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THE ORIGIN AND PERMANENT VALUE OF THE OLD TESTAMENT
BY
CHARLES FOSTER KENT, PH.D.
WOOLSEY PROFESSOR OF BIBLICAL LITERATURE IN YALE UNIVERSITY
"Ye shall know the Truth and the Truth shall make you free"
PREFACE
During the past generation the Old Testament has commanded equally with
the New the enthusiastic and devoted study of the great body of biblical
scholars throughout the world. Two out of every three graduate students
in our universities who specialize in the general field of biblical
literature choose the Old as the special centre of their work. At the
same time the tendency of the rank and file of the Christian church
within the past decade has undoubtedly been to neglect the older
Testament. Preachers as a rule select less than a fourth of their texts
from it; the prevailing courses of Bible study devote proportionately
less time to it; and teachers and scholars in the great majority of
cases turn to the Old Testament with much less enthusiasm than they
do to the New. Why are these two great currents setting in opposite
directions, and what are the causes of the present popular neglect of
the Old Testament? If the Old Testament should be relegated to a second
place in our working canon of the Bible, let us frankly and carefully
define our reasons. If, on the other hand, the prevailing apathy and
neglect are due to ignorance of the real character and value of the Old
Testament, let as lose no time in setting ourselves right.
The present volume has been suggested by repeated calls from ministerial
bodies, popular assemblies, and groups of college students for addresses
on the themes here treated. The aim has been to give in concise, popular
form answers to some of the many questions thus raised, with the
conviction that they are in the mind of every thoughtful man and woman
to-day, and especially on the lips of earnest pastors, missionaries,
and Sunday-school teachers. There are indications on every side of
a deepening and far more intelligent interest in the needs and
possibilities of religious education. Its vital importance to the life
of the Church and the nation is being understood as never before.
Earnest and fruitful efforts are being put forth to improve the methods
and courses of instruction. The first essential, however, is a true
understanding and appreciation of that Book of Books, which will
forever continue to be the chief manual "for teaching, for reproof, for
correction, for instruction, in righteousness, that the man of God
may be perfect, completely fitted for every good work." The supreme
importance and practical value of the New Testament are recognized by
all, but we usually forget when we quote the familiar words of Paul that
he had in mind simply the Scriptures of the Old Testament.
In divine Providence mighty forces have been quietly at work during the
past century removing false rabbinical traditions and misconceptions
that had gathered about these ancient Scriptures, while from other
sources has come new light to illumine their pages. The result is that
in the Old Testament the Christian world is discerning a new heritage,
the beauty and value of which is still only half suspected even by
intelligent people. This fact is so significant and yet so little
recognized that one feels impelled to go out and proclaim it on the
housetops. The Old Testament can never be properly presented from the
pulpit or in the class-room while the attitude of preacher and teacher
is apathetic and the motive a sense of duty rather than an intelligent
acquaintance with its real character and genuine admiration and
enthusiasm for its vital truths. The irresistible fascination which has
drawn many of the most brilliant scholars into the Old Testament field
is a proof that it has lost nothing, of its power and attractiveness.
Already the circle of those who have rediscovered the Old Testament is
rapidly broadening. Observation and experience confirm the conviction
that all that is lacking to make that devotion universal is a right
attitude toward it and an intelligent familiarity with its real origin,
contents, and teachings. The sooner this is realized the sooner some of
the most difficult problems of the Church, of the Sunday-school, and of
popular religious education will be solved.
As the repository of a great and varied literature, as a record of
many of the most important events in human history, and as a concrete
revelation of God's character and will through the life and experiences
of a race and the hearts of inspired men, the Old Testament has a vital
message marvellously adapted to the intellectual, moral, social, and
spiritual needs of to-day and supremely fitted to appeal to the thought
and imagination of the present age.
This little volume is intended to be simply a very informal introduction
to it. Since of the two Testaments the New is by far the more easily
understood and the better known, it is made the point of departure in
the approach to the more complex field represented by the Old. Many
unexpected analogies will aid in understanding the intricate literary
history of the older Scriptures. The point of view assumed throughout is
that of the busy pastor, missionary, Sunday-school teacher, and scholar,
who have little time for technical study, but who are not afraid
of truth because it is new and who firmly believe that God is ever
revealing himself more fully to men and that his truth shall make us
free. It is hoped that this general survey will prove for them but an
introduction to a far deeper and more profitable study.
To the Reverend J.F. McFarland, D.D., of the Bible Study Union, to the
Reverend S.A. Cooke, D.D., of the Methodist Book Concern, to Mr. John
H. Scribner of the Presbyterian Board of Publication and Sunday-school
Work, to the Reverend M.C. Hazard, D.D., of the Pilgrim Press, and to
the Reverend F.K. Sanders, Ph.D., of the Congregational Sunday-school
and Publishing Society, who have generously read the manuscript of this
book, I am deeply indebted, not only for their valuable suggestions, but
also for their strong expressions of personal interest in the practical
ends which it seeks to conserve, I am also under great obligation to the
Reverend Morgan Miller, of Yale, for his untiring vigilance in revising
the proof of a volume written within the all too brief limits of a
Christmas vacation.
