The Press. — London, England, 1855-09-22 00:00:00

f i t tr a tu r t. BIBLICAL EXEGESIS. Historical and Critical Commentary on .tll4 Old Testament. With a New Translation. Part 1., Exodus. By M.Kalisch, Ph. D., M.A. The Same. English Edition. London : Long• Specimen of a Revision of the English Scriptures of the Old Testament from the Original Hebrew. On the Basis of the Common English Ver sion Compared with the Earlier one on which it was Founded. By Thomas J. Conant. New York : American Bible Union. London : Triibner and Co. TRANSLATIONS of the Holy Scriptures, made under no matter what adverse circumstances, preserved from destruction by no matter what strange means, and issued against no matter what edicts and ordinances—whips or scor pions—have ultimately found their way during the middle age to the hearts of men with their kindly task of humanising the savage to a higher code of morality, tenderness, and hustice, filling the hearts of the proud with umility, giving consolation to the troubled in mind, and rescuing humanity from a con dition not to be realised or conceived by the mind amidst the gloss of our present civi lisation. Made from languages of which often neither grammar nor lexicon were to be had, into ruder dialects where the ma terials would scarcely have furnished a vocabulary, where, all roughcast and frag mentary, the ruins of some noble and ancient tongue lay awaiting the reconstructive mind that would write down and settle its inflec tions, and give order to the chaos of thought underlying the harsh and quite unformed vernacular, these translations were abounding with errors, bristling with circumlocution, or engulfed in dark abysses of unpractical com mentary ; and while clearness and perspicuity were creeping into all affairs of ordinary life, our ignorance of the Sacred Tongue shut us off from the vividity of the life depicted in the noble pages of the Bible, and only when some such scholars as Walton or Kennicott opened the portals of learning, did we get even a glimpse of the wonderful history of that stiff necked people, of whose wanderings in the wilderness, thrust forth for a space from the communion of its fellow-nations, the Book of Exodus, which it is our office here to examine, is the record. Thus, notwithstanding our advance in the knowledge of science, in our acquaintance with the East and its customs, our good store of philological means and lexicographical appliances to boot, so long as it was considered unnecessary to give practical illustration to the history contained in the Bible, we re mained at a standstill after the promul gation of the Authorised Version of King James, which, although abounding with mistranslations and misconceptions, still con tinues the uncorrected text-book of our lives and faith. Hence our knowledge of the Word of God derived from the English trans lation is of necessity imperfect. The same may be said of the Melanchthon-Luther trans lation in Germany. While for the sterling value of the English Bible, as a noble piece of English composition, we have the utmost respect, we cannot but regret the want which has long existed of a version equal in linguistic exactitude and archaeological ac curacy to the capacity and advancement of the age we live in. To what wonderful and excellent results, considered from a philological point of view alone, has the necessity of translating the Scriptures led us ! As soon as a language had, in the media3val period, arrived at such a point of advancement that its grammatical peculiarities became susceptible of classifica tion, we find its code of intlecticns settled and ordered by translations from the Old and New Testaments, or by rude songs founded upon scripture history. Languages otherwise utterly lost to us live in history eulely in consequence of the versions of Soripture existing in them. 1. 7 01 4 4 FolcrrAi. t 49 0910 THE PRESS. the Gothic ; and grammatical periods are in dicated by the manner in which the transla tions are executed. It is remarkable that this translation is the earliest known version of the Scriptures in any vernacular or unclassical language. In the same manner the Castilian language first became determined into set forms, with grammatical laws, by the translation which Alfonso the Wise caused to be executed. The Limousin Bible, which would have raised the Provençal into a similar position, was more unfortunate, as it was, in 1233, forbidden by James the Conqueror. A Catalan Bible was likewise unsuccessful. Bonifacio Ferrer (obiit 1477) translated it, and it was published at Valencia the year after his death, in folio, but the Inquisition (then recently invigorated) put it down and destroyed it: thus the language was also degraded and obscured. In our own tongue, the same process of translation preserved the vigour and man liness of the Saxon, and, commingling it with the grace of the Norman, made for us the noble and rich English language we ourselves inherit. Watch the progressive English in Alfred, in Wycliffe (1382-4-8), Coverdale (1535), Tyndale (1537), Cranmer (1540), the version of Geneva (1560 and 1583), Bishop's Bible (1568), and King James's version (1611), and it will be immediately perceived how deep a debt we owe to them all. But the attain ment of superior knowledge as to the collateral subjects mentioned in the Scriptures de manded equal progression in other respects ; and thus numerous attempts were made to give a better version more in accordance with the spirit as well as the letter of the language under consideration. Criticism, according to various canons, began to examine the structure of the Hebrew language ; Lanci at Rome, and Cahen at Paris, put forth arguments, com ments, and translations. Ewald and De Wette, Gesenius and Von Bohlen, in Germany, determined the philological difficulties of the language, but, commencing with certain fixed theories, their discoveries were not, always sus ceptible of universal application, and the real sterling worth of their linguistic researches was, to some extent, unrecognised in conse quence of their stern adherence to certain general principles of criticism, which did not and do not meet with the approbation of the majority. The labours of Walton, Kennicott, New combe, Lowth, and Doddridge, and the re monstrances they addressed to the public with reference to King James's translation, and its inaccuracy have given rise to a desire on all hands for some better version, and the Germans, French, and Americans have led the way to the realisation of this ad mirable project. In Philadelphia, Mr. Glidden has commented ably upon the inaccuracies of the King