Alexandria gazette & daily advertiser. [volume] (Alexandria [Va.]) 1817-1822, 1819-05-05

ON THE EARLY STUDY OF THE SACRED WIKI
TINGs At SCHOOL.
Few, | believe, will deny their assent 10
what urged in my former letter, (see
Thursdays Gazette and never was the
advice OF Horace more applicable 10 any
book than to the bible:
NOCtwrHG CirSnte mana Uirsdte dtWrnd.
Ponder on tidy iuydrd muse on At oyni hi.
These remarks were olit red through a
wish TO recommend 10 The young and stu
dious, necessary and ready method OF "a
musement, from which they mast derive
the most advantageous instructions, and
the most important of all knowie ,!ge Tor
we cannot peruse it without being pleased;
and who that is pleased will he inclined to
disbeleve OF doubt the purposes for which
the different portions Of scripture were
composed and collected? We must con-
slider ourselves obliged TO defend tn. nno-
cence Of her authors, and feel ourselves
hattered to favor he beatty and sublimiiy
of their style md language. A proper COM
parison of their graces with those OF other
writers. constantly read and universally adj
mired, would improve the taste and en-
crease a desire of searching after those
beauties, which at first sight astonjsh and
excel all others we are already acquainted
with. Whatever errors may be discovered
in an essay on this subject, it is still expect
ed that they will not undo the design for
which it is undertaken; ii is rather to in
viie than to command the inclination oi the
reader to survey the parts which are intro
duced, and which seem to merit prefer
ence OF applause and the authors of which
are entitled to the most honorable decisions
oil lite airy ju,licature. Though this attempt
may appear weak, and tough the parts Sc.
lec'ed may appear injudicious to critical
examiner, il is hoped, however, thai It will
employ the iisapprover TO confirm the truth
o. his objections, and dispose him to a cIo-
ser application OF religious reading than he
otherwise might have done, which viii
there fore answer the end aimed al in this
effort,as elfeCtuaIly as if he had been pleas.
cd with the observations, or had approved
Of the proceedings.
The style of the prophetic writings has
always been esteemed as highly poetical;
and il is a matter of amazement that the
numerous commentators who have illustra-
ted the thoughts and diction of the poets
of different languages. should so sparingly
advert to the superior excellence of the He
brew bards, an excellence that cannot lie
disputed or reduced to a competition. The
subject of every heather or christian poet
of eminence, commences with some re-
mote exploit, where the scene Of action is
confined, and the space of time limited and
contracted, without any connection of the
facts related, or The persons introduced by
those writers who went before them for
each author seems to have formed sepe.
rate plan, and to have studied the inven-
ton of new characters and unaccuStomed
incidents: but in the several divisions Of
tie sacred composers Of the Bible, we per-
ceiye an arless relation between every part
and every book Of it, FROM the birth of ma
ture TO that important crisis, when the holy
evidences of our faith were manifested to
the world. To doubt their authenticity is
a miserable evasion, and an impious pre-
sumption. Does any one hesitate to attri-
butte to the pen of Homer the Had and
Odyssey? Yet more objections might be
started ofsthe certainty OF such conces-
sion, than Seud be invented to deny Mo-
ses to be the composer Of the Pentateuch,
all o. which, except the book OF Genesis,
CONTAIN the history OF his own time: nor Is
there any thing wonderful in bis acquiring
an information of the events previous 10 the
age he lived in. Netbusalah, WIN died the
year of The food, was born long before the
death of Adam, and had also the opportu-
nifty of conversing with Shem, the son OF
Noah. Shem. survived during the life time
OF Abraham, the chosen father Of the faith