C.F.K.
YALE UNIVERSITY,
January, 1906.
CONTENTS
I. THE ECLIPSE AND REDISCOVERY OF THE OLD TESTAMENT
II. THE REAL NATURE AND PURPOSE OF THE OLD TESTAMENT
III. THE EARLIEST CHAPTERS IN DIVINE REVELATION
IV. THE PLACE OF THE OLD TESTAMENT IN DIVINE REVELATION
V. THE INFLUENCES THAT PRODUCED THE NEW TESTAMENT
VI. THE GROWTH OF THE OLD TESTAMENT PROPHETIC HISTORIES
VII. THE HISTORY OF THE PROPHETIC SERMONS, EPISTLES, AND APOCALYPSES
VIII. THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE EARLIER OLD TESTAMENT LAWS
IX. INFLUENCES THAT GAVE RISE TO THE PRIESTLY LAWS AND HISTORIES
X. THE HEBREW SAGES AND THEIR PROVERBS
XL THE WRITINGS OF ISRAEL'S PHILOSOPHERS
XII. THE HISTORY OF THE PSALTER
XIII. THE FORMATION OF THE OLD TESTAMENT CANON
XIV. THE INTERPRETATION OF THE EARLY NARRATIVES OF THE OLD TESTAMENT
XV. PRACTICAL METHODS OF STUDYING THE OLD TESTAMENT
XVI. RELIGIOUS EDUCATION--THE FUNDAMENTAL PROBLEM OF TO-DAY
I
THE ECLIPSE AND REDISCOVERY OF THE OLD TESTAMENT
[Sidenote: _Jesus' study of the Old Testament_]
The opening chapters of the Gospels record only three or four meagre
facts regarding the first thirty years of Jesus' life. The real history
of those significant years ran so far beneath the surface of external
events that it completely escaped the historian. The history of the
mental and spiritual life of the Master is recorded in his mature
character and teachings. The fugitive hints, however, vividly illustrate
the supreme fact that he ever _grew stronger, becoming filled with
wisdom;--and the grace of God was upon him_ (Luke ii. 40). They reveal a
soul not only in closest touch with God and with human life, but also in
eager quest for the vital truth regarding God and man recorded in the
Scriptures of his race. It requires no imagination to picture the young
Jew of Nazareth eagerly studying in the synagogue, at the temple, and
alone by himself the sacred writings found in our Old Testament, for
this fact is clearly recorded on every page of the Gospels.
[Sidenote: _His familiarity with all parts of it_]
The events of Hebrew history, and its heroes --Abraham, David, Elijah--
were all familiar to him. The Old Testament was the background of a
large portion of the Sermon on the Mount. From Deuteronomy vi. 4, 5, and
Leviticus xix. 18 he drew his marvellous epitome of all law and duty. In
the wisdom literature, and especially in the book of Proverbs, he found
many of those practical truths which he applied to life with new
authority and power. From the same storehouse of crystallized experience
he derived certain of those figures which he expanded into his
inimitable parables; he adopted also, and put to new use, the effective
gnomic form of teaching of the wisdom school. As in the mouth of his
herald, John the Baptist, the great moral and spiritual truths, first
proclaimed by the ancient prophets, live again on the lips of Jesus. At
every point in his teachings one recognizes the thought and language of
the older Scriptures. At the moments of his greatest temptation and
distress, even in the last agony, the words of the ancient law and
psalms were on his lips and their consoling and inspiring messages in
his mind.
[Sidenote: _Attitude of the apostles_]
What is so strikingly true of Jesus is equally true of the apostles and
disciples who have given us the New Testament books: the atmosphere in
which they lived, the thoughts which they thought, and the language in
which they spoke, were those of the Old Testament. Not bowing slavishly
before it, as did their Jewish contemporaries, but with true reverence,
singling out that which was vital and eternal, they made it the basis of
their own more personal and perfect message to humanity. But for them,
and for the early Church, until at least the middle of the second
Christian century, the only scriptures regarded as authoritative were
those of the Old Testament. Even then, only gradually, and under the
pressure of real needs, were different groups of Christian writings
added and ascribed an authority equal to that of the older Scriptures.
[Sidenote: _Attitude of the later Church, and especially Puritanism_]
Throughout the Middle Ages and in the eyes of the Protestant reformers
the two great divisions of the Bible continued to command equal respect
and attention. From the Old Testament and its reflection in the
teachings of Paul, Puritanism and the theology of the past three
centuries derived most of that which revealed their strength as well as
their weakness. From the law, the prophets, and the book of Proverbs
they drew their stern spirit of justice, their zeal for righteousness,
and their uncompromising condemnation of everything that seemed to them
wrong. Their preachers nobly echoed the thunders of Sinai and the
denunciations of an Elijah, an Amos, and an Hosea. They often failed,
however, to recognize the divine love which prompted the stern words
of the prophets, and to see that these denunciations and warnings were
simply intended to arouse the conscience of the people and to make
them worthy of the rich blessings that God was eager to bestow.
