Page images
PDF
EPUB

represents, "casteth firebrands, arrows, and death; so is the man who "deceiveth his neighbour, and saith, Am not I in sport ?”*

I will at present conclude my remarks on this article, by advising the admirers of such theological critics as Mr De Wette, to read over Leslie's Short Method with the Deists, in the original work. The reasoning of this old Englishman is certainly not like that of the modern German school of Eichorn, Vaters, and De Wette. But I think these reasoners might read it with some improvement.

[ocr errors]
[ocr errors]
[ocr errors]

May I now be permitted, with all that humility which befits an author addressing the judges who are to decide his fate, to say a word or two to the Critical Reviewers; and that is, to entreat them not to appear quite so sure that every objection advanced against the truth of Scripture history, even of the Old Testament, is unanswerable, until the public, as well as themselves, have had an opportunity of considering it. They tell us indeed, that "in the remarks they have "given, they have not been declaring their own opinions, but those of "the author of the work, or of a German critic by whom it has been "highly commended;"-" they merely propose the subject for calm investigation;" they only want to know of Revelation WHETHER IT BE TRUE," (having I presume, formed no clear decision as yet on that subject;)" and if it be true, it is of infinite moment, and every "thing good and fair and lovely must follow the firm, the rational and "unprejudiced conviction of the truth." They do, however, communicate to us some of their own, which I humbly hope they may reconsider; "Here are parts of the old Jewish fabric which appear to us," say they, "as they evidently did to Paul, to have nothing whatever to "do with the pure and polished structure of the Christian church; they are a sort of clumsy and superfluous out-buildings, which as soon as they are demolished will let more of the solidity and beauty of "the Christian edifice appear." Now I would seriously, and in perfect good faith, beg of these gentlemen to consider again, whether it is quite so certain that St Paul thought thus of the connexion of Judaism with Christianity. He undoubtedly did teach that the ceremonial part of the Jewish Law was superseded by the Gospel; but assuredly he every where represents Judaism as the original foundation, the heaven-appointed introduction, the essential preparative for the Gospel

[ocr errors]
[ocr errors]

* Proverbs, xxvi. 18, 19.—Another species of argument which appears to be imputed to Mr De Wette is, that if a practice prevailed among the Jews, such for instance as that of “offering n heights," and not going to the "sanctuary where God choose to place his name," the law against this practice which now stands in the Mosaic code could not then have existed there, and therefore so far that code is of modern origin. Now this is pretty much such an argument as if a Chinese one thousand years hence, reading of the frequent duels which are allowed in Christian countries, should infer that the command, "Thou shalt do no murder," did not then exist in the Decalogue, but that it was introduced in consequence of that practice. But I am not sure this mode of reasoning was used. I only note it by way of precaution: it may easily be paralleled in the ingenious reasonings of minute philosophers.

"

[ocr errors]
[ocr errors]

of Christ. "To the Jews," he declares, "" were committed the oracles " of God."* The law" he pronounces "holy; and the command"ment holy, and just, and good." "To the Israelites," he declares, pertain the adoption, and the glory, and the covenants, and the giving of the law, and the service of God, and the promises; whose are "the fathers, and of whom, as concerning the flesh, Christ came, who "is over all, God blessed for ever." But these critics dismiss the ceremonial part of the scheme, "as a mere fugitive contrivance, which, "if it were not the work of human artifice, it was at all events little "more than what human artifice might be expected to produce." St Paul, on the contrary, thought that " Moses was admonished of God, "when he was about to make the tabernacle; for see, saith he, that "thou make all things according to the pattern showed to thee in the "Mount."§ These critics conceive the moral part of the law was intrusted to the care of the prophets; and they exemplify the estimation in which they hold what is generally deemed prophecy, by telling us "the prophets prepared for the coming of Christ, not, as is vulgarly "supposed, by the delivery of ambiguous oracles or equivocal predic"tions, but by turning the hearts of the disobedient to the wisdom of "the just; by proclaiming mercy to be better than sacrifice; and by "showing the utter nullity of all ceremonial observances, without the "practice of humanity, of justice, and of truth." Now I humbly presume that it has been shown these principles were taught in the Mosaic law, though they were certainly inculcated with additional force by the prophets. But when these critics thus undervalue the Jewish Lawgiver and his institutions, I fear they forget the declarations of One, whose authority they still acknowledge-even the Son of Godwho refers the Jews to Moses as bearing witness to himself; Had "ye believed Moses, ye would have believed me, for he wrote of me."¶