James' version (" Types of Man kind," Part III,) ; and at Paris, Cahen, after labours extending over many years, has produced a translation of the Old Testament with the Hebrew text on the opposite page, and until the commencement of Dr. Kahsch's design this translation was the only one that could be denominated original and direct, the translations of Benisch and Wellbeloved never having been completed. For the New Testament Alford has done all that can be done for the text ; and Mr. Sharpe, again, has put forth what in many respects may be regarded as the best English version. Still there was no English translation of the Old Testament in existence which, while as much as possible adhering to the sterling English character of King James's version, could be esteemed as sufficiently representa tive of the high state of our present biblical knowledge. This, however, is proposed to be done in America by Professor Conant, of Rochester, U.S., specimens highly satisfactory, so far as they go, having reached London, and the complete work will soon follow. In England, however, we perceive an agita tion commenzing on this momentous sulkject in two quarters. Mr. Heywood, the member for North Lancashire, and editor of Von Bohien's " Introduction to the Book of Ge nesis," has given notice of an intention to move, early next session, for " an Address to " her Majesty praying that her Majesty will " be graciously pleased to appoint a Commis " 0041 to inquire into the eta° gI the autto. SATURDAY, " rised version of the Bible, and to prepare a " plan for the further revibion of that trans " lation." It is premature to speculate on the fate of such a motion, but it is cer tain that a hard fight will have to be fought ere such a commission will be allowed. We shall only advise that the re searches of Walton and the laborious varies lectiones of Kennicott be employed for the purpose of giving a correct TEXT, as the basis for the labours of Mr. Hey wood's proposed commission. It is, therefore, with feelings of sincere pleasure that we find so deep a scholar and so exact a translator as Dr. Kalisch entering courageously upon the labour that in England everyone has hitherto shunned. Thoroughly impartial in doctrinal points, the translator, if his object is consistently carried out, will produce one of the most important and valuable works of modern day. In his introduction Dr. Kaliscli dilates upon the improved state, philological and archae ological, of our knowledge respecting the Hebrews at the present day : he contends that practical illustration of the biblical text will have a more religious effect upon the mind thau mere doctrinal comment or pious germanising. To recognise the truth of the Bible and its mission (continues he) it is only necessary to examine the book itself; its value to humanity and the mysterious mode of its production are suffi cient, without comment, to tell the story of disobedience and forgiveness, and inculcate the principles of mercy and progress. While avoiding the temerity of some modern criti cism, Dr. Kalisch proposes to call in the aid of the earliest Jewish commentators, and admit their evidences as to the condition and signi fication of the text. Let us allow him to speak in his own words : The treasures of the old, especially the Jewish, commen• tators were neglected [by the modern schocl of criticism, with the exception, however, of Caben] ; the positive basis was deserted; every traditional conception was rejected as a prejudice and an illusion. The sacred records were dismembered, transposed, falsified ; the most si•risl conjectures were framed ; and the palm was awarded to those who excelled the rest in boldness and fanciful theories lt has been our careful endeavour to avoid these extremes; we have disregarded none of the more important ancient commentators; we have tried to produce an equilibrium between the faith of former ages and the science of our century; we have examined without prepossession, and have preserved what ever seemed lit to contribute to the true elucidation of the Sacred Word. Hence follows a third feature of our com mentary. As truth is its only aim, and impartiality its only guide, it is perfectly unsectarian; it does not labour to defend the doctrines of any particular creed : the holy text is its exclusive basis, and the most probable meaning of its contents its sole object. Tne author has striven, to the utmost of his power, to keep himself above the parties, impressed with the conviction that this is the only safe method of gradually reconciling the conflicting opinions and of promoting harmony and true brotherly love among the different sects of society. He trusts to have excluded no class of readers. Clergymen and laymen, students of history and pious readers, he hopes, will consult the book, not without interest and advantage Jivery body willingly acknowledges the excellences of the autho rised English version, but so vast is the progress of Hebrew philology sinoe the time of its preparation, that a thorough revision has become almost indispensable; and so deeply felt is this requirement, that societies have been formed to meet it. We hive, ►herefore, deemed it necessary to add to our commentary a new translation, which embodies the results of our inquiries, and upon which we have bestowed a due share of attention. Those renderings of the English version which we consider as erroneous concep tions have been noted at the foot of our translation. Bat it is admitted, with equal unanimity, that the language of the English version is frequently obsolete, and not seldom obscure and unintelligible : we have altered such passages, without, however, destroying the old, venerable hue; we have designedly preserved a coloring of antiquity. Dr. Kalisch discusses at some length, under the various heads of " Importance, Name, Contents, Division, and Unity of Exodus," " The Chronology of Exodus," " The Ancient Profane Writers on the Exodus," the preliminary matter connected with the elucidation of the inmost spirit of the book. Re garding Exodus as the keystone of the frame work of Hebrew history, the skeleton of its code of law, the epic and heroic, though not on that account the least veracious, part of the history of Israel—the point of culmination, where the divided worship of Egypt was ex changed for the establishment of a national adoration of the one God—he has deemed it advisable to allow the second portion of the Pentateuch to precede in order of publication the first and more remote patriarchal history of Genesis. The unity of the book of Exodus he eoneideve irrofragai*, #ie ea" "WI) WO 41 111