Misinterpretation of the spirit of the later Old Testament reformers,
who dramatically portrayed Jehovah's hatred for the abominable heathen
cults in the form of commands to slaughter the peoples practising them,
frequently led the Puritan fathers to treat their foes in a manner
neither biblical nor Christian. To this narrow interpretation of the
letter rather than the spirit of the Old Testament, and the emphasis
placed upon its more primitive and imperfect teachings can be directly
traced the worst faults of that courageous band who lived and died
fighting for what they conceived to be truth and right.
[Sidenote: _Reaction against the Bible of Puritanism_]
It is undoubtedly true that during the past two decades the Old
Testament has in fact, if not in theory, been assigned to a secondary
place in the life and thought of Christendom. This is not due to the
fact that the Christ has been exalted to his rightful position of
commanding authority and prestige. All that truly exalts him likewise
exalts the record of the work of his forerunners which he came to bring
to complete fulfilment and upon which he placed his eternal seal of
approval. Rather, the present eclipse of the Old Testament appears to be
due to three distinct causes. The first is connected with the reaction
from Puritanism, and especially from its false interpretation of the
Bible. Against intolerance and persecution the heart of man naturally
rebelled. These rang true neither with life nor the teaching of Jesus.
Refuge from the merciless and seemingly flawless logic of the earlier
theologians was found in the simple, reassuring words of the Gospels.
The result was that, with the exception of a very few books like the
Psalter, the Old Testament, which was the arsenal of the old militant
theology, has been unconsciously, if not deliberately, shunned by the
present generation.
[Sidenote: _Doubts aroused by the work of the "Higher Critics"_]
Within the past decade this tendency has been greatly accelerated by the
work of the so-called "Higher Critics." Because it presents more
literary and historical problems, and because it was thought, at first,
to be farther away from the New Testament, the citadel of the Christian
faith, the Old Testament has been the scene of their greatest activity.
With what seemed to the onlooker to be a supreme disregard for the
traditions long accepted as established by the Church, they have
persistently applied to the ancient Scriptures the generally accepted
canons and methods of modern historical and literary study. In their
scientific zeal they have repeatedly overturned what were once regarded
as fundamental dogmas. Unfortunately the first reports of their work
suggested that it was only destructive. The very foundations of faith
seemed to be shaking. Sinai appeared to be enveloped in a murky fog,
instead of the effulgence of the divine glory; Moses seemed to become a
vague, unreal figure on the distant horizon of history; David's voice
only faintly echoed through the Psalter; and the noblest messages of
prophet, sage, and psalmist were anonymous.
[Sidenote: _The mistakes of the critics_]
Little wonder that many who heard only from afar the ominous reports of
the digging and delving, and vague rumors,--all the more terrifying
because vague,--either leaped to the conclusion that the authority of
the Old Testament had been undermined or else rallied in a frantic
effort to put a stop, by shouting or compulsion, to the seemingly
sacrilegious work of destruction. When the history of the Higher
Criticism of the Old Testament is finally written, it will be declared
most unfortunate that the results first presented to the rank and file
of the Christian Church were, as a rule, largely negative and in many
cases relatively unimportant. In their initial enthusiasm for scientific
research scholars, alas! sometimes lost the true perspective and failed
to recognize relative values. The date, for example, of Isaiah xl.-lv.
is important for the right understanding and interpretation of these
wonderful chapters, but its value is insignificant compared with the
divine messages contained in these chapters and their direct application
to life. Moreover, instead of presenting first the testimony and then
patiently pointing out the reasonableness and vital significance of the
newer conclusions, scholars sometimes, under the influence of their
convictions, made the fatal mistake of enunciating those conclusions
simply as dogmas.
[Sidenote: _Resulting loss of faith in the Old Testament_]
History demonstrates that established religions and churches always hold
tenaciously to old doctrines, and therefore regard new conclusions with
suspicion. This tendency is clearly illustrated in the experience of
Jesus; for with all his divine tact and convincing authority, he was not
able to win the leaders of Judaism to the acceptance of his
revolutionizing teachings. Yet one cannot escape the conviction that if
in this age of enlightenment and open-mindedness, the positive results
of modern scholarship had been presented first, this latest chapter in
God's revelation of himself to man would have been better understood and
appreciated by the leaders of the Church, and its fruits appropriated by
those whose interests are fixed on that which is of practical rather
than theoretical import. At least many open-minded people might have
been saved from the supreme error of writing, either consciously or
unconsciously, _Ichabod_ across the pages of their Old Testament.
