The times., 1897-12-05
THE PHENOMENAL BOOK.
BY j. Z. RANKIN, d. Ill. D:
IF-The Bible Not of Man Alone,
Neither of God Alone.

Neither of God Alone
It you say that the Bible is human alone,
yol have to explain on human grognds,
the fact that its utteran ances and It's silences
are alike anomalous; that its simplicity
is never puerile; its sublimity never bonn
bastic; that its authors have yentured sofar
into tile sphere of divine mysteries aud yet
never transcended that which commends it
self to the average Judgment and comTnon
sens, OF mankind. No such explanation is
possible.
There is that which Is hunlGn in the Bible.
Never was a book more human; never was
book better adapted to the level OF ma
tions just emerging from barbarism; just
coming up from paghnism itself. 1t de
scribes just such nations: meets them on
their own levei; takes them by the hand.
Never was there a book better adapted
IT, I,eI: in their spiritual infancy; men feel
ing after God, If, perchance, they may find
Him. II takes them Just where they are.
plies them with motives which they can
feel, anu lifts them up to Gods society
and Goes likeness makes them sons of
God. But it begins with them at their own
low level. The Saviour was nan that
received sinners and ate with them; was
the frienc ct punIicans and sinners. The
Bible is just such book. A sinner can pill
low his head upon it as upon the bosom of
God. Indeed there is no better iilustfa
tion OF the divine human nature of the
Goldman. And the same necessity re-
quifeG the first as the last. And 10 is
significant III this sense, that He is called
The Word!
When we read in the common version
that holy men OF God spake as they we're
uoved by the Holy Ghost or, IN the Yer
sion OF Canterbury, that "men spake from
God, being moved by the Holy Ghost" 'e
have recognition OF this necessity, that
tn. Bible all be human. Men spake. They
spase from God. Language is human. Ac-
cess to humanity must be through human
language Though human ways OF speaking
and Thinking and looking az things. Philos-
ophers do not get at man. They are not
human enough. The agnosticism which is
in certain. strata of human thought today,
that kind of intellectual dudeisu which
says l do not know, may settle for lime
or humanity Is pail; kind OF Inallrial
poison FOR the mind, but Il cannot do gen
eral mischief, for il cannot speak the Ian
guagc OF the common people; it can lot
reach the children; iU Is not human enough.
One single Christmas viii upset a whole
set Of Herbert Spencer's WORKS.
The Bible speaks human language, it
speaks simple language 1t shows is
how matters which concern us seemed TO
men and women ike us in other times. 1t
teaches religion by object lessons. The
severcst test which youcan apply to Charles
Kmgsey's 'Hypatia." 10 George Eliot &
"Romola, or 10 any other historical novel,
is lns: DO the men and women act aud
speak just as you and / should have done
had we been AMID those surTounGings?"
II his question Caunot be answered in the
affirmative; il we keep straining our
r,ir ds all the lime TO imagine the nara
tive and the characters real, adapted to
eacn other ana to he times then the book
is not sufficiently human. The Penta-
touch is human book; and 50 are the
Gospels Here says Marin Lut 1er.
the most human OF all great defenders II
tho Bible, mere thOu findeSt the Swadd.ing
clothes and the manger, whittier the angels
directed the poor, simple shepherds. They
seem poor and mean, but dear and precious
is the treasure that lies therein" God
=
ant the alanger hi order to get at your
heart and mine. And the same neccssity Y
rests upon the written Word as the living
word. It must havefIcsI and blood. This
is the human element in the Bible.
The theory that MEN Spake from God in
the Bible does not conflict with the idea
that there are different degrees of in
spiTation; different degrees of authority
44Hrk...
Timothy, "The cloak left at Treas, bring
with thee" men say, "Did Paul speak
this from Gud?F wouldthe HolyGhost con
descend 10 Introduce into a letter which
was to be read by allChrStendom, through
all the time to come, an allusion to so
commonplace q thing as Paul's OTTER
garment? This shows US how much wiser
God is than man. 1t rs these very Incl
dental things that are the strongest proof
| OF the genuineness OF tue Book.
I happer to have in my possession a
letter from a yeung Theological student
at Audover, written in the spring of 1878.
| II is to his father a famer, in the norsh-
ern part OF New Hampshire. Tie body
| OF the sheet, which is stained and diScUl
ored by age, is given up to the discussion
| of Religious topics; to the current events
| in ChrIst's Kingdom: to he Importance Or
| parents dedicating their children TO che
work OF the Christian ministry, and of
! young mems coming forward and offering
| themselves to the Lord. All appropriate,
OF course. But there is a postscript to the.
| letter. which has more weight to gro. e
| il genuine than all this. 1T is like Plpl's
message about his cloak. and reads thus.
IF Convenient. send me a pair Of thick
shoes 10y Mr.. Miner or some one coming
! TO Boston ] have a pair of new thin
ones, but thick ones win be better to walk
in in rainy weather This postscript
opens UP to us glimpse Of country life
| in New England: A poor boy, away 1r I'M
home, struggling alone tn get forward in o
the Christian ministry; the merchant of
| the town, or some enterprising farmer
visiting Boston to make purchases .Jr to
dispose OF What was raised on the IA rrn;
and then, the chance TO send the mucn-
| needed thick shoes.
The Apostle needed his cloak, for his
| life was real nliSsionary's life. 1t was
| natural for him to send for it. But, /
believe that the Holy Spirit guided him 70
| put that in It's omission would have AIKEN
away from the letter, one of the most con
| elusive inoidentals proofs that it was n
| genuine letter. And this postscript from
the poor theological student, far from the
solid comforts of his rural home, and
| toiing around in An0over mud, who wishes
| his father to send him a pair of thick Sho S,
by some neighbor, who is going to Boston,
| was not half so likely to be forged letter.
as the words about the duty of parents and
| their sons respecting the Christian ministry
A WI Sl-i al tn deta n
| forged bank note what they most depend
upon They will tell YOU they depend
| most upon incidental thugs; things thlS