The times., 1897-12-12
THE PHENOMENAL BOOK.
BY ]. E. RANKIN, d. d., IL. D.
vI-The Bible Both of God aud OF
Man /,

proper views OF inspiration; from con-
ceiying that inspira tion is word for word
that it implies that the God or TIE BlDie
approves all things recorded there, comes
from not understanding the strong figures
Of speech by which the orientalists at
trubted to Gods direct agency that which
sprang from His not Erev entiug It; from a
failure to apprehend some OF the necessary
limitations involved in undertaking the
work of q revelation,
Verbal inspiration is limited to Coils
own personal utterance. The messages of
God to tie race, u side frun, these, are pur-
posely left with tie personal cciorins OF
those WHO communicated them; as though
they stone through the glass CT their per
sonality. II is the Evangelist himself who
narrates. 1t is the Apostle himself who
argues. In order to attain versimilitude,
closer iikeiess TO the truth, than could
otherwise be secured, Fook of JOB is
thrown into u dramatic form, and one Of
the characters is the Great Tempter him
self. what tie devil says is not inspired;
but the record of 1t is. There is nc more
practical difficulty in the determination
of the CdnaanItes than in that Of the
American Indians. Pharaoh is no mere
The people Of this general tion have been
events transpiring right under tEeir eyes,
which are Just as difficult TO harmonic
with Cod S government as many events in
Old Testament history. TO record them is
$ much to the discredit OF mcdern history
a S the Bible record TO that II Revelation.
Facts are facts; and inspired history is
just Ike piofane history in recording
them.
But, after al, you cannot revise out ef
the Bible: You cannot in any way eliminate
from it whatever your admissions for
the sake OF peace, whatever your theories
of inspiration, what Of offense an uncJn-
yerted mar is sure tu find there, namely,
something to remind him that he Is a sin
ncF; tbat there is an onlnpreSent and IN
niscient God, whose eye is upon hlIa, and
who VIII bring all MS deeds into Judgment,
whether they he good or evil. And the hu-
man elsment in the Bible. tna fact That God
moves men u speak of eternal things, in
ways such that men can understand them,
the fact that He moves them 10 speak Ct
Himself after the manner of men, is the
very vehicle through which this offeaSe Is
conveyed. 1t makes the Bible more trqth-
ful than any other method could do; makes
the representations more vivid: brings them
| dcwa level to the humb!est apprehension;
| brings them home to the mind and heart OF
every man.
The very materiaiism OF the Bible, its
deriving It's figures frcm natural ob.ects,
as they strike the human seHsibilities. IS
oae suurce of its power Wien it IS said
| that God Is a consuming fire; that He is
angry with the wicked e, arY day that the
| IN pcuiteBt stall go away into eyeria sting
darkness; when We are exhorted to kiss
| the son, lest He he angry with US. and we
perish from the way, when His wrath IS
kindc1 tHt a little; this is cIly another
| way. indeed, of sa wing: Whatsoever a man
| soweth, tnat snail he also reap" and Who
soeVer nelseveth in tie Lord Jesus Christ,
! shall he saved" But to the ordinary n nj,
| il is the more foTcible way. 1t IS the
more telling.
| And, then, as TO the Inherent difficulties
| ofthe pre- blcm on revelation. We may weI
ask such questions as these; How could a
| Spirit. infinite. eternal, and uneba ngea bic III
His being and His attributes, reveal Himself
| toman, except througha n int n,perfeetneGit I'M
| a medium adapted to an imperfect being
| except by taking ON human lirnita tions;
through human language; through earthly
events Though figure; synbol; by becom-
| ing incarnate; by becoming tIesh and blood
| in the person CT His Son j esus Christ; 10y
inspiring fallible man 20 put His mind and
| VIII into history, poem, prophecy, treatise?
Men may say they Go not see how Jesus
OF Naz8reth W a. both God and man; they
do not see how God could inspire the Bible,
and be the author of the Bible, when It's
books were written by imperfect. fallible
inen-and they We're truly their books,
| They find 20 much of mans method in
them, they DO not see how Gods method
can be there. Tie difficulty is all in the
nature of the thing to tie done. The fact
OF the thing done remains the same. We
may well stumble when we undertake 10
explain the philosophy of Gods methods,
| We may well hesitate about rushing
boldly in where angels fear to tread. The
natural birth is a divine-human event; SC
is the supernatural. The production of
such hook as the Bible is OF the same ma
ure-divine-human. The main question
to US is the question of fact. Here is the
written Word. 1t is just as patent as the
sun in heaven. We can no more blot it
out of the firtnament OF the worlds thought
and life than we can blot out the sun.
1 Itt
analysis by the solar spectrum hurts the
sun. 1t is just as much a ma teriai fact as
the solar system, the planetary system
the Sidereal system. Do you reject God;
revelation of Himself in the sun because
you do not understand what the sun is
Do you reject His revelation of Himself
in the sidereai and planetary systems be
cause you cannot understand how He hal
adjusted the sweet influences which bin(
planet to planet, and star TO star? Yot
believe God is in nature. Do you fine
no difficulties in understanding how He i!
there; Eow He expresses Hins~lf througi
nature; how she beats with His creati,l
life? IN, every time the Infinite One un
dertakes to put Himself into commau ca
ton with infinite beings. whether it be by
displa wing His material attributes or Hi
moral ones, the mind of man may vel
expect to be perplexed at His methods, an,
as to their philosophy. But. heca
is mystery in "A II ethod, are we warrante &c,
in denying the fact?
Here is an alternative. We have eIthe
to believe that the Bible came from TO,
through man, which accounts for all il
peculiarities, and for all its power, or w,
have to believe that from nation in cthe
respects distinguished mainly for its ex
clusiveHass its bigotry, its narrowness SIS
for its fidelity to old traditions yes, asid
from the literature of the Bible, for tn,
poverty and pueriiity of its writings-ha
sprung a book which has in it elements t
which the human heart everywhere re
sponds from which the human mind every
where draws quickening and inspir alton
in which speaks to humanity what seem
to be the voice Of Father warning
reproving, threatening, inviting ave. b