nearly expired since that interesting and happy day, but I have not forgotten, nor can I, the sacred pleasure which lighted up the countenance of our venerable friend, when we entered, for the first time, this house, in the multitude of the tender mercies of our Maker; this house, the structure of which he planned, and over the erection of which he watched with indefatigable attention, and the accomplishment of which was one of his fondest wishes, tending, as he hoped it would, to the excitement of religious inquiry, and to the promotion of the pure and undefiled religion of the Christ of heaven. The constancy of his attendance here, and the fervency of a zeal which no indifference on the part of others, no untoward circumstances arising from unforeseen events, could cause to languish, you all can witness. He joined with you in your devotions this day fortnight. By him the services were conducted here only three weeks since. And when, last Sabbath day, enfeebled by disease, and racked with pain, the wish was kindly and considerately expressed on your parts, that the service should be relinquished, as it might, perhaps, disturb him, his mind rose superior to the troubles of the body, and at his earnest request, worship was conducted as usual, he having said, it would do him good to hear the singing. And it was the last which he was destined to hear on earth. He expired, as you know, about five o'clock, on Monday morning, with the calmness and serenity so correspondent to the doctrines of his faith, so illustrative of his walk and conversation. * "The chamber where the good man breathes his last, The 1st, 2d, and 3d Volumes of the CHRISTIAN PIONEER, and any of the single Numbers to complete sets, may be had on application to Mr. HUNTER, St. Paul's Church-Yard, London; or the EDITOR, Glasgow. The price of the Volumes, 4s. 6d. each. ADVERTISEMENTS for the Cover are respectfully solicited. They will be inserted on the following terms:-Advertisements of a few lines, Five Shillings; half a page, Seven Shillings and Sixpence; whole page, Ten Shillings. * Mr. Hutton's residence and place of business were below the Chapel. CHRISTIAN PIONEER. No. 42. FEBRUARY, 1830. Vol. IV. On the Style of the New Testament, as presumptive of the truth of Christianity. "The style and language of these books supply strong indications, that they were written about the time, and by the sort of men, to which they are ascribed.”—Maltby. THAT the Christian Scriptures exhibit a marked peculiarity of style, is admitted by every man who has gained any knowledge of them in their original language, and appears indeed even on the face of every translation. But whether the argument arising hence for our religion, has, in general, been distinctly seen, and correctly stated, I may be allowed to doubt. "The very frame and style of these Sacred Writings," says an eminently pious and able man,* "doth fully tell us that they were none of the logicians nor eloquent orators of the world that did compose them. This is, yet to this day, one of the greatest stumbling-blocks in the world, to hinder men from the reverencing and believing the Scriptures. They are still thinking, sure if they were the very words of God, they would excel all other writings in every kind of excellency, when, indeed, it discovereth them the more certainly to be of God, because there is in them so little of man. They may as well say, if David had been sent against Goliah from God, he would sure have been the most complete soldier and most completely armed. The words are but the dish to serve up the sense in. God is content that the words should not only have in them a savour of humanity, but of much infirmity, so that the work of convincing the world may be furthered thereby. And I verily think, that this is God's great design, in permitting these precious spirits of divine truths to run in the veins of infirm language, that so men may be convinced in all succeeding ages, that Scripture is no device of human policy." So far, Mr. Baxter. I confess myself of opinion, that he has failed in doing justice to this part of his subject; * Saint's Everlasting Rest, &c. p. ii. ch. v. § 6. S nor can I accept his principle, his illustrations, or his reasoning. It is by other steps that I arrive at the same general conclusion. This excellent man has not discriminated between the word, or doctrine, of God, and the conveyance of God's word. The treasure is divine: the conveyance, human. When the Apostles and their associates went forth to preach the religion of their crucified Master, "the demonstration of the spirit and of power," gave them eminent success. But they preached before they wrote; and when they committed to writing the facts and principles of the Gospel, they employed, of necessity, the dialect of the age and country in which they lived, and were left, in a considerable degree, to the exercise of their several characteristic faculties of mind. It is precisely because, in regard to the peculiarities of their style and manner, they were thus left to themselves and so followed their own bent and habits-that we have the strongest reason for admitting the authenticity of their respective Gospels and Epistles. In the doctrine, there exists nothing of man: this is entirely from God; while the language and its idioms are human, and cannot be referred to any other point of time, or tract of country, than the era and the regions