1. Hebrew Literature; its Divisions.--2. The Language; its Alphabet; its
Structure; Peculiarities, Formation, and Phases.--3. The Old Testament.--
4. Hebrew Education.--5. Fundamental Idea of Hebrew Literature.--6. Hebrew
Poetry.--7. Lyric Poetry; Songs; the Psalms; the Prophets.--8. Pastoral
Poetry and Didactic Poetry; the Proverbs and Ecclesiastes.--9. Epic and
Dramatic Poetry; the Book of Job.--10. Hebrew History; the Pentateuch and
other Historical Books.--11. Hebrew Philosophy.--12. Restoration of the
Sacred Books.--13. Manuscripts and Translations.--14. Rabbinical
Literature.--15. The New Revision of the Bible, and the New Biblical
Manuscript.
1. HEBREW LITERATURE.--In the Hebrew literature we find expressed the
national character of that ancient people who, for a period of four
thousand years, through captivity, dispersion, and persecution of every
kind, present the wonderful spectacle of a race preserving its
nationality, its peculiarities of worship, of doctrine, and of literature.
Its history reaches back to an early period of the world, its code of laws
has been studied and imitated by the legislators of all ages and
countries, and its literary monuments surpass in originality, poetic
strength, and religious importance those of any other nation before the
Christian era.
The literature of the Hebrews may be divided into the four following
periods:--
The first, extending from remote antiquity to the time of David, 1010
B.C., includes all the records of patriarchal civilization transmitted by
tradition previous to the age of Moses, and contained in the Pentateuch or
five books attributed to him after he had delivered the people from the
bondage of Egypt.
The second period extends from the time of David to the death of Solomon,
1010-940 B.C., and to this are referred some of the Psalms, Joshua, the
Judges, and the Chronicles.
The third period extends from the death of Solomon to the return from the
Babylonian captivity, 940-532 B.C., and to this age belong the writings of
most of the Prophets, The Song of Solomon, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, the
books of Samuel, of Kings, and of Ruth.
The fourth period extends from their return from the Babylonian Captivity
to the present time, and to this belong some of the Prophets, the
Chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther, the final completion of the Psalms,
the Septuagint translation of the Bible, the writings of Josephus, of
Philo of Alexandria, and the rabbinical literature.
2. THE LANGUAGE.--The Hebrew language is of Semitic origin; its alphabet
consists of twenty-two letters. The number of accents is nearly forty,
some of which distinguish the sentences like the punctuation of our
language, and others serve to determine the number of syllables, or to
mark the tone with which they are to be sung or spoken.
The Hebrew character is of two kinds, the ancient or square, and the
modern or rabbinical. In the first of these the Scriptures were originally
written. The last is deprived of most of its angles, and is more easy and
flowing. The Hebrew words as well as letters are written from right to
left in common with, the Semitic tongues generally, and the language is
regular, particularly in its conjugations. Indeed, it has but one
conjugation, but with seven or eight variations, having the effect of as
many different conjugations, and giving great variety of expression. The
predominance of these modifications over the noun, the idea of time
contained in the roots of almost all its verbs, so expressive and so
picturesque, and even the scarcity of its prepositions, adjectives, and
adverbs, make this language in its organic structure breathe life, vigor,
and emotion. If it lacks the flowery and luxuriant elements of the other
oriental idioms, no one of these can be compared with the Hebrew tongue
for the richness of its figures and imagery, for its depth, and for its
majestic and imposing features.
In the formation, development, and decay of this language, the following
periods may be distinguished:--
First. From Abraham to Moses, when the old stock was changed by the
infusion of the Egyptian and Arabic. Abraham, residing in Chaldea, spoke
the Chaldaic language, then traveling through Egypt, and establishing
himself in Canaan or Palestine, his language mingled its elements with the
tongues spoken by those nations, and perhaps also with that of the
Phoenicians, who early established commercial intercourse with him and his
descendants. It is probable that the Hebrew language sprung from the
mixture of these elements.
