New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1848-04-22
NEW.YORK TRIBUNE
LETTERS
from HON. JOHN QUINCY ADAMS TO HIS S0i
ON THE BIBLE AND ITS TEACHINGS.
LETTER IA. AND LAST

III. fourth and last point Of view in which pro
,c,ed 10 offer you some general observation upon
,,s s.riptgres was with reference 10 literature
.d the first remark tina. presents itself it, that the
i've books Of Moses are the most ancient monu-
,pe,t. Of written language now extant 10 the world
the book Of job is nearly Of the date, and by
many Of the Jewish and Christian commentators
h. thought TO have been written by Moses The
employment Of alphabetical characters TO repre-
.en, ali the artculations Of the human voice is the
grestest invention that ever was CON passed by hu
man genius. Plato says that it was the discovery
either Of a God, or a man diviney inspired" The
Egyptians sscrlbed it TO Thot whom the Greeks
aiervard wOrshiped under the name Of Hermes.
This is however a fabulous origin. That it was an
Egyptian invention there is little doubt and it was
part Of that learning Of the Egyptians, in all o.
which We are told Moses was versed.' 1t is
probable that when Moses wrote. this act was, If
no. absolutely recent OF very remote invention.
There was but copy Of the law written in
book il was deposited in the Ark of the Covenant
aud vas read aloud once in seven years, to all the
people at their general assembly in the Feast Of
Tsbernacles there was one other copy OF the law,
written upon stone, erected on Mount EbaL u
does no, appear that there existed any other copies
In process Of time the usage of reading it thus
have been dropped aud the monument upon Mount
Ebsl must have persisted for in the reign Of Jo
sab about 500 years afterward, the book Of the
law was found 10 the temple How long it had been
lost is not expressly told but from the astonish
ment aud CONSERVATION Of Josiah upon hearing the
book read its contents must have long been for
gotten so that scarcely atrsdition OF them remain
Cd We indeed told that when the Ark Of the
Covenant was deposited in the temple Of Solomon,
there was nothing in the arb save the two tables
which Moses put therein At HoTeb The two tables
contained not the whole Law bat the ten command
aients the book Of the law was therefore longer
10 the arb at the dedication OF Soomons Temple
that 49, about 500 years after the law was given
aud 300 bsiore the book was found by Hezeksh
the high priest IN the 9Th year of Josiah From
these circumstances as well Ms from the expediens
used 10y Moses aud Joshua for preserving the
ceremonial law and the repeated covenant be
tween God aud the people, 1t is observed that the
art and practice of writing was extremely rare,
and that very few OF the people were even taught
TO read that there were few books extant, and OF
those few. only single copies the art OF writing
speaking aud thinking with their several modihca-
tons of grammar, rhetoric and logic, were never
cultivated among the Hebrews as they were
though not till thousand years later than Moses
among the Greeks Philosophical research, and
the spirit OF analysis appeared to have belonged
among the ancient nations exclusively to the
Greeks they studied language es science, and
from the discoveries they made in this pursuit 70
quilted d system OF literary compositions founded
apon logical deductions. The language OF the al.
cient writers was not constructed upon the iounds
ton of abstruse science II partakes OF the nature
OF all primitive languages which is almost entirely
Rgurative and in some degree of the character OF
primitive writing and hieroglyphcs. We are not
told from what materials Moses compiled the Book
Of Genesis (which contains the history OF the crea
ton and of 800 years succeeding ii, which termi'
oates three generations prior to che birth OF Moses
himself whether he had it altogether from tradl
ton or whether he collected 1t from the more an
Gent written or printed memorials The account
Of the creation of the fall of man. and all the anti
dilavian part of the history carries strong nterna
evidences Of having been copied or III | may ex'
press myself translated from hierogyphie or sym
boical record the story is OF the most perfect
simplicity the discourses OF the persons introduced
~ !
mouths and the narrative is scarcely anything
more than the connecting link of the discusses
The genealoges are given with great precision and
this is one Of the most remarkable pecuharltes o.
the Old Testament the rest is all 6gurative; the
Nib the Garden, the Tree Of Life and the Knowl-
edge Of Good and Evil, the Apple the Serpent are
all images which seem to indicate hieroglyPhc
origin. All the historical books, both Of the Old and
New TesIaments retain the peculiar characteristics
that | have noticed the simplicity aud brevity OF
the narrative. the practice OF repeating all dis
courses in the identical words spoken. and the
constant use Of hsuratIve symbolical and aegoricsl
Language But OF the rules Of composition. pre-
scribed by the Grecisn schools the unities or Arts
tote, or the oongruities Of sgures taught by the
Greek philoiogisis, no, feature is 10 be seen
The Psalms are collection OF songs the Song OF
solomon is pastoral Poem; the Proverbs are a
collection of moral sentences and maxms appar
sotly addressed by solomon to his son. with the
addition Of others of the same description the
PropheticSl books arc partly historical and partly
poetcsl-they contain the narrative Of visions and
revelations Of the Deity to the Prophets who re-
corded them. In the New Testament the four Cos
peIs and the Acts OF the Apostles are historical
they contain memories OF thc life OF Christ and
some Of His apostles, and the proceedings OF some
Of His principal apostles, for some years after
Hls decease. The simplicity Of the narrative is The
same s that Of the Old Testament the style IN
general indicates an age when reading and writing
mad become more common and books more multi
piled The Epistles OF Paul the productions OF
mind educated in the learning of the age ADD well
versed in the Grecisn literature from his history II
appears that he was not only capable Of maintain
nag al argument with the Doctors OF the Jewish
law bu, -of discussing principles with the Stole /
and Epicurean philosophers bis speech at Athens /
Is q specimen Of eloquence worthy of an audience I
IN the native country Of Demosthenes, The Apocs
lypse Of John resembles in many respects some Of
the prophetical books Of the Old Testament the
hsurative, symboIicsl and allegorica language Of
shese books, show range Of imagination suitable
only 10 be the record OF dreams and visions-their