subject, which well deserves attention. A conclusion may be a very
correct one, and may have been reached by a very satisfactory process,
although the person who has made it, may be unable to state the grounds
upon which it rests, or meet the objections which may be made against it.
This applies not only to those cases, where the conclusion mainly rests
upon trust, but also to others. An eminent statesman recommended a
person going out in an official capacity, to give his decisions
confidently, but not to venture to declare the reasons. The decisions
would probably be right, but the reasons, as _stated by him_, might not
be. It need not be inferred from this that the reasons upon which he
would really act were wrong, but rather that from want of practice, or
power of analysis, or some other cause, he would be unable to bring them
out correctly. The processes of thought pass so rapidly through the
mind, that even the most practised thinkers often find it difficult to
arrest them in their progress, and state the various steps by which they
have arrived at their conclusions. The simplest and most certain grounds
of our conclusions are, in fact, not unfrequently those which it is most
difficult to bring out into distinct view. They have so often passed
through the mind that we have ceased to notice them, although, all the
while, they contribute essentially to the judgment which is formed; or
they lie so far back, in the depths of our consciousness, that it is
almost impossible to recover them. Necessarily, nothing can be so
simple, or so certain, in one sense, as intuitions, that is, those things
which we know or believe without any intermediate process of thought, and
yet, down to the present time, those who have most deeply studied the
subject hesitate to decide exactly as to what are intuitions, and what
are not. We conclude then that, while, on the one hand, we should not
discredit the rational powers of men, as if they were unequal to perform
the task allotted to them; we must not, on the other, be easily shaken
with regard to conclusions which have been made with care and
consideration, because we may be unable to trace out accurately the
arguments by which they are supported, or answer the objections which are
made against them.
We have now considered revelation with regard to the conditions under
which it may be expected to be _given_, _recorded_, and _transmitted_,
with a view to its being _accepted and believed_. We do not for a moment
suppose that we have removed every difficulty; but if we have upon the
whole, made clear to our readers the nature of these conditions, or,
where this has not been done, indicated the points at which difficulties
exist, our chief purpose will have been answered.
* * * * *
6. Here we might leave the subject, but we cannot forbear adding some
further observations in reference to that professed revelation of God's
will which is to be found in the Bible. It is not our intention to
attempt a summary of the various evidences which exist to show that it is
a real one; nor is it our design to reply at length to the objections
which have been made to invalidate it. There are however some obvious
facts which meet us on the threshold of the inquiry, and which can be
estimated at their just value by any candid inquirer, to which we would
direct attention.
We find for instance that the Bible contains a purer system of morality,
and conveys a clearer insight into the unity and nature of God, than is
to be found in any other book; and that, although it is the composition
of men, many of them ignorant and unlearned, who have lived at different
times, and occupied very dissimilar positions in life, there is,
nevertheless, a wonderful similarity in the main outlines of religious
truth, as delivered by all the writers. We know, however, still further,
that the morality and precepts of the Bible, although confessedly of a
pure and holy character, are, nevertheless, not of such a kind as to fall
in with the wishes and passions of mankind. To believe that morality
must extend to thoughts as well as actions, and that an all-seeing God
notices, and will one day call all men to a strict account, is not a
matter which, if we may judge from what we see around us, is agreeable to
the feelings of most men. Nor, if we look to the great remedy proposed
for the sin of man, such, we mean, as it is supposed to be, by the great
majority of professing Christians, namely, the atoning sacrifice made by
the Son of God, do we find here again a matter which either the reason or
the feelings of men generally are ready to lead them to adopt. We see
too, that in all ages unbelief has, more or less, existed, and objections
have been, from time to time, brought forward which appeared likely to
have considerable power in undermining the existing belief in the Bible.
