The Democratic press. (Eaton, Preble County, Ohio) 1860-1865, 1861-11-14

a knowledge of the circumstances
in which a parable was spoken
an acquaintance with the customs
Of the people; the events Of their
history; and the productions OF
their country; will always secure
the judicious interpreter against
any serious mistakes.
Types were o shadow, pointing,
like q hand-post, to good things to
to come Heb. X. ~ AS pleased
God to employ both mind and
matter, nature and revealed truth,
the midnight dream, and the bar
die voice, to adumbrate the Great
Incarnation; it is the duty Of the
sober interpreter of the sacred
pages, to endeavor to learn the
mind Of God as to what actually
constitutes Il Type. Adam, Enoch,
Noah, Melchisidec, Abraham,
Isaac, Joseph, Moses, Joshua, and
others were Types of Christ.
Prophets, priests and kings were
typical persons. Things, such as
Jacobs ladder, burning bush, pill
lar of cloud, and the brazen SER
pent, were Types. Actions, such
as the deliverance from Egypt,
were Types; and so were also cir
cumcision, various sacrifices, and
publications. To endeavor to cs-
tablish an exact agreement between
the Type and its anti-Type, would
be to outrage reason, and sport
with the Revelation of God. Ad-
an and Christ were not the same
in al respects. A Type is not the
exact thing itself, but general
representation of it. We cannot
better express ourselves here, than
by saying that Types and sacriti-
ccs were outlines drawn up by the
moral and all-wisc governor of
men, to teach them to forget the
things which We're behind them,
and to reach forth in the path of
uniform obedience, unto those
thln2s sbadowol forth by the
achooImastcr who, SO to speak,
employed types and many other
significant signs, to teach.his jew
ish pupils the rudiments of Chris
tianity; that they might thus be
prepared to enter more fully into
the heart and soul of the teaching
OF Christ and his Apostles. Let
the thoughtful interpreter keep
these things in mind, and guard
against the temptation Of chasing
the shadow for that which can
only be found in the substance.
Biblical Interpretation embraces
the investigation of all those pas
s9ges in which religious truth is
contained. A right Interpretation
IF those passages is all that we
want to put us in possession of the
great moral truths they communi-
cate. Correcti Interpretation, there
'ore, is the avenue to correct re-
igious doctrine. No man studies
he Bible in q right manner, who
locs not study it with a special
view to ascertain its fundamental |
.ruths. The Church Of Christ is O.
spiritual building, and the inter-
1reter of the sacred volume is an
and it is, therefore, his
business to see that the materials
or building are not the creation of
ancy, but the truths which were
spoken by men after Gods own
leart. The interpreter of those
PORTIONS of Scripture which relate
% experimental religion, must be
acquainted experimentally with
lis subject, in order to understand
t. The necessity of piety in the
Interpreter, in order to his under
landing Alright many parts of the
Scriptures, is asserted in John vii.
Z, where Christ, after having de-
Jared that His doctrine is from
iod, proceeds to say that "If any
nan will do Gods will, he shall
now of the doctrine whether it
e Divine or not" The doctrines
f the Bible being communicated
nder the influence and direction !
f the Holy Ghost, it isnot strange
hat a similar divine agency should {