[Sidenote: _Difficulties in understanding it_]
The third reason why the Old Testament has suffered temporary eclipse in
so many minds is more fundamental; it is because of the difficulties in
understanding it. The background of the New Testament is the Roman world
and a brief century with which we Western readers are well acquainted;
but the background of the Old is the ancient East--the age and land of
wonder, mystery, and intuition, far removed from the logical, rushing
world in which we live. The Old Testament contains a vast and complex
literature, filled with the thoughts and figures and cast in the quaint
language of the Semitic past. Between us and that past there lie not
merely long centuries, but the wide gulf that is fixed between the East
and the West.
[Sidenote:_The new light from the monuments_]
With three such distinct and powerful currents--reaction, suspicion, and
misunderstand--bearing us from the Old Testament, it might be predicted
that in a decade or two it would lie far behind our range of vision.
Other forces however are, in divine providence, rapidly bringing it back
to us again, so that we are able to understand and appreciate it as
never before since the beginning of the Christian era. The chasm between
us and it is really being bridged rather than broadened. The long
centuries that lie back of the Old Testament have suddenly been
illuminated by great search-lights, so that today we are almost as well
acquainted with them as with the beginning of the Christian era. From
ancient monuments have arisen, as from the dead, an army of contemporary
witnesses, sometimes confirming, sometimes correcting, but at all times
marvellously supplementing the biblical data. Now the events and
characters of Old Testament history no longer stand alone in mysterious
isolation, but we can study in detail their setting and real
significance. At every point the biblical narrative and thought are
brought into touch with real life and history. The biographies and
policies, for example, of Sennacherib and Cyrus, are almost as well
known as those of Napoleon and Washington. The prophets are not merely
voices, but men with a living message for all times, because they
primarily dealt with the conditions and needs of their own day. The
vital relation and at the same time the infinite superiority of the
religious teachings of the Old Testament to those of earlier ages and
peoples are clearly revealed.
[Sidenote: _Modern aids in interpreting the Old Testament_]
Interpreted in the light of contemporary literature and language, most
of the obscurities of the Old Testament melt away. Modern research in
the fields of Semitic philology and syntax and the discovery of older
texts and versions have put into the hands of translators new and
valuable tools for making clear to all the thoughts in the minds of the
original writers of the Old Testament. Studies in comparative religion,
geography, and modern Oriental life and customs have illuminated and
illustrated at every point the pages of the ancient writings. To utilize
all these requires time and devotion, but he who is willing to study may
know his Old Testament to-day as well as he does the New.
[Sidenote: _Rejection of rabinical traditions_]
Fully commensurate with the great light that has been shed upon it from
without, is that which has come from a careful study of the testimony of
the Old Testament itself. Until recent times the Church has been content
to accept blindly the traditions of the late Jewish rabbis regarding the
origin, history, and interpretation of their scriptures. Handed down
through the Church Fathers and interwoven with creeds and popular
beliefs, they have been identified in many minds with the teaching of
the Bible itself. Yet, when we analyze their origin and true character,
we find that many of them have absolutely no support in the Scriptures,
and in many cases are directly contradictory to the plain biblical
teachings. Too often they are but the fanciful conjectures of the
rabbis. Developed in an uncritical age, and based upon the unreliable
methods of interpretation current among the Jews in the early Christian
centuries, they are often sadly misleading. A close analogy is found in
the traditional identifications of most of the Palestinian sacred sites.
To-day the Oriental guide shows the skull of Adam beneath the spot where
tradition places the cross of Christ. If the traveller desires, he will
point out the very stones which Jesus declared God could raise up to be
children of Abraham. Every question which curiosity or genuine interest
has raised is answered by the seemingly authoritative voice of
tradition. Investigation, however, proves that almost all of these
thousand identifications are probably incorrect. The discovery is a
shock to the pious imagination; but to the healthy mind uncertainty is
always better than error. Furthermore, uncertainty often proves the door
which leads to established truth.
[Sidenote: _Acceptance of the testimony of the Old Testament regarding
its origin and history._]
Even so the modern historical and critical spirit has led men to turn
from the generally accepted but exceedingly doubtful rabbinical
traditions regarding, for example, the date and authorship of many of
the Old Testament books, to the authoritative evidence found in those
writings themselves. In this they are but following the example of the
Great Teacher, who repeatedly appealed from the same rabbis and their
misleading traditions to the same ancient Scriptures. The saddest fact
is that many of his followers, even to-day, hesitate to follow his
inspired leadership. Fortunately, as the varied, strata and formations
of the rocks tell the story of the earth's early history, so these early
writings furnish the data for reconstructing the illuminating history of
their origin, growth, and transmission. Often the testimony of the facts
differs as widely from the familiar inherited traditions as the
conclusions of modern science from the vague guesses of primitive man
regarding the riddles of existence. Neither may represent absolute and
final truth, and yet no serious-minded man can question which is really
the more authoritative. To-day one of the most vital issues before the
Christian. Church is whether it will follow the guidance of its Founder
and accept the testimony of the Bible itself or cling blindly to the
traditions of the rabbis and Church Fathers.
