Wessington Springs herald. (Wessington Springs, Aurora County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1891, 1884-11-21
THE OLD TESTAMENT REVISION.

THE OLD TESTAMENT REVISION.
On the 10th of February, 1870, now
over fourteen years ago, a resolution
was unanimously carried through both
Houses of the C~onvocation Of Canter-
bury to appoint q Joint Committee 'to
report upon the d~esirableness of a rcvis-
ion of the authorized version of the Old
and New Testament. whether by mar
ginal notes OF otherwise. in all those
passages where plain and clear errors,
whether in the Hebrew or Greek text
originally adopted by the translators,
or in the TRANSACTIONS made from the
same, shall on due investigation be
found to exist" This led to the for
nation of two companics-one to labor
IN the Old Testament and the other to
labor On tie New Testament; and these
companies, though including eight Of
the most accomplished English Bishops,
were enlarged by other eminent schol-
ars without regard to nationality or re-
li@ious creed: and further, au American
Committee on each of the Testaments
was invited to cooperate with the Eng
fish rcvisers. The results of the New
Testament Committee have already
been given to the world, with what sue.
cess L readers have had ample oppor-
tunitT 10 know.
Owing to changes resulting from
death and otherwise. and the introduce
ton OF new members into the Old les
lament Committee, it was deemed adj
visable not to be content with q second
final revision OF their work. but to seek
greater thoroughness and accuracy by
reviewing it II third time and in the
most critical manner. This has been
the occasion Of some delay; but we un-
derstand that at their meetings during
the latter part of October and Novem-
Der, the American scholars will throw
into an appendix certain of the emenda-
tons which they originally proposed,
but which We're not adopted BY their
English bgethren into the text; and that
then the task Of publishing the COM
pieted Old Testament will be RAPIDLY
pushed forward. 1t will not, however.
be out probably before the first of May.
The only authorized editions will be
those from the University presses of
Oxford and Cambridge, but from these.
doubtless, there will be innumerable re-
r ~ VI j wv IttiStuS
conspire to render the public alton slow:
first, because it is intended TO print one
edition in four volumes on heavy paper
not for the market but for ~preseuta-
ton toevery person who has contributed
SD OF more toward the publication.
The labor done on this will be largely
by hand and very elegant. but. Of
course, tedious. A second reason for
slowness will be the necessity of getting
a vast number Of copies ready in adj
vance OF attempted sale, SO rs to be
able to meet the immense demand that
will certainly be made for them.
The rcvisers, wishing their work to
stand or fail on its completed merits
and not by any partial criticisms on
particular and disconnected passages,
are pledged to secrecy as to the specific
character of the changes made. 1t
seems, however, to be pretty we'll un-
derstood that they have been much
more conservative than were their New
Testament colleagues, and that, to
quote the language OF DR.. Chambers.
''they have confined themselves in the
main to such changes as were deemed
indispensable, instead of embracing all
the cases which might seem desirabie.n
In confederation of this DR.. Cuuant
says:
,One who has not committed much of the
tlpic TO memory could read the new edition
Tor PAGES without knowing that any changes
conservative and nave left the old text undjS.
turDed wherever possible. Some of the
broader 1'il>sages, however, have been soft
ened, and Il number of minor changes made
such as retaining the Old Hebrew word '.ie.
noVail instead OF the modern rendering
,l1rd:' The English r~eviscrs, however. cling
laborS that the Old rcviscrs were better Gr.nl.
MAN Hebrew scholars. and that many Of their
nnisiikes We're due TO "a too slavish adaptation
OF the SeptIarlnt.'
The established order of the books
VIII not be disturbed. The Apocrvpha
VII! not De included, but will be revised
oy an English Committee, independent
OF 'hc Revision Committee. And it is
supposed that some such changes will
De introduced rs the following: In place
OF INC Hebrew plural cherubim there
WI! be the English plural chcrubims.
ana III The same way seraphi!ms, neih-
INNS. aiiaklms, etc. Ineligible words
and phrases will take the place of ar
cllaIsms such as 'tachcs, i ..ouches.o
'Enops,' ''ncesings," and ..a]l TO-
moaning altoge her. Again, uniformity
VIII DC sought in the spelling of proper
names and places, retain no, however,
as a rale, the Hebrew forms tor Hebrew
nalhes' except where Il foreign name
'lSs beer thoroughly n~aturalized and
oaa!leraoIN fixed in English usage.
AGAIN, there will be a rev sion a m, 49,.
i"piY' pronunciation, capitals and
''.h'pS u metr!cal arrangement Of
i~'"e'f} according to the laws of Hebrew