The Pensacola journal. (Pensacola, Fla.) 1898-1985, 1919-07-12
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Pensacola. July 10. 1919.

~ merits careful attention. for such
attacks on the word of God have done
more to foster the infidelity of this.
day than any other ags6cy in action.
Permit the writer therefore to spread
some facts which will surely be ap
preciated by all who enjoy the inten-
sive study of divine revelation
The prophecy of jeremiah, which
your critic declares -is not a prophecy,
is distinctly styled a prophecy in the
New Testament, and by one of the
twelve apostles OF the Lord, who.
Revelation declares. is to be one OF
the foundation stones of the New
Jerusalem. which will descend from
God out of heaven. Is it not strange
that God Himself, in constructing the
great city which He will send forth
as the handiwork of His own skill.
would use one of it's chief fSunda-
tions man who was so ignorant as TO
declare jeremiah to have been a
prophet? Matthew, 1:1S, so declares,
and quotes a passage from the pro-
pbecy, declaring 1t to have been full
filled in the experiences of the infant
Jesus. Were it not for this particular
item of prophecy. we might be meas
urably in the dark regarding the fac
of those dying in infancy, of whom
the Calvinistic creed declares that
hell is full Of infants not a span
long We might also be without
scripture guidance as to the sweet. but
Elusive fancy that the little ones a
death fly away to heaven. This pass
age of the prophecy declares that they
have gone to the land of the enemy,
which is death. and will return again
to their own border, which was Beth
lehem.
Jesus. the Saviour Of the world. de-
cIared that He knew whom He had
chosen, referring to the twelve
apostles If He knew that Matthew
was ignorant regarding jeremiah. why
did He not instruct him instead Of per-
hitting him to pen statement bound
to deceive the whole Christian world?
Could the world trust a Saviour who
would be sponsor for such deception?
The following facts, real facts, OPP
posed to personal fancy, are very
pertinent TO the question and of much
interest The New Testament quotes
Jeremiah fifty-three times, according
to the lists given by those most emf
nent textual authorities, Westcott and
Hort Thirteen Of the books Of the
New Testament quote Jeremiah. These
books We're written by seven differ
ent authors at least four of whom
were Of the twelve apostles. All three
of the synoptic gospels quote Jere-
miah. and no less than six different
times do they represent Jesus Him
self as quoting jeremiah. If your
critic is on the right track, he GER
tainly puts Christ in a fearful light.
either as an ignoramus or as a denb-
crate imposter. Very few of your
Iut,iCh horn of
the dilemma to take. 1t is little to be
doubted that the confidence which the
apostles manifested in quoting Jere-
miah was the direct result of follow
ing the Lamb of God for three and
a half years and receiving His daily
instruction out of the book.
The great apostle Paul quote Jere-
miah eleven times. Paul had, beside
the leading of the Spirit of God. all
the instruction which the Jewish
schools could give, having been
brought up at the feet of their great
scolar Gamaliel. But in the light that
seems to surround your critic, PAU
must have been a much deceived and
becIouded leader. How pitiful that
God should permit such person 10
write a third of the New Testament
If Paul is Enthusiastically in his esti-
mate of jeremiah, how are ordinary
beings to know in what possible d.
rection they can safely follow him?
But we are convinced that God has
not thus dealt with His people; but
that, on the contrary, He has supplied
them in His word the things essential
to life and godliness.
Peter, considered by many as the
dean Of the apostles and the head
Of bTiC &c found
in apparently guileless quotation from
jeremiah, as also is James. John. the
beloved, in the book of Revelation.
which opens with the statement that
the revelation was given by God Him
self, to Jesus Christ, to be recorded
by His servant John. quotes jeremiah
as many as twentythree times. If it
is true that God dictated these quota
tons from Jeremiah, then the con-
clusion is unavoidable. either that God
needs some instruction from your
critic, to qualify Him to run His uni
verse, or else the critic needs to sit at
the feet of his Maker for a little
schooling.
This sort of language may seem
rather pointed, but let it be remen-
bered that the critic is Juggling at the
very vitals of civilization and Chris
tianity in undermining public conf
dence in the Bible; and such efforts
surely call for most strident protest
in the name of all that is good. If
we do as we are invited to do. and
discard Jeremiah from our Bibles.
then we are bound to cut out one-half
the books of the New Testament
which foolishly or peryersely quote
him. If we start this process OF CEN
soring the Bible. and follow the within
of every higher critic who appears
with the long shears, it will be less
than ten days till every vestige Of
divine revelation will be in the waste
basket, and the world on the run to-
ward a carnival of ruin.
Saint Stephen, a deacon in the orig
inal church. and its first martyr ID