Second. From Moses and the composition of the Pentateuch to Solomon, when
it attained its perfection, not without being influenced by the
Phoenician. This is the Golden Age of the Hebrew language.
Third. From Solomon to Ezra, when, although increasing in beauty and
sweetness, it became less pure by the adoption of foreign ideas and
idioms.
Fourth. From Ezra to the end of the reign of the Maccabees, when it was
gradually lost in the Aramaean or Chaldaic tongue, and became a dead
language.
The Jews of the Middle Ages, incited by the learning of the Arabs in
Spain, among whom they received the protection denied them by Christian
nations, endeavored to restore their language to something of its original
purity, and to render the Biblical Hebrew again a written language; but
the Chaldaic idioms had taken too deep root to be eradicated, and besides,
the ancient language was found insufficient for the necessities of an
advancing civilization. Hence arose a new form of written Hebrew, called
rabbinical from its origin and use among the rabbins. It borrowed largely
from many contemporary languages, and though it became richer and more
regular in its structure, it retained little of the strength and purity of
the ancient Hebrew.
3. THE OLD TESTAMENT.--The literary productions of the Hebrews are
collected in the sacred books of the Old Testament, in which, according to
the celebrated orientalist, Sir William Jones, we can find more eloquence,
more historical and moral truth, more poetry,--in a word, more beauties
than we could gather from all other books together, of whatever country or
language. Aside from its supernatural claims, this book stands alone among
the literary monuments of other nations, for the sublimity of its
doctrine, as well as for the simplicity of its style.
It is the book of all centuries, countries, and conditions, and affords
the best solution of the most mysterious problems concerning God and the
world. It cultivates the taste, it elevates the mind, it nurses the soul
with the word of life, and it has inspired the best productions of human
genius.
4. HEBREW EDUCATION.--Religion, morals, legislation, history, poetry, and
music were the special objects to which the attention of the Levites and
Prophets was particularly directed. The general education of the people,
however, was rather simple and domestic. They were trained in husbandry,
and in military and gymnastic exercises, and they applied their minds
almost exclusively to religious and moral doctrines and to divine worship;
they learned to read and write their own language correctly, but they
seldom learned foreign languages or read foreign books, and they carefully
prevented strangers from obtaining a knowledge of their own.
5. FUNDAMENTAL IDEA OF HEBREW LITERATURE.--Monotheism was the fundamental
idea of the Hebrew literature, as well as of the Hebrew religion,
legislation, morals, politics, and philosophy. The idea of the unity of
God constitutes the most striking characteristic of Hebrew poetry, and
chiefly distinguishes it from that of all mythological nations. Other
ancient literatures have created their divinities, endowed them with human
passions, and painted their achievements in the glowing colors of poetry.
The Hebrew poetry, on the contrary, makes no attempt to portray the Deity
by the instruments of sensuous representation, but simple, majestic, and
severe, it pours forth a perpetual anthem of praise and thanksgiving. The
attributes of God, his power, his paternal love and wisdom, are described
in the most sublime language of any age or nation. His seat is the
heavens, the earth is his footstool, the heavenly hosts his servants; the
sea is his, and he made it, and his hands prepared the dry land.
Placed under the immediate government of Jehovah, having with Him common
objects of aversion and love, the Hebrews reached the very source of
enthusiasm, the fire of which burned in the hearts of the prophets so
fervently as to cause them to utter the denunciations and the promises of
the Eternal in a tone suited to the inspired of God, and to sing his
attributes and glories with a dignity and authority becoming them, as the
vicegerents of God upon earth.
6. HEBREW POETRY.--The character of the people and their language, its
mission, the pastoral life of the patriarchs, the beautiful and grand
scenery of the country, the wonderful history of the nation, the feeling
of divine inspiration, the promise of a Messiah who should raise the
nation to glory, the imposing solemnities of the divine worship, and
finally, the special order of the prophets, gave a strong impulse to the
poetical genius of the nation, and concurred in producing a form of poetry
which cannot be compared with any other for its simplicity and clearness,
for its depth and majesty.
