The examiner. [volume] (Louisville, Ky.) 1847-1849, 1848-03-25
LETTER III.

The first point Of view in which have invited
you 10 consider the Bible, Is IN the light Of Di-
viHe RsUslatiOH. And what are We TO understand
by these tems2 | intend as much as possible,
to avoid the field OF controversy, which | am not
well acquainted with, and for which have but
little respect, and still less inclination. My idea
OF the Bible a DiviHs Radiation Is founded
upon lis practical use 10 mankind and not upon
metaphysical subtletIes. There are three points
Of doctrine, the belief Of which foms the founda-
ton Of all morality. The first is, the Existence
OF God; the second is, the Immortality OF the
Human Soul; and the third is, Future State OF
Rewards and Punishments. Suppose II possible
for man TO dsbelieve either of these articles of
faith, and that man viii have no conscience, he
will have no other law than that Of the tiger, OF
the shark; the laws Of man may bind him in
chains, OI may put hun TO death, but they never
can make HIM wise, yIrtuous, or happy. IL Is
possible 10 believe them all without believing
that the Bible Is Divine Revelation. Ii is so
obvious to every reasonable being that he did not
make himself, and the world which he lnhabIts
could as little make itself, that the moment We
begin 10 erereiss tho OF reflection, II seems
impossible to escape the conviction that there Is
a Creator. Ii Is equally evident that the Crea-
tor must be a spiritual, and not maternal beng
there Is also a Consciousness that the thinking
part of our nature is not material, but spiritual
that It Is not subject 10 the laws OF matter nor
pershable with IT. Hence anses the belief that
we have an immortal soul; and pursuing the
tram of thought which the visible creation and
observation upon ourselves suggests, We must
soon discover that the Creator must also be the
Governor of the Universe: that HIS wisdom, aud
His goodness, must be without bounds that He
Is a righteous God and loves righteousness -
that mankind are bound by the laws of righteous
a.
dience to them IN this life, according TO their
good OF evil deeds. This completion of Divine
Justice must be reserved for another life. The
existence of a Creator, the Immortality of the
human SOUL and a future. state OF retnbution,
are therefore perfectly congenial Ia natural
reason when once dlScOveTed--Or rather II Is so
impossible for natural reason TO disbelieve them,
that il would seem the light OF natural reason
could suffice for their discovery; but the conclu-
SION would not be correct Human reason may
he sufficient TO get an obscure glimpse Of these
| sacred and important truths, but IT cannot dis
cover them in all their clearness. For example;
| in all their numberless, false religions, which
have swayed the minds of men in different ages
and regions OF the world, the idea OF God has
| always been included:
| "Father OF ALI In everyage
In every chime adored-
1 BY Saint by Savage, and by Sage
L IchOvhh, Jove, or Lofd"
So saws Pope's Universal Prayer. But il is tn,
/ God Of the Hebrews alone who is announced 10 us
| a. the Creator of the world. The ideas of Coo
| entertained by all the most illustrous, and mos
ingenious nations of antiquity were weak ana
| absurd. The Persians worshipped the sun: The
| Egyptians believed in an innumerahle multitude
Of gods and worsh pped not only oven, orocodi es
dogs and cats, but even sarlics and onions. The
Greeks invented poetical religion, and adore'
| men and women, virtues and vices; air, waite
and fire, and everything that vivid imagination
could personity. Almost all the Greek Philoso
piers reasoned and meditated upon the nature o
the gods; but scarcely any of them reflects
enough even TO imagine that there was but on
God, and not one of them conceived of Hin
a. the Creator Of the world Cicero has collecte
together all their opinions upon the nature OF IN
gods, and pronounced them more like the dream
of madmen than the sober judgment OF wise men
In the first book of O,id's metsmorphoses. Their
is an account of the change Of Chaos in the world
Before the and the earth, and the sky that SUI
rounds all things, (says Oyid,l there was th'n
, called Chaos, and some Of the gods he does no
know which, separated from each other the ele
ments of this Chaos, and Turned them into tn
world; thus far and no farther could human Teaso
| extend. But the first words OF the Bible are, IL
, the beginning God created the heavens and III
earth" The blessed and sublime idea OF God, a
the Creator Of the universe, the source oil all hr
| man happiness for which all the Sages and PHI
losophers of Greece and Rome CROPPED N darkness
, and never fonnd is recalled in the hrst verse {
: the book of Genesis. ! call it The source OF a
, human virtue and happiness, because when "
, have attained the conception OF Being VINO,
J the mere act Of His will, created the world,
! would follow irresistible oensequenee-eve
il we were not told that the same Being must ais
be the Governor of His own creation-thst ma
with all other things, was also created oy hln Nv
must hold his felicity and virtue on the conditlo
of obedience to His will. In the first chapters
the Bible there is a short and rapid historical m
: rative OF the manner in which the world and INA
' were made--of the condition upon which happ
|. ness and Immortality was bestowed upon our hr
parents-Ot their traIsgresslOn oil ulls condition.
: of the punishment de nounced upon them-and u
!, promise of redemption from ii by the seed
: the Woman"
There are, and always have been, where u
= Holy scriptures have been known, petty whiting
}. aud self concealed reasoners, who cayl at sou
II Of the particular details OF this narration. Eve
il seuous inquiries alter Truth have sometlm
81 been peTplexed to believe that there should Ia
ID been evening and morning before the existence
o the Sun--that man should be made OF clay, al
% woman from the nbs Of man-that they shou
Z have been forbidden 10 eat an apple, and FOL d
- obedience tothat injunction, be with all theirpt
n terity doomed to death, and that eating an apr
m could give "the knowledge of good and evil,
es that a serpent should speak and beg,nle woms
as All this is undoubtedly marvellous, and above
n comprehension. Much Of il is clearly hguratl
h, and allegorcal; nor is il easy to distinguish wi
a. Al >,. q nd M