Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1885-05-19
THE REVISED OLD TESTAMENT.


Friday afternoon the very first copy is
sued of the complete new version of the
Bible was presented Queen Victoria, sepa'
rated into five gorgeous volumes, royal edi'
ton. At midnight copies in inexpensive
form were delivered to the press for com
ment, and the public in England and Amer
ca will be given an opportunity to pur-
chase it today, which, by remarkable
coincidence, will be the Feast of Pentecost
which commem CRATES the revelation on
Mount Sinai of the Decalcgue.
The Committee of Revision was appoint
ed by the Established Church Convocation
on the 9th of May, 1870. OF the sixteen
members then appointed only six survive.
Revisers sat altogether 792 days of six hours
The whole work Was gone over in session
three times. The first time bare majority
carried an alteration. The alterations then
made were printed and circulated among
the revisers, who had the advantage before
the second revision began of suggestions by
the American revisers. On the second re-
vision two thirds majority was necessary
to confirm the alterations. The third revi-
sion was devoted to objections and points
reserved.
AS for the general result, when the whole
work is examined it will be found that the
revisers have on the whole been very con-
servative. The alterations in the Old are
much fewer in proportion than those made
in the New Testament. There have been
very few-merely verbal alterations Tho
revised Old Testament 1s almost exactly
the same length as the old one. There are
o1t in
of chapters, (which are printed in paragraphs
so as to keep the consecutive sense, but are
not divided into verses Poetical passages
are printed like blank verse. The irst axi-
ON of the revised translation was "cliug
to the pure native significance of the
words" This is specimen of the blank
verse:
Create in ne q clean heart, o God,
And renew o right spirit within me.
Cast me not away from thy presence,
Restore unto me the Joy of thy salvation,
And uphold me with O free spirit.
Adam and Eve only take their names af
ter the Fall. Before, they are man or wife.
No changes in diction are made in the first
chapter Of Genesis to aid or puzzle debaters
on faith and science. The old account Of
the deluge is left as it was. The Mosaic
books are but little touched. The Joshua
miracle of the sun and the moon is left III
tact. Job is mainly printed in blank verse.
81 know that my Redeemer liveth" stands,
but the marginal note destroys all its signli-
icance in relation 10 the Messiah. 'Oh
that mine adversary had written book'
becomes "Oh that had the indictment
mine adversary had written" Hast thou
clothed his neck with thunder?" changes to
"Witt quiveripg name"
"Hell," comments the Daily Telegraph, us
iniudiciously dismissed" and the Hebrew
word "sheol" is substituted throughout.
The Globe says, go to sheol!' will now be
come more pleasant phrase Of the angry
irreverant man. The italics Of former edi-
tions yield to common type in the text.
The Psalms are divided. There are few
important changes made in them, and those
with piteously scrupuous care. The beau
tiful Psalm xiii, "The Lord is my shep'
herd" remains untouched, as does the pas
sage in Psalm XIV, beginning up your
heads. o We gates" But in Psalm xxxvii.,
..The wicked man no longer spreadeth him.
self like a green bay tree" but as "a green
tree in its native soil :" nor in Psalm xiv. is
the kings daughter said to be ''all glorious
within" but ''the kings daughter within
the palace is all glorious"
A we'll known verse in Psalm xcii. now
reads; "The days of our years are threescore
and ten, or even by reason of strength four.
score years; yet is their pride but labor and
sorrow. for it is gone and we fly away"
The Proverbs and Songs of Solomon are
arranged as poetry and triflingly interfered
with. A celebrated passage In Isaiah now
reads :-"As one from whom men hide thell
face he was despised, and we esteemed him
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