These features of Hebrew poetry, however, spring from its internal force
rather than from any external form. Indeed, the Hebrew poets soar far
above all others in that energy of feeling, impetuous and irresistible,
which penetrates, warms, and moves the very soul. They reveal their
anxieties as well as their hopes; they paint with truth and love the
actual condition of the human race, with its sorrows and consolations, its
hopes and fears, its love and hate. They select their images from the
habitual ideas of the people, and personify inanimate objects--the
mountains tremble and exult, deep cries unto deep. Another characteristic
of Hebrew poetry is the strong feeling of nationality it expresses. Of
their two most sublime poets, one was their legislator, the other their
greatest king.
7. LYRIC POETRY.--In their national festivals the Hebrews sang the hymns
of their lyric poets, accompanied by musical instruments. The art of
singing, as connected with poetry, flourished especially under David, who
instituted twenty-four choruses, composed of four thousand Levites, whose
duty it was to sing in the public solemnities. It is generally believed
that the Hebrew lyric poetry was not ruled by any measure, either of
syllables or of time. Its predominant form was a succession of thoughts
and a rhythmic movement, less of syllables and words than of ideas and
images systematically arranged. The Psalms, especially, are essentially
symmetrical, according to the Hebrew ritual, their verses being sung
alternately by Levites and people, both in the synagogues and more
frequently in the open air. The song of Moses after the passage of the Bed
Sea is the most sublime triumphal hymn in any language, and of equal merit
is his song of thanksgiving in Deuteronomy. Beautiful examples of the same
order of poetry may be found in the song of Judith (though not canonical),
and the songs of Deborah and Balaam. But Hebrew poetry attained its
meridian splendor in the Psalms of David. The works of God in the creation
of the world, and in the government of men; the illustrious deeds of the
House of Jacob; the wonders and mysteries of the new Covenant are sung by
David in a fervent out-pouring of an impulsive, passionate spirit, that
alternately laments and exults, bows in contrition, or soars to the
sublimest heights of devotion. The Psalms, even now, reduced to prose,
after three thousand years, present the best and most sublime collection
of lyrical poems, unequaled for their aspiration, their living imagery,
their grand ideas, and majesty of style.
When at length the Hebrews, forgetful of their high duties and calling,
trampled on their institutions and laws, prophets were raised up to recall
the wandering people to their allegiance. ISAIAH, whether he foretells the
future destiny of the nation, or the coming of the Messiah, in his
majestic eloquence, sweetness, and simplicity, gives us the most perfect
model of lyric poetry. He prophesied during the reigns of Azariah and
Hezekiah, and his writings bear the mark of true inspiration.
JEREMIAH flourished during the darkest period in the history of the
kingdom of Judah, and under the last four kings, previous to the
Captivity. The Lamentations, in which he pours forth his grief for the
fate of his country, are full of touching melancholy and pious
resignation, and, in their harmonious and beautiful tone, show his ardent
patriotism and his unshaken trust in the God of his fathers. He does not
equal Isaiah in the sublimity of his conceptions and the variety of his
imagery, but whatever may be the imperfections of his style, they are lost
in the passion and vehemence of his poems.
DANIEL, after having straggled against the corruptions of Babylon, boldly
foretells the decay of that empire with terrible power. His conceptions
and images are truly sublime; but his style is less correct and regular
than that of his predecessors, his language being a mixture of Hebrew and
Chaldaic.
Such is also the style of EZEKIEL, who sings the development of the
obscure prophesies of his master. His writings abound in dreams and
visions, and convey rather the idea of the terrible than of the sublime.
These four, from the length of their writings, are called the Greater
Prophets, to distinguish them from the twelve Minor Prophets: HOSEA, JOEL,
AMOS, OBADIAH, JONAH, MICAH, NAHUM, HABAKKUK, ZEPHANIAH, HAGGAI,
ZECHARIAH, and MALACHI, all of whom, though endowed with different
characteristics and genius, show in their writings more or less of that
fire and vigor which can only be found in writers who were moved and
warmed by the very spirit of God.
