The Sun.
London, England, 1819-01-18 00:00:00

THE BIBLE.

MR. EntTon,-Vl'llen accusations in general
Sulu's are hronelii foe ward against an individlial,
he has an siiiitonbted right to require a specifica-
i!tm Of the gitmods on width they are founded,
ere he enter we a defence. Snell e the t.h,trge
which STACK HousE has brought forwatil
tit%self and his other opponents. All that I have
ehareed hien with, he passes unnoticed, a. he-
ftt4 h the " dignity tat his subject."
Si., as I have charged him with adopting the,
language Hod arguments of a Svcirrinn, and as lee
does not disprore, or attempt to disprove, a charge
u.hich would he of tee) light considelation to a
It nr Ciiiistiati, I shall say no more on the such-
pet, only observing, that his ingiiments consi-
dertd, and the cliar,t...tes against rcinaiiiitti; un-
answered, he must stand, in the eyes of all im-
pattbd prisons,' a self-contirted disciple of that
school, whoie eternity to Christianity as a Faith,
i• at least equal to that of 'Mohammedanism ; and
therefore a most unfit Commentator on the Sacred
Volume .whipli forms the subject of his luctibra-
tiona.

• His two lines front l'oFt?, savour of the same
school. 'l hey have been often quoted ; and &ten
censured as containing a doctrine which, if -ad-
mitted, would cancel the necessity of a Divine
Bektitation. If his Faith cannot lie " wrong,
%%hose Life, is in the right," all Faiths must be
alike right, provided the rules of morality are ob-
served ; it were indiffercnt whether a man be
Christian 01 a Pagan ; and the scheme of Human
Redemptiou (the ground-work of the Christian
)!aith) had bruit toinrce•sary.
1 defy :•Tact:ttouss to wove itl 4iiy one of my
Letters aught tit "shifting," " erasion," " wan-
dering," Btc.; or any thing in the temotest de-
f.:l.re savouring " Methodisar ;" a wont whose
meaning he iieems little to compt:!iiend, but under
which he appears to include all persons who are
superstitious" enough to believe that ChrZl‘T
was indeed the Saviour and Redeemer, as well its
the great Teac'icr of 2%lankind. Could he have
proved these charges, why did tie not ? As he
most he aware that proof is more persuasive than
torte " assertioa ;" and without which he can
neither " vanquish" or " convince." thont4ll
be gratuitously assumes that he has done both.
.As to his et iticisms in favour of Mr. B LLAMY
I shall only observe, that his (Mr. B's) impiove-
Inciitc Ili either case mention4d by :_sTaCik Hollatt
it. hts L;iglith L tier, are futile itt the first rn-
sr Alice (which is a mete Hypercriticism), and totally
isnwarrant,d, by either Hebrew or Greek, in the
other. The words in the StV,:ogint,
p.sra s-2..rpoc (to sleep or lie with) are solliciei,t-
lv anti can hear on other interpretation, as
ST ACK H,,USE. it lie understand Greek, most know :
And I presume the serenty Jews who trimslitted
from the hebrew (anti who were employed by
PTOLFMY as the most learned of their time), no-
detstood Hebrew at least us well as Mr. BELLA^
my. The Hebrew Lexicons do not warrant Mr.
B.'s interpretation, the context dOCS BA admit it;
rooot the word Noah. the name which IfiEr's eldest
danghter gave to her sm., i.e. " the waters of
the Fither ;" or, as the 70 explain it. Fr TOO
vaqof pis, " out of my Father, " is further evi-
vence lii f:tvour of the received Interpretation
The whole passage, as rein:-red by Air. 8., I
boldly aver, is wholly unintelligible. As to his
eNplanation of " being with child by their Fa-
ther," meaning '' they conceived unknown to
their father," it is almost impossible to read it
with gravity. If STACK HOUSE ever attend the
Quarter Sessions (where perhaps lie will be more
in hits element titan itt a Biblical Coniroveisy),
he wtsold find it hard, I believe, to persuade the
• B,ltch, that a women being with child BY a man
meant that it %vas without his knowledge! To such
wretched shifts are torn sometimes reduced when
they are obstinately bent on maimaining a bad