[Sidenote: _Historical significance of the modern movement_]
The student of history at once recognizes in the modern movement, of
which the watchword is, "Back to the testimony of the Bible," the direct
sequel to the Protestant Reformation. The early reformers took the
chains off the Bible and put it into the hands of men, with full
permission to study and search. Vested interests and dogmatism soon
began to dictate how it should be studied and interpreted, and thus it
was again placed practically under lock and key. It is an interesting
fact that a young Zulu chief, a pupil of Bishop Colenso of South Africa,
first aroused the Anglo-Saxon world to the careful, fearless, and
therefore truly reverential study of its Old Testament. With this new
impetus, the task of the Reformers was again taken up, and in the same
open, earnest spirit. For two generations it has commanded the
consecrated energies of the most thorough scholars of Christendom. Those
of England, Scotland, Ireland, France, Germany, Austria, Switzerland,
Norway, Sweden, America, and Canada have worked shoulder to shoulder,
dividing the work, carefully collecting and classifying the minutest
data, comparing results, and, on the basis of all this work, formulating
conclusions, some assured and some hypothetical, which best explain the
facts.
[Sidenote: _The unveiling of the Old Testament_]
Often, to those who have not followed the detailed steps, these
conclusions have seemed only destructive. Many of them are assuredly so;
but the vital question which every honest man should ask is, Do they
destroy the Bible, or simply the false traditions that have gathered
about it? Fortunately, most of the leaders of the Church and most
intelligent laymen have already discerned the only emphatic answer to
this question. The Church is undoubtedly passing quietly through a
revolution in its conception and attitude toward the Bible, more
fundamental and far-reaching than that represented by its precursor the
Protestant Reformation; but its real significance is daily becoming more
apparent. Not a grain of truth which the Bible contains has been
destroyed or permanently obscured. Instead, the _débris_ of time-honored
traditions and dogmas have been cleared away, and the true Scriptures at
last stand forth again in their pristine splendor.
[Sidenote: _The true Old Testament_]
Freed from the misconceptions and false traditions which have gathered
about it, the true Old Testament rises from amidst the dust and din of
the much digging and delving. To those who have known only the old it is
a fresh revelation. Its literary beauty, its naturalness, its dignity,
its majestic authority are a surprise to those who have not followed its
unveiling. The old vagueness and mystery have in part disappeared, and
instead it is found to contain a thousand vital, living messages for to-
day. Its human as well as its divine qualities command our interest and
attention. Through it all God speaks with a new clearness and authority.
Thus, that which we thought was dead has risen, and lives again to
inspire us to noble thought and deed and service.
II
THE REAL NATURE AND PURPOSE OF THE OLD TESTAMENT
[Sidenote: _A large and complex library_]
Turning from the Jewish and mediæval traditions and theories which so
easily beset us, we ask, What is the real nature of the Old Testament as
it is revealed in this new and clearer light? The first conclusion is
that it is a library containing a large and complex literature,
recording the varied experiences, political, social, ethical, and
religious, of the Israelitish race. The fact that it is a library
consisting of many different books is recognized by the common
designation of the two testaments. As is well known, our English word
_Bible_ came originally from the Papyrus or Byblus reed, the pith of
which was widely used in antiquity as the material from which books were
made. It was natural, therefore, that in the Greek a little book should
be designated as a _biblion_. About the middle of the second Christian
century the Greek Christians (first in the so-called Second Epistle of
Clement xlv. 2) began to call their sacred scriptures, _Ta Biblia_, the
books. When this title was transferred to the Latin it was, by reason of
a natural and yet significant error, treated as a feminine singular,
_Biblia_, which, reappears In English as _Bible_. This most appropriate
name emphasizes the fact that the books thus described are a unit and
yet a collection of little books, selected from a larger literature and
given their present position of preeminent authority.
[Sidenote: _The record of God's vital, personal relations to the
Israelitish race_]
The term Testament suggests not the form and authority of the books, but
their theme. It is the English translation, through the Latin and Greek,
of the Hebrew word, _berîth_, usually rendered, _covenant_. It means a
_bond_ or _basis of agreement_. It implies a close and binding contract
between two parties, and defines the terms to which each subscribes and
the obligations which they thus assume. The _Old Covenant_ or
_Testament_, therefore, is primarily the written record of the origin,
terms, and history of the solemn agreement which existed between the
Israelitish nation and Jehovah. The early narratives preserve the
traditions of its origin; the lawgivers endeavored to define its terms
and the obligations that rested upon the people; the prophets
interpreted them in the life of the nation, and the sages into the life
of the individual; and the historical books recorded its practical
working. The significant fact is that back of the Old Testament records
exists something greater and deeper than pen can fully describe: it is a
vital, living connection between Jehovah and his people that makes
possible the unique relation which finds expression in the remarkable
history of the race and in the experiences and souls of its spiritual
leaders. Thus through life, and in the concrete terms of life, God
reveals himself to the life of humanity.