[ocr errors]

"

Notwithstanding, however, the flippancy with which these critics have decided and declaimed against the Jewish Law, they seem to have felt that they had plunged a little beyond their depth, and talked contemptuously of a system which they did not understand; and I give them much credit for the candour with which they state their own surprise at this discovery of the inconsistency of many undeniable facts, with their crude and hasty decisions: "What strikes us with wonder," say they, "in the history of the Jews, and what may well impress general astonishment, is, that even in the rudest ages, when the manners of the people were barbarous and uncivilized, and when all the surrounding countries were immersed in the lowest depths of idolatrous superstitions, we do behold among the Jews, and for a succession, "not of years, but of centuries, a portion of intellect, irradiated no doubt by the Supreme Intelligence, continually at work to prove "the being, and to preserve the awful consciousness of ONE ONLY FIRST CAUSE this seems to prove, that the Jews were to be instrumental in "promoting some beneficent plans of the moral Governor of the world, "in a way which no other people were." This is certainly a candid

[ocr errors]

"

"

[ocr errors]

Rom. ii. 2.

§ Heb. viii. 5.

+ Ibid. vii. 12.

1 Rom. ix. 4, 5.

Vide supra, Part II. Lect. 11.

1 John v. 64.

"

admission of very important truth; and I again most seriously request these critics to consider, how utterly inconsistent this fact is with the hypothesis of Mr De Wette, which they also appear to adopt, that the books ascribed to Moses, which contain that system of laws and institutions by which the Jews were rendered instrumental in preserving the knowledge of the ONE TRUE GOD, are tracts between which there is "neither harmony nor connexion; that the narration of facts in these "books proves itself (in many most important points) untrue, by its "ambiguity and equivocation. That there are parts of the old Jewish fabric, which have nothing to do with Christianity, but are clumsy " and superfluous out-buildings, that the ceremonial part of the law is a fugitive contrivance, the work of human artifice, or little more— "the prophecies ambiguous oracles or equivocal predictions," &c. &c. It were indeed most wonderful and astonishing if these were the means which Providence employed to preserve the knowledge of the ONE TRUE GOD, in the midst of an idolatrous world. Our critics will, I trust, reconsider these points, and hereafter adapt their opinions with somewhat more care to the truth of history, the analogy of nature, and the harmony of the divine dispensations. At all events the reasoning and serious part of their readers will learn what degree of credit they ought to attach to such opinions, and such criticism, on the most important subject that can occupy the human mind-the examination of the divine word, the discovery of the divine will, and the development of the divine dispensations; and I submit the admonition of the learned, candid, and pious Doddridge to the consideration of the Critical Reviewers; it occurs in his 143d Lecture, Sect. 18. "We may certainly infer, that "for any to pretend to exalt the character of Christ and of Paul as "divine teachers, while at the same time they pour contempt upon the "Jewish institutions as a foolish and impious forgery, is a notorious " contradiction and absurdity; and common sense will teach us, that "such authors, whatever they may profess, ao equally intend the sub" version of the Old Testament and the New."

SECTION II.

Remarks on some circumstances which have occasioned doubts as to the reality of some of the Mosaic miracles-General remarks on the improbability of objections which affect only some one miracle, not the entire series-Miracles in which the magicians appeared to imitate Moses; Mr Farmer's opinion on this subject, and the arguments by which he supports it—The passage of the Red Sea attempted to be accounted for without a miracle, from a passage of Josephus-true import of this passage-supplies no evidence against the miracle-it is represented by Moses, and was believed by the Jews to be clearly miraculous—inference from thence—improbability of the Jews being able to escape by an extraordinary ebb of the sea-Dr Geddes's observations on this subject -The pillar of cloud and fire which accompanied the Israelites-attempted to be accounted for without a miracle-account entirely inconsistent with the circumstances of the history, and with probability—Objection, from Moses's application to Hobab-inconclusive-Miraculous preservation of the raiment of the Jews in the wildernessobjected to why necessary-Review of the mode in which Dr Geddes accounts for the whole series of Mosaic miracles, without admitting any supernatural interposition his account unphilosophic and incredible.