argiiment.*

But to he serious, Mr. Editor. and it is a sub-
ject ‘4.ltich demands the most serious atteloion—
with all possible deference to you, and the biebest
respect and esteem for the pure and constitutional
prolciples which pervade your colututts, allow me
to submit, that the present subject is not alto-
rein, r calculated for this medium of discuss;on.
Desirable, doobtless, as is, the promotion of
troth in all things, i is not perhaps desirable that
every subject should he equally exposed to vulgar
and ,inlearned criticism. Do not let me he here
mistmder...tood, or suppose that. it is fear for the
revult tit such an enquiry that dictates this se-
mat k. Butt ready as are the INFIDP,L, the
SCOFVER, the SCHISMATIC. to turn sacred things
into ridicule, and to ptrvert the truth where it can
be done, to serve their own rods, allow me
to a•k, does not the present discussion, or ?ivy
it nor, expose the most sacred of all subjects
to this danger ? It is not every reader who reads
Frith a good intention ; nor is every reader coin •
per ent tit overthrow false reasoning or to detect
etror. The present subject mmtands that learn-
ing, judgment, talents, should be brought into
the field ; and there are doubtless many who coin-
man' them, by whom the subject will not be
overlooked. To them, as their proper province,
be it then reserved. When we consider how much
of the New Testament depends on the right inter-
pretation sit the Old, let not those be allowed to
enter the lists who seem " lightly to regard "
many of its most important truths. 'l he argu-
ments which I have endeavoured to combat are
those, I hesitate not to affirm, of the Socinian
school, a more dangerous and subtle enemy to
the Established Chinch titan Popery itself. Far
he it front me, Sir, to accuse any man wrongfully;
but till I see my charge publicly disclaimed, and
its error established upon proofs; till the defence
be as candid as the attack was open, I Must
maintain my ground. STACKHOUSE'S moral cha-
racter I could not presume to impeach ; the sound-

* If the propriety of admitting this, and some other pas-
sages of a like nature into the general text, were the ques-
tion, much might be said in favour of it. Under the present
n►ene refined state of Society such alterations might he de-
anaole, dangerous though it be in such a subject to open a
door to inattvation. Still, as these passages contain no-
thing
essential to Christianity, they might be omitted ; but
then let them be emitted altogether; nor let counnon
sense be insulted, I may say, by such futile endea►ours (as
in the present instance) to impose upon them a meaulog
which they cannot bear, or to substitute 110114e713C in their
;stead.

nesS of bis Christianity (as including something
beyond morality) I certainly do. It I am mistaken,
he alone is to blame ; let him prove I am mistaken,
and I shall gladly acknowledge my error. Bit I
cannot'but be sensibly alive to the impropriety of
giving greater publicity to arguments of a nature
so dangerous and erroneous in themselves, at a
time, too, when Socinianism is busy amongst us.
The cliarQe of " bigotry " or of " self-interest,"
wlitch STACKHOUSE has formerly thro,vn out, I
disdain, and toy letters, candidly examined, will
abundantly disprove. But as a sincere believer
in the doctrines of the Established Church, though
not a professional teacher of them, I have coutri-
bitted inv humble endeavours to expose_ the dan-
ger of admitting, without a doe and close inves-
tigation, whatever may seem to militate against
them. Pie critical eminiry into the subject must
devolve on abler hands. But let nut the wolf enter
" the fold " in ft iendly dit.guise; nor the " watch-
man" be found slumbering at his post. I am,
Sir, with great respect,

Your most obedient servant,
Jan. 14, 1519. SCRUTATOR.

FOR THE SUN

BIBLICAL ERRORS.

LETTER li.