[Sidenote: _Written in history and human minds and hearts_]
In the light of this truth the Jewish and medieval dogma that every
word, and even every letter of Scripture, was directly dictated by God
himself, seems sadly mechanical and bears the marks of the narrow
schools of thought in which it took form. Hebrew was not, and probably
will never be, the language of heaven! Not on skins and papyrus rolls,
but in the life of the Israelitish race and on the minds and consciences
of enlightened men, God wrote his revelation. History and the character
and consciousness of the human race are its imperishable records.
Fortunately he also aroused certain men of old, not by word and act
only, but by the pen as well, to record the revelation that was being
perfected in the life of their nation and in their own minds and hearts.
He did not, however, dictate to them the form of their writings nor
vouch for their verbal inerrancy. In time, out of their writings were
gradually collected and combined the most significant passages and
books, and to these was finally attributed the authority that they now
rightfully enjoy.
[Sidenote: _Secondary sources of its authority_]
The ultimate basis of that authority, however, is not their presence in
the canon of the Old Testament. At the same time their presence there is
deeply significant, for it represents the indorsement of many ages and
of countless thousands who, from the most varied points of view and amid
the most diverse experiences, have tested and found these ancient
scriptures worthy of the exalted position that has gradually been
assigned to them. It is not the support of the Church, although this
also for the same reason is exceedingly significant. It is not the calm
assumption, of authority that appears at every point throughout the Old
Testament, although this is richly suggestive; the sacred writings of
other religions make even more pretentious claims. It is not that its
commands and doctrines come from the mouths of great prophets and
priests, like Moses, Samuel, Isaiah, and Jeremiah. This fact undoubtedly
had great weight with those who formed the final canon of the Old
Testament, and the authority of a strong, noble personality is supremely
impressive; but divine authority never emanates primarily from a man,
however great be his sanctity. Furthermore, to establish the authority
derived from a Moses or a Samuel it is necessary in every case to prove
that the books attributed to them by late tradition actually came from
their pens. Even if this could in every case be done, some of the
noblest passages in the Old Testament remain avowedly anonymous; for the
tendency of the great majority of its authors was clearly to send forth
their messages without any attempt to associate their own names with
them.
[Sidenote: _Its ultimate basis of authority_]
The ultimate authority of the Old Testament, therefore, is not dependent
upon devoted canon-makers, nor the weighty testimony of the Church, nor
upon its own claims, nor the reputation of the inspired men who have
written it, nor the estimate of any age. Its seat of authority is more
fundamental. It contains the word of God because it faithfully records
and interprets the most important events in the early religious history
of man, and simply and effectively presents God's revelation of himself
and of his will in the minds and hearts of the great pre-Christian
heralds of ethical and spiritual truth. Back of the Old Testament is a
vast variety of vital experiences, national and individual, political
and spiritual, social and ethical, pleasurable and painful. Back of all
these deeply significant experiences is God himself, through them making
known his character and laws and purpose to man.
[Sidenote: _Its authority ethical and religious, not scientific_]
Students of the rediscovered Old Testament also recognize, in the light
of a broader and more careful study, the fact, so often and so fatally
overlooked in the past, that its authority lies not in the field of
natural science, nor even of history in the limited sense. Time and
patience were destined to increase man's knowledge in these great
departments and also to develop his mind in attaining it. The teaching
of the Old Testament is authoritative only in the far more important
realm of ethics and religion. Paul truly voiced its supreme claim
when he said that it was _profitable for teaching, for reproof, for
correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be
perfect, completely fitted for every good work_ (II Tim. iii. 16, 17).
The assertion by the Church in the past of claims nowhere made or
implied by the Old Testament itself is unfortunately still a fertile
source of perplexity and dissension to many faithful souls. Their
salvation is to be found in a clear and intelligent appreciation of the
real nature and claim of these ancient writings.
[Sidenote: _Its dominant purpose to teach spiritual truth_]
One dominant aim determines the form of each book and the selection of
individual passages and binds together the whole: it is effectively to
set forth spiritual truth and to mould in accordance with God's will the
characters and beliefs of men. It was the supreme bond that bound
together prophets, priests, sages, and psalmists, although the means by
which they accomplished their common purpose differed widely. Many a
current tradition, and the crude conceptions of the ancients regarding
the natural world, are recorded in the Old Testament; but they are not
there merely to perpetuate history nor to increase the total of
scientific knowledge, but rather because they concretely illustrate and
impress some vital ethical and spiritual truth. Such singleness of
religious purpose is paralleled nowhere else except in the work and
teachings of Jesus and his apostles.