8. PASTORAL POETRY AND DIDACTIC POETRY.--The Song of Solomon and the
history of Ruth are the best specimens of the Hebrew idyl, and breathe all
the simplicity of pastoral life.
The books of Proverbs and Ecclesiastes contain treatises on moral
philosophy, or rather, are didactic poems. The Proverb, which is a maxim
of wisdom, greatly used by the ancients before the introduction of
dissertation, is, as the name indicates, the prevalent form of the first
of these books. In Ecclesiastes we have described the trials of a mind
which has lost itself in undefined wishes and in despair, and the
efficacious remedies for these mental diseases are shown in the pictures
of the vanity of the world and in the final divine judgment, in which the
problem of this life will have its complete solution. SOLOMON, the author
of these works, adds splendor to the sublimity of his doctrines by the
dignity of his style.
9. EPIC AND DRAMATIC POETRY.--The Book of Job may be considered as
belonging either to epic or to dramatic poetry. Its exact date is
uncertain; some writers refer it to the primitive period of Hebrew
literature, and others to a later age; and, while some contend that Job
was but an ideal, representing human suffering, whose story was sung by an
anonymous poet, others, with more probability, regard him as an actual
person, exposed to the trials and temptations described in this wonderful
book. However this may be, it is certain that this monument of wisdom
stands alone, and that it can be compared to no other production for the
sublimity of its ideas, the vivacity and force of its expressions, the
grandeur of its imagery, and the variety of its characters. No other work
represents, in more true and vivid colors, the nobility and misery of
humanity, the laws of necessity and Providence, and the trials to which
the good are subjected for their moral improvement. Here the great
straggle between evil and good appears in its true light, and human virtue
heroically submits itself to the ordeal of misfortune. Here we learn that
the evil and good of this life are by no means the measure of morality,
and here we witness the final triumph of justice.
10. HEBREW HISTORY.--Moses, the most ancient of all historians, was also
the first leader and legislator of the Hebrews. When at length the
traditions of the patriarchs had become obscured and confused among the
different nations of the earth, Moses was inspired to write the history of
the human race, and especially of the chosen people, in order to bequeath
to coming centuries a memorial of revealed truths and of the divine works
of eternal Wisdom. Thus in the first chapters of Genesis, without aiming
to write the complete annals of the first period of the world, he summed
up the general history of man, and described, more especially, the
genealogy of the patriarchs and of the generations previous to the time of
the dispersion.
The subject of the book of Exodus is the delivery of the people from the
Egyptian bondage, and it is not less admirable for the importance of the
events which it describes, than for the manner in which they are related.
In this, and in the following book of Numbers, the record of patriarchal
life gives place to the teachings of Moses and to the history of the
wanderings in the deserts of Arabia.
In Leviticus the constitution of the priesthood is described, as well as
the peculiarities of a worship.
Deuteronomy records the laws of Moses, and concludes with his sublime hymn
of thanksgiving.
The historical books of Joshua, Judges, Samuel, Kings, Chronicles, Ezra,
etc., contain the history of the Hebrew nation for nearly a thousand
years, and relate the prosperity and the disasters of the chosen people.
Here are recorded the deeds of Joshua, of Samson, of Samuel, of David, and
of Solomon, the building of the Temple, the division of the tribes into
two kingdoms, the prodigies of Elijah and Elisha, the impieties of Ahab,
the calamities of Jedekiah, the destruction of Jerusalem and of the first
Temple, the dispersion and the Babylonish captivity, the deliverance under
Cyrus, and the rebuilding of the city and Temple under Ezra, and other
great events in Hebrew history.
The internal evidence derived from the peculiar character of each of the
historical books is decisive of their genuineness, which is supported
above all suspicion of alteration or addition by the scrupulous
conscientiousness and veneration with which the Hebrews regarded their
sacred writings. Their authenticity is also proved by the uniformity of
doctrine which pervades them all, though written at different periods, by
the simplicity and naturalness of the narrations, and by the sincerity of
the writers.
These histories display neither vanity nor adulation, nor do they attempt
to conceal from the reader whatever might be considered as faults in their
authors or their heroes. While they select facts with a nice judgment, and
present the most luminous picture of events and of their causes, they
abstain from reasoning or speculation in regard to them.