MR. EDITOR,—Why in particular a Writer in
The Quarterly Review, and three or four more in
THE SUN, should trespass on Mr. BELLAMY and
his Translation of the Old Testament ; and why
they should extend it 10 one who has stepped
forth to declare his admiration of each, can best
he answered by themselves. instead of the work,
they strike at the Men, and falsely charge them
with designs little short of sapping the Bible.-
0 shame, where is thy blush 1 The one they make
a babbler in Hebrew, and a subverter of its texts;
the other they set down as insane, giving occa-
sion to the tnemies of the Lord to blaspheme,
shewiog his cloven foot, with intention to on-
hinge the faith of the multitude ; yet in the same
to earl) calling hint a worthy man, whose school
they discover by his writings. GOD forgive them,
and place his supernal finger on their consciences,
which will then be a mirror, in which they will
see their own deformity. Who or what such men
are, whether outwardly sincere, or inwardly the
contrary, is not worth inquiry. Their evil spirit,
and its productions on me, and Mr. BELLAMY,
establish their Own condemnation ; and it were
idle to notice them further, except wishing them
more sense, better temprrs, and clearer minds,
nith less occasion for their exertion.
From them 1 now turn as from a barren waste,
ne;thrt desirous to teach, or be -taught religion
in any of its forms, bowing, as I must humbly
do, TO ALL. It is Mr. BELLAMY'S Translation of
Genesis that I have undertaken, uncalled for, to
examine, and having examined, to approve.
Hence, in continuation of my last, I ant
charmed with the language he puts into the mouth
of ()NAN, as authorised by the otiginal. lu ch.
38, v. 9,, he makes it—" but ONAN knew tile
posterity was not for him. So it was when he
went to the wife of his brother, who corrupted
the land, that he gave not posterity to his bro-
ther." Verse 10, also—" He committed evil in
the sight of JEHOVAH, therefore he died also be-
fore him." Hence the indelicacy of the old ver-
sion is taken away, and the end of the verse ren-
dered unnecessary. So that it was " when be
had been to the wife of his brother that he cor-
rupted tbe custom of the land." How why, in
not giving posterity to his brother. Also, in
ch. 40, v. 3, o here in the old version it is said,
that JOSEPH WAS bound, it is more properly stated
!hat he was confined, not bound, because lie had
the governintato of the whole prison, which he
could nut exert had he been bound. In another
parr of this chapter, that venerable patriarch
NOAH is charged with being drunk of his own
wine. Mr. BELLAMY, 011 the contrary, has truly
substituted the more apposite word satisfied :
" Then he drank of the wine and was satisfied.",
Drunken means he was elevated beyond his usual
spirits. Yet in other parts of scripture the word
plainly conveys its own meaning, as in 1 Kings,
where it is, "be WttS drinking himself drunk, &e."
But probably no expression is more objectionable
than that—" The Lord repented," which has
been fixed on to prove that Moses did not write
by inspiration, because repentance cannot be ap-
plied to Goo. In Hebrew it is—" he comforted
himself ;" he was appeased and satisfied that be
had made the man on the earth, notwithstanding
he idolized himself at his heart. 'rims supporting
the mind under calamity.

Sorely, says Mr. BELLAMY, it is a reproach to
all the Christian Nations to see the errors of the
early ages still retained in the Sacred Yates. It
ws that neither the Translators before the time
of JEROME, nor the Revisers in the tune of our
King JamEs, were sufficiently impressed with the
hallowed character of the ar%ful Majesty of
lirayeu, or they would not have represented the
omniscient Janovan, with whom there is no fu-
ture, as not knowing in the space of a few years
that he should repent because lie had made man
on the earth, and that it should grieve him at his
heart. Can any one, except in a frenzy, say that
this remark conies trom an enemy to the Bible
Let it silence all leartul beings of the contrary,
and be a comfort to them in their pious orgies,
or peaceful slumbers. in ch. 8. v. 21. it is print-
ed, " the Lord smelled a sweet savour ;" but Mr.
BELLAMY has changed these words,—" And Jll-
- accepted the incense of rest ;" which is
better titan giving him the sense of smelling, as
it is only applicable to his creatures ; yet the
meaning is the same that the Lord accepted it,
and Mr. BELLAMY shews, that in Hebrew the
word is to accept, which, in common sense, is
more pleaing to the eye and ear than to smell,
and so, 1 doubt not, it will be admitted by the
most captious critics, and snarlers too, as sweet
savour means incense of rest, signifying that GOD
had accepted this sacrifice, by the application of
which to tile Messiah, man was to find true
rest.

