language, it is taken for granted, that whatever is our duty, will be signified to us by a command; and hence, what is not commanded, is not to be considered by us as obligatory. Did we not establish this limitation, every thing recorded, as, for instance, all the actions both of good and of bad men, might be regarded as authority; and thus a revelation, given for the purpose of teaching us our duty, might be used as an instrument to confound all distinction between right and wrong.

The ground of moral obligation, as derived from a reve lation, must, therefore, be a command of God.

Now, a command seems to involve three ideas :

1. That an act be designated. This may be, by the designation of the act itself, as, for instance, giving bread to the hungry; or else by the designation of a temper of mind, as that of universal love, under which the above act, and various other acts, are clearly comprehended.

2. That it be somehow signified to be the will of God, that this act be performed. Without this intimation, every act that is described, or even held up for our reprobation, might be quoted as obligatory.

3. That it be signified, that we are included within the number to whom the command is addressed. Otherwise, all the commandments, to the patriarchs and prophets, whether ceremonial, symbolical, or individual, would be binding upon every one who might read them. And hence, in general, whosoever urges upon us any duty, as the command of God, revealed in the Bible, must show that God has, somewhere, commanded that action to be done, and that he has commanded us to do it.