The Daily bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Hawaii]) 1882-1895, 1885-07-14
Ths 9ailg 8nlletin.
TUESDAY, JULY IA, 1885.
WORKING ON THE REVISED OLD
TESTAMENT.

III WIS upon luc oUJu VI Julc,
1870, that the company first entered
upon their task, and in the interval,
before they held their last meeting,
upon June Goth, 1884, ten of their
number had passed away. And the
rest cannot but feel that solid
portion of their lives has been spent
upon this great work. They have
grown old while endeavoring to give
to the English-speaking race the
word of God in translation repre-
senting, as exactly as was possible,
the meaning Of the original. And
whatever may be the nature Of the
reception accorded to their labors,
at all events they know that they
have worked honestly for the glory
of God, and not for human praise or
reward.
Their usual method of working
was to meet upon the morning Of a
Tuesday in each alternate month,
and to continue their session for ten
days, until the Friday in the follow
ing week. On each morning they
met at II, and continued their labors
until 5 p. NJ, except upon the last
Friday, when, for the convenience
of trains, they broke up at a rather
earlier hour. OF these sessions there
have been no less than eighty-five,
and the whole number Of days de-
voted to the work has been 1872.
Their method of working was to
begin with prayer, after which the
Hebrew of the Book on which they
were engaged was read verse by
verse; the discussion was then
opened by the reading of the sugges-
tions of absent members; and finally,
after deliberation, the company pro-
ceeded to vote. In this manner the
whole of the Old Testament has
been gone through twice, and while
on the first occasion the vote of q
majority was sufficient, at the second
revise nothing was retained which
did not command the approval OF
two-thirds of those present. Many
changes, therefore, which half the
company would have wished tc
make, and which are at least proba-
bic, have been rejected. At this
revise the company had also the
benefit of the notes of the American
Company, which were often very
judicious. Finally, third oppor.
tunity was permitted for considering
dubious renderings, and the correc.
ton of contradictory decisions; and
there was thus ample room for re.
pentance in case any change had
been too thoughtlessly made. As
the result, the version crrs rather il
the way of conservatism, than Of
rashness or unnecessary alteration
but this is the smaller fault of the
two. The revisers could work only
with the materials already provided
Their business was not original re-
search, but the judging and sitting
what had been furnished by others.
And, remarkably enough, just as
they are finishing their labors, un.
hoped-for treasures are being brought
to light. Besides DR.. Ginsburg's
" Massarah," manuscript of the
Old Testament, said to be at least
four centuries older than any in oul
libraries, has been discovered in the
Synagogue at Aleppo. Portions, too
of very ancient codices have beer
acquired both by the British Museum
and by the Imperial Library at St
Petersburg. But until they have
been studied, we know not what viii
be their bearing upon the present
text. Measures were at one time
taken for sending out DR.. Ginsbure
to collate the manuscript at Aleppo
but the breaking out of the Russo
Turkish War rendered his mission
impossible. But our hopes still turr
to him as the scholar best able tt
make these treasures really available
for our use.
And thus then the labors of the
Old Testament Company have beer
restricted to the revision of The
translation of exactly the same tex
as that which lay before the revisers
in the days of King James.-.1A'
Dean Of Canterbury, IN the Quivel
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