that witnessed the first publication of the Christian Scriptures. We adore, in so memorable an arrangement, the wisdom of Divine Providence: but in this particular case, we see nothing of special, miraculous interference; for which, indeed, there could be no occasion, where merely the style of the New Testament was concerned. The same account must be given of that occurrence, in the sacred history of the Jews, which Mr. Baxter employs for the illustration of his argument. In answering the class of objectors, on whom he animadverts, he thus proceeds, They may as well say, if David had been sent. against Goliah from God, he would sure have been the most complete soldier, and the most completely armed." Now, it is admitted, that if they reasoned so, they would reason very inconsequentially: their principle and their inference would be alike erroneous. This I grant, not however on the strength of the assumption made by Mr. Baxter. David was sent against Goliah from God, in the order of that Providence which governeth all things. But what evidence have we that David was sent against Go liah by God's special direction, with His special instructions, under His special and miraculous guardianship? We possess no evidence to this effect. The fact is, that David vanquished the champion of the Philistines chiefly by means of a new and unusual sort of attack, which rendered Goliah's weapons unserviceable, and, probably, impressed him with some degree of terror. In the same manner, the victory of the Highland forces at the famous battle of Preston Pans, was occasioned mainly by a species of warfare, to which regular troops were unaccustomed.* Either, then, the historical incident cited by Mr. Bax, ter, will not serve the purpose, or, in order to be made pertinent, it must be contemplated and applied in another way. He conceives, that there is much infirmity-much beyond a mere savour of humanity-in the writings of the Evangelists and Apostles. Tried by the standard of those exact and elegant compositions, which proceeded from the classical writers of Greece and Rome, they no doubt have much infirmity. Of these they fall extremely short. At the same time, they are not inferior to what might, in reason, be expected from men of the country, the cir cumstances, and the period of their birth. But how is the work of convincing the world" furthered," by the alleged inferiority of the style of the Christian Scriptures? Furthered, I think, it has been; though not quite in the sense and manner in which this writer understands the case. Christianity was first published in Judea, and by Jews, at a period not a little memorable. Some time after its publication, the leading facts of its founder's ministry were recorded by men who had been eye-witnesses and ministers of the word: one of those individuals further composed a narrative, chiefly of the travels and labours of a very distinguished Apostle, of whom, and of certain of whose associates in that office, we have letters, which form no unimportant portion of the volume of the New Testament. The style of all the books greatly resembles the Greek of the synagogue, or what we find in that translation of the sacred books of the Jews, which is known under the name of the Septuagint. It is a style *Home's History of the Rebellion, &c. (1822) p. 87; and Lord John Russel's Memoirs of Europe, vol. ii. p. 235, &c. alike differing from the style of the Grecian historians, poets, philosophers, and from the style of the authors termed the Christian fathers. Far less pure and elegant than the language of the great heathen and contemporary writers, it is, on the whole, much superior to the language of numbers of ecclesiastical authors in the first and second, and still more in the succeeding centuries. This consideration fixes the real date, and enables us to decide on the true origin of the Christian Scriptures. The writers must have lived where and when it is affirmed by us that they lived: they must have drawn up their Gospels and Epistles in the very circumstances under which we say that they drew them up. All this the style indicates, nay, proves and establishes: and we now see how and why"the precious spirits of Divine and Christian truths run in the veins of infirm language." wwwwwwww As is the Mother, so is her Daughter. N. [THIS Article has, from various causes, been, from time to time, postponed. It is hoped, however, in consequence of the intestine feud which is now raging in the Hierarchy of England and Ireland, that it may still be a word in season.] THE Churches of England and of Rome agree in exercising dominion over the faith and consciences of men; and both assert and put in execution the assertion, that "the Church hath power to decree rites and ceremonies, and authority in controversies of faith." Now, this is an assumption, we conceive, which cannot be allowed, without a total abandonment of our rights as men, and as Christians. It is an authority exercised in direct opposition to the commands and instructions of the New Testament. The blessed Jesus himself never demanded the implicit faith of his followers. Though proving, by his miraculous works, that God was with him of a truth, and, consequently, that the teachings he imparted were divine, yet how different is his language from that of all earthly hierarchies," Why even of yourselves judge ye not that which is right?""Search the Scriptures, for they be |