The Charlotte journal. [volume] (Charlotte, N.C.) 1835-1851, 1850-02-12
Communication.
roR rnE CHARLOTTE JOURNAL.
The Poetry Of the Bible.
NO, Ill,

NO. Ill.
A well known and celebrated psssags ID
the hrH book Of the ilisd beginning at IN.
fony.,hi'd I'ue, has been repeatedly sJduccc
BY critics, a. an inslsnce Of grsud aud loft,
description. The price. Of Apollo prefer, ii,
petition to iha, God, seeking redress Of hi,
wrongs. The ipdignan, po~ or descend. from
Olympus 10 ,indica!e bis insu,ed ,o;ary:
Ri. he descends like night
The whole passage 10 thus rendered in
Pops's version:
Thus Ch'yses prsysd-.hs favoring power
attends.
And from 'ympus' lofty top descend,.
Hen, wss HE bow, the Gsccisn heartsio wound,
Ferce a. he moves. hue sils,r shafs rrsound.
Breathing revenge, . sudden nigh, he sprsud,
And gloomy darkness rolled around h.. head.
Tie A.e, iu view, he ,wanged hi, deadly bo~,
And hlssirg fy The fesihsnd fs,es below.
Ga muss and dogs the Injection 6,si began,
And last The vengeful arro~s fxed on man.
For nIne long nights ii ough all he du,k, air,
The Pyres thick hing sho, dismal glare
Nvoe can be in.enslblc 10 tbs te,uty sud
Iof'ine's Of 'hess verses. Their Envli.h dre.s
is mos, captivating snd sub i'ne. and bu, fo,
the multiplication Of words, would altno., r,val
tho Original. LIZ, us compare with this III.
immortal strains in ~hich DAVID celebrated
the interference Of the Almighty for his Dc
lverancs and salvation: II 10 fouad 10 he
x,in P.aIn, 6-l4:
4 called upon The Lord. and cried unto my
lie heard my voice oul CT his temple,
And my cry came before II IN, eveu into his
ears.
When the earth shook aud nemblel:
The foundations sso Of The hill, are moved,
And tebsmently shaken, because lie is wroih.
There goes up smoke oH Of bis nusitils.
AID fire out OF his mouth devours.
Burnlog Goals proceed l'on il.
lie boss The heavens, nlsn, and comes down !;
Th,rk darkness 10 under his feet.
And he rides upon a cberut, and doth Ay.-
tt' bPo" 'bu w "o vtHos
ll- makes da' kness hs secret place,
The darkness Of the waters, She thick cloud,
his tabernacle.
At the brightness of his presence, the cloud,
are dIspelled,-
ii III stones and burning coals follow.
1hsn Jehorah thuuders ~ the heavens,
And the mos, high uIieD hs vo,cc
WHh hail stones sud cosis of Are.
Wnh his weapon. lie scaiiets his enemes,
And d'ives them couloundrd BY his frequent.
lhunder.b,Is.'
sone sliah, variation from the common
ve,sun will bs perceived 10 tho foregoing er
tract. and also n some Of my other quotations.
But il will be excused. | trust, when | reaind
The reader, that IN this instance ! have fol
Iosed the in,ui,ab'e La,io of Bishop South,
and 10 the other cases have followed the ori
ginaI Ilcb,ew, and given a slightly different
shade Of meaning to some Of the words, from
that found IN the common version.
In regard to the pss'age itself. We need en-.
ly remark, that shefe 10 no, one 10 oil The Bl.
bic ihat more fully realizes the idea Of The
sublime, than this. In a violent Storm, &C.
companied with descending torrents of rain,
the very heavens surcharged With rain seem
to be let down and commin.ied with EARTH
Win aha, uneq1slied besuiy aod subIlmity
10 this idea hare expressed:
He bo~s the heavens, s'so. and comes down
Thick darkness 10 under his feet.
Al the bfiah'ne" Of hs presence, the thick
clouds arc d.spelltd.'
Ths,n:
The thick clouds are rent o.undes by the
sp'endor of his l,ghsaIn.s.'
What 6.u'es OF though, or diciion can 90
tearfully represent the .xertIons of divine pow
e'. in be overthrow Of rebs Iluus man
These observations On the Poetry of the
Inspired Writings may be extended to em
brace other instances indicating vssiness and
'ublini'y Of drffsren, Kind from the ex.m.
pies slfesdy quoted. Ole is taken from tho
cne hundfed'h and thirty ninth Psilm:
wi h'hsr can 90 from thy sp,tit;
hna "h'hef can d. from thy presence I
- ! ascend INTO heaven, thou art there
AUD u J make my bed N heIl.-bshod d Thes |
] ny to the fafthes, E,s,,
Ofd'e'I "a tho rsmo,eness Of ths Western ses,
LVeo there Thy hand Will lead me,
And thy right hand will hold me-
The idea Of imnensi.y winch can with
ificu''y be consigned to hum,n spp,ehen.
s'on 10 here expressed. THIS, ~heu proposed
simply and sbs,rscily, wi'hou, the nscssssry
sdJ1ncts, evsdes the force of our lo,elIi ieence.