11. HEBREW PHILOSOPHY.--Although the Hebrews, in their different sacred
writings, have transmitted to us the best solution of the ancient
philosophical questions on the creation of the world, on the Providence
which rules it, on monotheism, and on the origin of sin, yet they have
nowhere presented us with a complete system of philosophy.
During the Captivity, their doctrines were influenced by those of
Zoroaster, and later, when many of the Jews established themselves in
Egypt, they acquired some knowledge of the Greek philosophy, and the
tenets of the sects of the Essenes bear a strong resemblance to the
Pythagorean and Platonic schools. This resemblance appears most clearly in
the writings of Philo of Alexandria, a Jew, born a few years before the
birth of our Saviour. Though not belonging to the sect of the Essenes, he
followed their example in adopting the doctrines of Plato and taking them
as the criterion in the interpretation of the Scriptures. So, also,
Flavius Josephus, born in Jerusalem, 37 A.D., and Numenius, born in Syria,
in the second century A.D., adopted the Greek philosophy, and by its
doctrines amplified and expanded the tenets of Judaism.
12. RESTORATION OF THE SACRED BOOKS.--One of the most important eras in
Hebrew literature is the period of the restoration of the Mosaic
institutions, after the return from the Captivity. According to tradition,
at that time Ezra established the great Synagogue, a college of one
hundred and twenty learned men, who were appointed to collect copies of
the ancient sacred books, the originals of which had been lost in the
capture of Jerusalem by Nebuchadnezzar, and Nehemiah soon after placed
this, or a new collection, in the Temple. The design of these reformers to
give the people a religious canon in their ancient tongue induces the
belief that they engaged in the work with the strictest fidelity to the
old Mosaic institutions, and it is certain that the canon of the Old
Testament, in the time of the Maccabees, was the same as that which we
have at present.
13. MANUSCRIPTS AND TRANSLATIONS.--Of the canonical books of the Old
Testament we have Hebrew manuscripts, printed editions, and translations.
The most esteemed manuscripts are those of the Spanish Jews, of which the
most ancient belong to the eleventh and twelfth centuries. The printed
editions of the Bible in Hebrew are numerous. The earliest are those of
Italy. Luther made his German translation from the edition of Brescia,
printed in 1494. The earliest and most famous translation of the Old
Testament is the Septuagint, or Greek translation, which was made about
283 B.C. It may, probably, be attributed to the Alexandrian Jews, who,
having lost the knowledge of the Hebrew, caused the translation to be made
by some of their learned countrymen for the use of the Synagogues of
Egypt. It was probably accomplished under the authority of the Sanhedrim,
composed of seventy elders, and therefore called the Septuagint version,
and from it the quotations in the New Testament are chiefly taken. It was
regarded as canonical by the Jews to the exclusion of other books written
in Greek, but not translated from the Hebrew, which we now call, by the
Greek name, the Apocrypha.
The Vulgate or Latin translation, which has official authority in the
Catholic Church, was made gradually from the eighth to the sixteenth
century, partly from an old translation which was made from the Greek in
the early history of the Church, and partly from translations from the
Hebrew made by St. Jerome.
The English version of the Bible now in use in England and America was
made by order of James I. It was accomplished by forty-seven distinguished
scholars, divided into six classes, to each of which a part of the work
was assigned. This translation occupied three years, and was printed in
1611.
14. RABBINICAL LITERATURE.--Rabbinical literature includes all the
writings of the rabbins, or teachers of the Jews in the later period of
Hebrew letters, who have interpreted and developed the literature of the
earlier ages. The language made use of by them has its foundation in the
Hebrew and Chaldaic, with various alterations and modifications in the use
of words, the meaning of which they have considerably enlarged and
extended. They have frequently borrowed from the Arabic, Greek, and Latin,
and from those modern tongues spoken where they severally resided.
The Talmud, from the Hebrew word signifying _he has learned_, is a
collection of traditions illustrative of the laws and usages of the Jews.
