The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1905-08-27

udn cnufCn USED lnlS translation, ana
it was also used i'll the time of the
Saviour and by His Apostles. 1t is 10y
no means perfect but as one writer
says is full of intentional as well as
unintentiondl errors" and by reason
of the use of IAN UnpunCtuated text,
from the non-eXistence of VoWeI
points, ETC." Rev. DR.. Marvin K. Vim
cent wrote some twelve or fifteen
years ago. in the New York magazine
of Christian Literature" of the
changes. errors, etc, in the Septuagint
He wrote:
The translators did not hesitate a;
times to sacrifice the literal and ma
tural sense to the current view of the
day. They toned down the bold an
,hropomorphisms of the earlier books
Jut of Difference to Il refined culture,
hey suggested an occasional parallel
between Jewish and Christian ordln
dnces. They substituted Greek pro
verbs for Hebrew ones. They intro
Iuced Rabbinic legends. They omitted
phrases or words which appear to re-
lee unfavorably upon their national
heroes or their national character
What are the quotations from
the Septuagint in the New Testament?
Are they literal quotations i'll verbal
agreement with the Septuagint? and
does the Septuagint itself, in the
Passages IefeIEcu 70, always etS &C
with the Hebrew?
OF these passages some agree with
both the Hebrew and the LINZ; some
with the LXX., and not with the He
brew, and these are most numerous;
SONY with the Hebrew and not with
he LINN; some with neither
"Of 275 quotations made by Christ
and the Apostles, 80 agree verbally
with the Ink; and in 81 of the 80
the Xxx. differs from the Hebrew.
"In the quotations written by Jesus
Himself more than half arc intro
duced by 1T is written" or some
similar formula, indicating that they
are given as formal quotations.
This able, scholarly Northern dcvine,
after reviewing the whole field of err
rors, said this:
Scripture can take care of itself
fhe inspiration, of Scripture can face
and stand all the facts of Scripture.
The Word of the Lord no man can
shake, no human scholarship impair.
THE Bible must continue to be- IS
has been our infallible rule of faith
and practice, the mainstay of Chris
tian truth, the guide to salvation, the
source of comfort for the weary and
heavy-laden, the Church'S manual of
education"
have not referred to the Massorah
L y
hebrew text. | have in a rapid survey
passed over as the Samaritan Pcnta-
.euch the Talmud and TQrgumS, the
;hapcra Manuscripts, the MOabitc
stone, etc. Europe has been said to
show something of the material Access
sibe in obtaining the most accurate
copy Of the Holy Bible, and the inn
portance of Il faithful version.
Whatever we'll asccrtained errors
there are in the great 18th Century
authorised" version should be cor
rected. Let all the sources of accur-
ate or helpful information be consult
ed. Richard Purvey, the gifted, acur-
ate and intimate friend, whose mana
script of Wyclffc revised by him, is
still preserved in the library of Trinity
college, Dublin. ireland, wrote as fol-
lows of translator of the Holy
Scriptures: "A translator hath great
nede to studie we'll the sense both be-
lore and after, and then also he hath
nede to live d clene life and be full
deVout in preirS, and have not his Wit
occupied about worldlie things that
the Holy Spyrit author Of all wisdom
and cunnynge and truthc dresse him
for his work and suffer him not to
err"
Tyndalls Version is a great i'm
provement on WyclifteS \ copy of
the latter cost $500. For nearly a
thousand years the Greek the purest
and most perfect of all languages,
was unknown, was dead. 1t was re-
vIved finally as a new study, and it
has been happily said that it rose
from the grave with the New TeSt9-
ment in her hand. When the James
translators were at work they had not
half the knowledge of Greek that the
foremost scholars now have.
Before closing let ire refer to the
elegance, beauty, grace, dignity and
charm of the old Bible we are used
to, and which the most deVOut Chris
tianS must love. Dr. Geddes, IN 1856
d learned Roman Catholic deVine, de-
clared that eff accuracy and strictest
attention to the letter of the text be
supposed to constitute an excellent
version, this is of all versions the most
excellent" Father Faber, gifted
English Romanist asked: Who Will
say. that thee uncommon beauty and
marvellous English of the Protestant
Bible is not one of the great strong
holds of heresy in this country? 1t
lives On tho ear like a music that can
never be forgotten. ike the sound OF
church bells = Its feleCities
seem often to be almost things rather
than words . Its intrinsic
beauty pleads availingly with the
scholar The memory OF the dead
passes into it. The potent traditions
of childhood are streotyped in its
verses. 1t is the representative OF
mans best moments, all that there has
been about him of soft, and gentle.
end pure, and penitent, and good
speaks to him forever out of this
English Bible. 1t is his sacred thing,
which doubt never dimmed and con-
troversy never soiled." And yet there
are ministers and others with SO lit
tie knowledge of style, so little taste
for elevated letters, of so little ad-
miration for the finest, richest. noblcGl
English in all the world, that they
will gladly shove it aside for some lat
ter-day substitution Of bold, ungrace-
full, commonplace English. They
would rather read Shakespeare and
Milton perhaps in the flat, bold, cold
English of cur times than to read
those superlature masters and unap
preached English poetical gcniuses in
their own precious, mellow, beautiful
Words-Shakespea so musical, so
picturesque. so rich, 50 uncXamplcd
and unrivaled in diction, and yet of
such natural ard unentorced style;
Milton 50 majestice. sOnorous, splen-