Persecution also has exercised its influence, and, it might frequently
have been supposed, according to human calculations, that it would have
availed to destroy all credence in it. And yet, notwithstanding all
these circumstances, to which we have referred, it is an incontrovertible
fact that a professed belief in the Bible, as a revelation from God,
exists most widely. It is, we may add, not a little worthy of being
remarked that the nomenclature of the Bible has obtained such a strong
hold on the public mind, in our own day, that many who deny inspiration
in any distinctive sense, still retain the use of this and other words,
as if afraid to make it plain how far they differ from those opinions
which are commonly received.
The present age is certainly more enlightened than any which has preceded
it; but, hitherto at least, a professed belief in the orthodox doctrines
of religion has increased rather than diminished. We find moreover that
persons of all ranks, and every kind of mental calibre, have declared
that they find something in the Bible which they do not find in any other
book; something, in fact, which, when duly received, comes home to their
hearts as men, and seems admirably adapted to the deepest wants of human
nature. We see too that those who appear to have accepted the Bible most
fully, and to hold it most firmly, have been so much impressed with a
sense of its importance to the world at large, as to have endeavoured,
often at considerable risk and expense, to communicate to others, both
at-home and abroad, the knowledge of those things which they have
received as truths--a method of proceeding which has not been adopted,
and, in fact, could not have been, without a manifest absurdity, by those
who profess to believe in the inspiration of Plato, Milton, Shakespeare,
and other great, but, according to common opinion, uninspired men. All
these and various other considerations which might be adduced seem to
mark out the Bible, as being a book at least _different_ from all other
books, and to lead to the presumption that it may contain that knowledge
of God which, as has been remarked in the earlier part of these
"Thoughts," it appears most important for men to be acquainted with, and
a revelation of which, in some way or other, has been very commonly
believed in. Assuredly there is a strong presumption in its favour, and
the _onus probandi_, in our own day, lies with those who deny its claims
to acceptance. Whether however the Bible actually is, or contains a
revelation from God is still a fair subject for reverent examination.
Without attempting to enter upon such an examination here, we may,
without impropriety, offer a suggestion as to the _spirit_ in which it
should be conducted. It must be remembered that the examination of a
theological, or any other subject which bears upon the interests of our
daily lives, involves principles of a very different character from those
which are connected with an investigation of the science of number, or
any other abstract science. Mathematical and numerical investigations
advance from principles which are clearly defined, and almost universally
acknowledged to be self-evident; the reasoning also is of such a kind as
to preclude the admission of error. In theology the case is different.
There, it is difficult to define with accuracy the points from which the
reasoning commences, and also to exclude, with certainty, the possibility
of error in the reasoning itself. There is, too, another essential
difference between abstract sciences and other subjects of inquiry. It
is not only self-evident that two straight lines cannot enclose a space,
but the judgment which the mind gives on the subject is not in any danger
of being disturbed by the feelings. In theology, however, the matters
which come under consideration are so mixed up with our nearest and
dearest interests, that the feelings are called into play at every step
of the investigation, and a just balance of the judgment cannot be
preserved without the exercise of much care. Hence the necessity of
endeavouring to preserve a candid and unruffled spirit in all enquiries
connected with religion. No doubt those feelings which a beneficent God
has implanted with a view to assist us in deciding, are to have their due
weight; but certainly there is need of caution, lest they influence us
unduly. If the judge thinks it needful to charge the jury to dismiss
from their minds everything which might tend to influence their judgments
in an improper manner, and attend only to the evidence, even though the
matter about which they have to decide is usually one in which they have
no personal interest; it certainly does not appear unnecessary to give a
similar caution on a subject, with regard to which feeling has assumed so
strong a form as to give rise to the name, _odium theologicum_. We
deceive ourselves, if we imagine that we approach the subject without any
danger of judging it unfairly. This caution, undoubtedly applies to
_all_ who discuss theological questions; but we think that we shall not
be making an unwarranted assertion, if we say that it applies in a
special manner to those who _impugn_ the Bible revelation, when it is
remembered that the doctrines contained in it, as they have generally
been received by those who are called orthodox Christians, are of such a
kind as very commonly to excite, in the first instance at least, a strong
feeling of opposition. The Bible itself intimates this, and common
experience bears witness to it as being a fact. We are not now saying
that the doctrines of the purity and holiness of God, the dreadful nature
of sin, the need of an atonement, the inability of man to present himself
before God in merits of his own, and others of a similar kind are true;
but we may properly say that, whether true or false, they are such as
frequently raise a strong feeling of opposition; and therefore that those
who examine them, with the view of ascertaining their character, stand in
_special_ need of the caution to preserve a calm and candid spirit.