[Sidenote: _Its present fruits the proof of its inspired authority_]
The ever-present evidence of the divine authority back of the spiritual
teachings of the Old Testament as a whole is that they ring true to
life and meet its needs. By their fruits we know them. It is the
demonstration of the laboratory. We know that they are inspired because
they inspire. The principles underlying the social sermons of Amos are
as applicable to present conditions as when first uttered. The sooner
they are practically applied the sooner our capitalistic civilization
can raise its head now bowed In shame. The faith that breathes through
the Psalms is the faith that upholds men to-day in the midst of
temptation and trial. The standards of justice, tempered by love, which
are maintained in the Old Testament laws make good citizens both of
earth and heaven. As long as men continue to test the teachings of the
Old Testament scriptures in the laboratory of experience and to know
them by their fruits, nothing can permanently endanger their position
in the Christian Church or in the life of humanity. Neglect and
indifference, not Higher Criticism, alone permanently threaten the
authority of the Old Testament as well as that of the New.
[Sidenote: _Significance of the variations and inconsistencies_]
Recognizing the real nature and purpose of these ancient records, the
true student neither denies nor is disturbed by the marks of their human
authorship. As in the case of the Gospels, the variations between the
parallel narratives are all evidence of their genuineness and of the
sincerity of their purpose. They demonstrate that God's revelation
is adapted to the needs of life and the comprehension of man, because it
was through life and expressed in the terms of life. Their individual
peculiarities and minor errors often introduce us more intimately to
the biblical writers and help us to understand more clearly and
sympathetically their visions of truth and of God. Above all, they teach
us to look ever through and beyond all these written records to the
greater revelation, which they reflect, and to the infinite Source of
all knowledge and truth.
[Sidenote: _The record of a gradual revelation_]
The inconsistencies and imperfect teachings which are revealed by a
critical study of the Old Testament are also but a few of the many
indices that it is the record of a gradually unfolding revelation. Late
Jewish tradition, which is traceable even in the Old Testament itself,
was inclined to assign the origin of everything which it held dear to
the very beginnings of Hebrew history, and in so doing it has done much
to obscure its true genesis. Fortunately, however, the history of God's
gradual training of the race was writ too plainly in the earlier Old
Testament scriptures to be completely obscured by later traditions. The
recognition that God's all-wise method of revealing spiritual as well as
scientific truth was progressive, adapted to the unfolding consciousness
of each succeeding age, at once sweeps away many of the greatest
difficulties that have hitherto obscured the true Old Testament. Jesus
with his divine intuition appreciated this principle of growth.
Unhesitatingly he abrogated certain time-honored Old Testament laws with
the words, _Ye have heard that it was said ... but I say to you_. His
own interpretation of his relation to the sacred writings of his race
was that he came to bring them to complete fulfilment. Rearranged in
their approximately chronological order, the Old Testament books become
the harmonious and many-sided record of ten centuries of strenuous human
endeavor to know and to do the will of God and of his full and gracious
response to that effort. The beatitude of those who hunger and thirst
after righteousness was as true in the days of Moses as it was when
Jesus proclaimed it.
[Sidenote: _Its different books of very different values_]
Finally, the right and normal attitude toward the Old Testament leads to
the wholesome conclusion that its different books are of very different
values. The great critic of Nazareth again set the example. As we have
just seen, certain of the Old Testament laws he distinctly abrogated;
others he quietly ignored; others, as, for example, the law of love
(Deut. vi. 5, and Lev. xix. 19) he singled out and gave its rightful
place of central authority. A careful study of the Gospels, in the light
of the Old Testament, demonstrates that a very important element in his
work, as the Saviour of men, was in thus separating the dross in the
older teachings from the gold, and then in giving to the vital truth a
clearer, more personal, and yet more universal application. For the
intelligent student and teacher of to-day the Old Testament still
remains a great mine of historical, ethical, and religious truth. Some
parts, like Genesis, Deuteronomy, Hosea, Jeremiah, Isaiah xl.-lv., and
the Psalter, are richly productive. Others, like Numbers, Chronicles,
and Esther, are comparatively barren.
[Sidenote: _Application of this truth_]
Since the Old Testament is the record of a progressively unfolding
revelation, it is obvious that all parts do not possess an equal
authority. To place the example of the patriarchs or of David, who lived
when ethical standards and religious beliefs were only partially
developed, on an equality with the exalted ideals of the later prophets,
is to misinterpret those ancient Scriptures and to reject the leadership
of the Great Teacher. At the same time, studied from the newer point of
view, the examples of those early heroes are found to illustrate vital
principles in human life and to inspire and warn the child of to-day as
effectively as they did far back in the childhood of the race.
[Sidenote: _The Old Testament not a fetish but a spiritual guidebook_]
In these later days God has taken the Bible from the throne of
infallibility on which Protestantism sought to place it. By a gradual
yet benign process, which we were nevertheless at first inclined
bitterly to resent, he has opened our eyes to its true character and
purpose. Again, he has pronounced his _Thou shall not_ to the natural
and yet selfish human desire to transfer moral and intellectual
responsibility from the individual conscience to some external
authority. Again, he has told us that only in the sanctuary of the human
soul is the Infallible One to be found. Yet in order that we each may
find him there, the cumulative religious experience of the countless
thousands who have already found him is of inestimable value. The Old
Testament contains not merely the word of God, but, together with its
complement the New, is the great guide-book in finding and knowing him,
It blazes the way which, the pilgrim of to-day, as in the past, must
follow from his cradle to the throne of God. At each point it is richly
illustrated by the actual religious experiences of real men and women.