Thus far is Mr. BELLAMY justified in his trans-
lation, and, from such happy bpecimens, it is rea-
sonable to expect he %yid be so throughout, to
the discowfiture of ail his causeless enemies, of
%% bleb wore hereafter.

STACK HOUSE.

LONDON JOURNALS;

FROM THE MORNING PAPERS OF THIS DAY.

[Morning Post.]
SOUTH AMERICA.

We have received a communication, signed
" Puis Lopez Mendez," Deputy-General of the
Supreme Government of .Venezuela, residing in
London. Its extreme length, and the pressure of
other subjects, cowlick us to give only a brief
sketch of its contents, but this we trust will be
found to comprise roost faithfully the whole sub-
stance of the communication, and beyond which it
certainly possesses no interest. The Deputy-
General describes the 'cuticle relative to the
affairs of Venezuela, which was lately ex-
tracted by all the Journals of this metro-
polis from a Cork Paper, as a tissue " of horrible
calumnies," from which he conceives it neces-
sat yto vindicate his character. He states, that
as the Public will shortly he in the possession of
the real truth respecting the occurrences that have
taken place between Col. Wilson anti the Govern-
ment of Venezuela, be abstains from entering
into the subject.. He declares, that he has never
seduced, or attempted to seduce, any British
officer or soldier into the service of his Govern-
ment ; and that neither he, nor any other per-
son having his authority and consent, has ever re-
ceived any sum of money from any individual to
procure his admission into the Venezuelian ser-
vice. He adds, that he has never entered into
any contract in his personal capacity, for the con-
veyance of Officers to Venezuela, but that he has
always acted in such transactions in the name and
on behalf of the Government, by which he has been
invested with the fullest powers. He complains se-
verely of the conduct of certain British Officers who
embarked for Venezuela, and whose passage was
paid by the Venezuelian Government, but who
never joined, whil,t some of them, he asserts, even
ran artily with some important letters, and returned
to this counts y to communicate them to " a Fo-
reigner of distinction," and to he employed by him
in writing against the Patriotic Government. He
states tha't the conditions on which British Offi-
cers were engsged were, that on their. arrival at
Venezuela they should present to the Govern-
ment, besides the letters of terommendation which
he had given them, the Commissions which they
had held in the British army, and documents to
prove their services. And he contends that those
who publish the libels and calumnies of which
Ise complains, are the persons who, not basing
fulfilled those conditions, could obtain no employ-
ment at Venezuela. Others, he asserts, who had
engaged to bring a certain number of men, failed
in the execution of their promise, and are now
become inimical to a cause which has rejected
them as unworthy. He then descends to individual
cases, and concludes with an eulogium on the mi-
litaty and administrative abilities of General Bo-
livar, the supreme head of the present Venezue-
lian Government. Such are the contents of this
documient, on which we leave the Public to form
their own opinion.

TOPIC IN HIGH LIFE.—The Fashionable World
will he surprised to bear that a matrimonial al-
liance is on the tapis between a young Btitisli
Nobleman and the Sister of the Autocrat of All
the Russias, the Grand Duchess Anne. Rumour
states, in a high legal quarter, that the contract
is now drawing up.—•(lbid.)

[Morning Herald.]

His Royal Highness the Prince Regent fol-
lows the example of his revered Father, by pro-
moting his own servants in preference to stran-
gers. His Royal Highness has lately been pleas-
ed to appointment two of his footmen, Charles
Maxwell and John Stephens, to the rank of
Pages.