It will not be out of place to introduce here another consideration which
has a bearing upon this part of the subject, namely, the _supernatural
aid_ which the Bible offers towards the understanding and acceptance of
its doctrines. It is quite conceivable that a state of things might
exist in which such aid would be wholly unnecessary. We might suppose a
case in which the nature of man was so entirely in harmony with itself,
and so exactly attuned to the truths of a Divine revelation, as readily
to accept it, when it was presented; but the question we have to decide
is, whether man's nature is actually in this state or not. Observation
leads us to believe that it is not. Whether we accept the scripture
statement of the fall or not, we must not shut our eyes to the fact that
it is difficult for virtue to force its way, while vice has many
votaries. However convincing, abstractedly, the reasons may be to
enforce the claims of virtue, it is evident that they possess but little
power to lead the large majority of mankind. History and experience
testify to this. Scarce any deny the evidence in favour of virtue,
although few are content to be governed by it. Now it may be fairly
presumed that any revelation which the Divine Being might make would be
in the interests of virtue; it may be reasonably expected too that it
would be supported by strong evidence: but, if, as actual observation
makes it clear is the case, the feelings of mankind are more inclined to
reject than accept the claims of virtue, the evidence, however strong,
will not produce the effect which it would, if the mind were more justly
balanced, and thus the revelation will be in danger of being rejected.
Such rejection, be it remembered, need not result from any deficiency of
evidence, but may arise from an indisposition to receive it. For our own
part we believe that the evidence in favour of the orthodox views of
scripture statements is far stronger than can be found in support of any
other subject of a like kind: but, at the same time, taking into
consideration the actual tendencies of human nature, we are not surprised
that it does not produce the effect which it should do; and therefore it
appears to us not unreasonable to suppose that God might exercise some
such supernatural power upon the mind, as the Bible speaks of, with the
view of disposing it to the reception of a revelation.
That God does at times interfere in a manner, out of the usual course of
His Providence, with regard to other matters, especially in answer to
prayer, is believed almost universally. We cannot enter here into a
discussion as to the foundation of the belief; but, certainly so long as
the records of mankind go back, and so far as the experience of the
present day conducts us, the belief has been entertained, and prayer
seems to be the natural expression of man's heart in all cases of
difficulty. Men _will_ believe in, and appeal to, a supernatural power,
and it is hard to suppose that a tendency so universal and deeply seated,
should have no solid foundation. But if prayer, for aid and direction
from above, is the natural outpouring of man's heart with regard to the
more ordinary affairs of life, there appears to be no reason why prayer
should not be offered up for counsel and guidance with regard to a
professed revelation, and that an answer should be expected. At least,
it can hardly be said that those have fairly tested the claims of
scripture to be received as a revelation from God, who have not complied
with the conditions which it has laid down as to the manner in which it
should be studied.
We now leave the subject, drawing the attention of our readers to the
prayer of one of our greatest poets, and earnestly hoping that his prayer
may be theirs:--
. . . What in me is dark,
Illumine; what is low, raise and support;
That to the height of this great argument
I may assert Eternal Providence,
And justify the ways of God to man.
_Paradise Lost_.
* * * * *
LONDON: WERTHEIM, MACINTOSH, AND HUNT.
_By the same Author_,
THOUGHTS ON MIRACLES.
PRICE SIXPENCE.
Footnotes:
{17} On the subject of the Mosaic cosmogony, see a very interesting
Letter from Sir Isaac Newton to Dr. Thomas Burnet, in Sir David
Brewster's "Life of Newton," pp. 450-453.