The farmer and mechanic., 1906-09-04

Great success say 10 MS historic Id-
borS.
Within the last four years [ have
written of the Bible some two or three
times. / read the Bible q great deal
1t is the lamp unto my feet and the
li&ht unto my path. / am anxious to
help others. Where there is one per
son who is familiar with it, and
knows all about its history. there are
probably one hundred who know but
little of its origin. construction. trans
IauQnS, etc. / write for the hundred
hoping that one at least may. be
helped. have not any purpose to
write for the benefit of the infdeI Ind
ScOffcr of the blessed Word of Life.
The great Biblical critics and scholars
have Ions ago left him stiff, stark.
naked, without props or pretcnse. /
wish now TO touch merely = few plain
points, and very briefly. The Bible
contains nearly 50.000 verses 1t is
divided into Sc books or tracts. and
about thirty writer's produced them.
Nearly all of the Old Testament books
wore collected by Ezra, whom the
Jews hold to be next to Moses only
The jewish canon of Scriptures by
Ezra have had some changes made,
an4 additions were made by Simon the
Just. 1t is thought that Chronicles,
Nehemiah. Esther. and Malachi were
tanned in the old Hebrew Testament
were regarded by the ancient Jews as
of Divine authority. All of the New
Testament books or letters or tracts,
were collected before the Apostle John
died some where about '96-100. The
old Testament books were in He
brow, With few exceptions, aud the
New Testament was written in Greek
Aramaic perhaps. The manuscripts
of the New Testament as late as the
fifth and sixth centuries have come
down in perfect preservation. There
ARE three COdicCS--the Naticanus: the
SinaitiCuS not later than the fourth
century N)-and the AcXandrinus. not
much later. Tho various readings
are very numerous, and DIR. Mill. high
authority. put those of the New TcS-
lament at not less than 10000. Since
! -166S-ScVcral thousands have
! been added. It is said that those that
/ have been found in the manuscripts
OF the Old Testament amount to hun
! dreds of thousands. But really they
signify but little as it is almost al
ways about how an shall he dotted or Il
/ t crossed. and so on. But doctrines
are not reached by them. 1t is stated
! that the 'VerE worst manuscript ever
! consulted. does not contain a single
Ideviation from the original text
which would Vitiate, in the slightest
, degree. any one vital essential
truth" The division into verses was
made in 1856 as to the Old Testament
! by Atheas. 4 Jew Of Amsterdam, and
as to the New Testament. by Robert
stephens, q French printer. The King
flames version. the one now generally
used. was the work of tifty-foui
learned men. chiefly professors and
idiVineS of the old ministers of Oxford
and Cambridge. 1t began in 1904
and three years were required to com
ipletc the very important work. 1t Is
not only. said DR.. Adam Clark, the IA
!mous Methodist commentators, g
standard translation. but the transla-
Richard Watson. the eminent Meth
IOdiSt author Said-''Of all modern
versions this is the most faithful ano
Iaccurate Its style is simple. harmon
tiouS and energetic: use has made /
familiar. and time has rendered il sa
tcred There are some scores of error!
that need correcting. but to mutilat'
this marvellous piece of EngliSh-thG
Iglory of the English language, Is sac
religious. outrageous and stupid.
Sorle English writer. to me un
known. was alike happy and acute
when contemplating the charm. tht
excellence the imposing qualities o
the extra ordinary translation he sad
IF the edificc is 50 finely proportioned
that its architectural effects impress
teNcrY behoider. we may we'll he thlni
yourselves a little before we undertake
Ito meddle with or to amend 1t. 81
Thomas Browne greatly admired th'
isupreme excellence of the translator
and, said IF the substantial subJec
be we'll forged out, we need not eH
famine the sparks which irregularly II,
lfrOm it" The unfortunate tendenc.
inow is, not TO be content with cor