In the preceding Work, Part I. Lect. VI. I have adduced such arguments as appear to me to prove satisfactorily, that the whole series of the Mosaic miracles is established by the clearest evidence; and if these arguments are conclusive, it may seem unnecessary to enter into any refutation of such objections as are raised, not against the reality of the entire series of miraculous interpositions, or the general truth of the history of the Mosaic miracles, but against some minute circumstances of them, some individual instances of supernatural interference; for, admitting any miraculous power to have clearly manifested itself on the occasion, and for the purposes recorded by Moses, the exercise of that power on the particular instances alluded to, becomes perfectly credible. In this case, the remark which Bishop Butler makes as to our Savour, is strictly applicable to Moses. "Supposing it," says he, " acknowledged, that our Saviour, (or that the Jewish Lawgiver) spent "some years in a course of working miracles: there is no more pre"sumption, worth mentioning, against his having exerted this miracu"lous power, in a certain degree greater, than in a certain degree less ; "in one or two more instances, than in one or two fewer; in this, than "in another manner."* Nay, I may add, that the supposition of some particular facts, recorded as miraculous, being frauds and delusions, becomes improbable, in proportion as it is improbable either that fraud should be practised to effect some parts of a system, by a messenger empowered to establish the remaining parts of it by miracles; or that delusion and error should be permitted to blend with and de

Analogy, Part II. Ch. 11. p. 242,

base (even at its first introduction) a scheme evidently supported by a divine interference.

These considerations might, I conceive, justify me in omitting to notice the objections and doubts raised as to some particulars of the Mosaic miracles; but as this might seem to cut the knot, rather than to untie it, I will proceed to consider such as appear to be of any serious importance. They regard, as far as I can find, the miracles of Moses which the Egyptian magicians appeared to imitate the passage of the Red Sea-the pillar of the cloud and fire that accompanied and directed the Israelites in their journeyings—and, the preservation of the raiment of the Jews during their abode in the wilderness, recorded Deut. viii. 4. On each of them I shall beg leave to offer a few remarks.

The circumstance of the magicians of Egypt having appeared to imitate some of the miracles performed by Moses-has by some writers been considered such as to discredit the entire history of the Mosaic miracles; Dr Geddes, amongst others, observes, "We are now come "to the famous plagues of Egypt, the prelude to which, in my opinion, warns us to beware of implicit credulity, and greatly weakens the "literal credibility of all that follows."* Let us consider how justly.

On this subject, after the best consideration I can give it, I cannot avoid adopting the opinion of the able and learned Mr Hugh Farmer, in his Treatise on Miracles. I do not believe that any real miracle, or such an exertion of power or foresight, more than human, and producing effects different from or contrary to the established course of nature, was ever performed, but by the direct interposition of God, or of such beings as act by his immediate power and commission. And I am also with him persuaded, that the magicians did not perform works really supernatural, nor were assisted by any superior invincible being; but were merely impostors attempting to imitate the real miracles of Moses by secret sleights or jugglings; which to a certain degree, and in a small extent, they succeeded in doing, so as to deceive the spectators, until at length, unable any longer to imitate the effects of divine power, and feeling in their own persons its chastisement, they were compelled to confess, "this is the finger of God;" and thus to give glory to God before Pharaoh and his servants, and to evince the futulity of their own boasted magical arts, and the impotence of those base idols, and those invisible spirits or demons, on whose aid they relied, more clearly and convincingly than if they had never entered into the competition, or had not been permitted to succeed to such a degree, as proved that they had exercised freely and fully whatever arts or power they possessed, and had carried them to their greatest extent; but yet were baffled and overcome by the resistless power of Jehovah, their imposture detected, and their impious arrogance chastised. So that we can thus assign a probable account for the Deity's having selected such a kind of miracle, in the first instance, as might encourage the magicians to attempt its imitation, and for his permitting them to succeed in that, and even in a second or third attempt, because thus the Divine Power

* Critical Remarks on Exod. vii, 5. p. 131.

+ Vide Farmers Dissertation on Miracles, ch. iv. sect. 1, p. 409.

« PreviousContinue »