Their mistakes and their victories, are equally instructive. From
many vantage-points reached by prophets and priests and psalmists,
we are able to catch new and glorious visions of God's character and
purpose for mankind. Through its pages--sometimes dimly, sometimes
brightly, But growing ever clearer--shines the giving light of God's
truth and revelation, culminating in the Christ, the perfected
revelation and the supreme demonstration that man, though beset by
temptation, baffled by obstacles, deserted by friends, and maligned
by foes, can nevertheless, by the invincible sword of love and
self-sacrifice, conquer the world and become one with God, as did the
peerless Knight of Nazareth.
III
THE EARLIEST CHAPTERS IN DIVINE REVELATION
[Sidenote: _The nature of inspiration_]
Since the days of the Greek philosophers the subject of inspiration and
revelation has been fertile theme for discussion and dispute among
scholars and theologians. Many different theories have been advanced,
and ultimately abandoned as untenable. In its simplest meaning and use,
inspiration describes the personal influence of one individual upon the
mind and spirit of another. Thus we often say, "That man inspired me."
What we are or do under the influence of that intellectual or spiritual
impulse is the effect and evidence of the inspiration. Similarly, divine
inspiration is the influence of God's spirit or personality upon the
mind and spirit of man. It may find expression in an exalted emotional
state, in an heightened clarity of mental perception, in noble deeds, in
the development of character, indeed in a great variety of ways; but its
seat is always the mind of man and its ultimate cause the Deity himself.
[Sidenote: _In the Old Testament_]
The early Old Testament expression most commonly used to describe
inspiration was that _the Spirit of God rushed upon the man_, as it did
upon Saul, causing him to burst forth into religious ecstasy or frenzy
(I Sam. x. 6, 10), and upon Samson, giving him great bodily strength or
prowess in war (Judg. xiv. 6, 19, xv. 14). Skill in interpreting dreams
and in ruling was also regarded as evidence that the Spirit of God was
in a man like Joseph (Gen. xli. 38); but above all the prophetic gift
was looked upon as the supreme evidence of the presence of the Spirit of
Jehovah (Hos. ix. 1; Micah ii. 7, iii. 8). The word _spirit_ as thus
used in the Old Testament is exceedingly suggestive. It means primarily
the breath, that comes from the nostrils. Though invisible to the eye,
the breath was in the thought of primitive man the symbol of the active
life of the individual. In the full vigor of bodily strength or in
violent exercise it came quick and strong; in times of weakness it was
faint; when it disappeared, death ensued; the living personality was
gone, and only the play remained. The same Hebrew word, _rúach_,
described the wind--unseen, intangible, and yet one of the most real and
irresistible forces in all the universe. Thus it was a supremely
appropriate term to describe the activity of God, as it produced visible
effects in the minds and lives of men. In the later Old Testament
literature its use was extended, so that to the Spirit of God was
ascribed activity in the natural world and in human history.
[Sidenote: _Nature of revelation_]
Of the two terms, _revelation_ is broader than _inspiration_. Sometimes
it is used collectively, to designate the truth revealed, but it more
properly describes the means or process whereby it is made apparent to
the human mind. It implies that truth is always existent, but only
gradually recognized. Inspiration is one of the chief means whereby the
human vision is clarified so as to perceive it. Natural phenomena,
environment, and above all experience, are also mighty agents in making
the divine character and truth clear to the mind of man. The author of
the Epistle to the Hebrews declares, with true insight, that _God spoke
in divers manners_. All the universe, all history, and all life reveal
him and his ultimate truths, for each is effective in opening the mental
and spiritual eye of man to see the realm long awaiting him as
conqueror.
[Sidenote: _Man's role in the process of revelation_]
For countless ages electricity has inscribed its magic tracery on the
storm-cloud and performed its all-important functions in organic life,
but not until men's eyes were opened by experience and trained
observation to recognize its laws, was it practically applied to the
needs of civilization. Similarly, unchanging moral and spiritual laws
have existed through all time, but they have not become operative in
human life until the eye of some seer is opened by a great experience,
or under the direct influence of the Spirit of God he is led to see and
proclaim them. Thus God is in all and reveals himself through all nature
and life, but it is only through the mind and on the lips of his highest
creature, man, that truth is fully appreciated, formulated, and applied.
[Sidenote: _The revelation recorded in the Bible_]
In the broader sense all revelation is divine, for it reveals God and
his laws; and yet it is obvious that there is a real difference between
the revelation recorded in a scientific book and that of the Bible. It
is a difference both in subject-matter and in the ends to which the
truth thus made manifest shall be applied. The one relates to the
objective world, the world of things; the other relates to human
beliefs, emotions, and acts.
[Sidenote: _Its breadth and gradualness_]