The Talmud consists of two parts, the Mishna and the Gemara. The Mishna,
or _second law_, is a collection of rabbinical rules and precepts made in
the second century. The Gemara (_completion_ or _doctrine_) was composed
in the third century. It is a collection of commentaries and explanations
of the Mishna, and both together formed the Jerusalem Talmud.
The Babylonian rabbins composed new commentaries on the Mishna, and this
formed the Babylonian Talmud. Both Talmuds were first committed to writing
about 500 A.D. At the period of the Christian Era, the civil constitution,
language, and mode of thinking among the Jews had undergone a complete
revolution, and were entirely different from what they had been in the
early period of the commonwealth. The Mosaic books contained rules no
longer adapted to the situation of the nation, and many difficult
questions arose to which their law afforded no satisfactory solution. The
rabbins undertook to supply this defect, partly by commentaries on the
Mosaic precepts, and partly by the composition of new rules.
The Talmud requires that wherever twelve adults reside together in one
place, they shall erect a synagogue and serve the God of their fathers by
a multitude of prayers and formalities, amidst the daily occupations of
life. It allows usury, treats agricultural pursuits with contempt, and
requires strict separation from the other races, and commits the
government to the rabbins. The Talmud is followed by the Rabbinites, to
which sect nearly all the European and American Jews belong. The sect of
the Caraites rejects the Talmud and holds to the law of Moses only. It is
less numerous, and its members are found chiefly in the East, or in Turkey
and Eastern Russia.
The Cabala, or oral tradition, is, according to the Jews, a perpetual
divine revelation, preserved among the Jewish people by secret
transmission. It sometimes denotes the doctrines of the prophets, but most
commonly the mystical philosophy, which was probably introduced into
Palestine from Egypt and Persia. It was first committed to writing in the
second century A.D. The Cabala is divided into the symbolical and the
real, of which the former gives a mystical signification to letters. The
latter comprehends doctrines, and is divided into the theoretical and
practical. The first aims to explain the Scriptures according to the
secret traditions, while the last pretends to teach the art of performing
miracles by an artificial use of the divine names and sentences of the
sacred Scriptures.
The Jews of the Middle Ages acquired great reputation for learning,
especially in Spain, where they were allowed to study astronomy,
mathematics, and medicine in the schools of the Moors. Granada and Cordova
became the centres of rabbinical literature, which was also cultivated in
France, Italy, Portugal, and Germany. In the sixteenth century the study
of Hebrew and rabbinical literature became common among Christian
scholars, and in the following centuries it became more interesting and
important from the introduction of comparative philology in the department
of languages. Rabbinical literature still has its students and
interpreters. In Padua, Berlin, and Metz there are seminaries for the
education of rabbins, which supply with able doctors the synagogues of
Italy, Germany, and France. There is also a rabbinical school in
Cincinnati, Ohio. The Polish rabbins and Talmudists, however, are the most
celebrated.
15. THE NEW REVISION OF THE BIBLE.--The convocation of the English House
of Bishops, which met at Canterbury in 1870, recommended a revised version
of the Scriptures, and appointed a committee for the work of sixty-seven
members from various ecclesiastical bodies of England, to which an
American committee of thirty-five was added, and by their joint labors the
revised edition of the New Testament was issued in 1881. The revised Old
Testament is expected to appear during 1884. The advantages claimed for
these new versions are: a more accurate rendering of the text, a
correction of the errors of former translations, the removal of misleading
archaisms and obsolete terms, better punctuation, arrangement in sections
as well as chapters and verses, the metrical arrangement of poetry, and an
increased number of marginal readings.
In 1875, Bryennios, a metropolitan of the Greek Church, discovered in the
library of the Most Holy Sepulchre at Constantinople a manuscript
belonging to the second century A.D., which contains, among other valuable
and interesting documents, one on the "Teaching of the Twelve Apostles,"
many points of which bear on the usages of the church, such as the mode of
baptism, the celebration of the Eucharist, and the orders of the ministry.
It was at first considered authentic and highly important, but more
deliberate study tends to discredit its authority.