The Bible is all for the Christian, but not all about him. God in government, or Messiah and the Kingdom, might express the general character of the Old Testament, while God in grace, or Christ and the Church, would characterize the New Testament. Moses, by inspiration of God, opened the canon of divine revelation; Paul completed the subjects of which it treats (Col. 1:2525Whereof I am made a minister, according to the dispensation of God which is given to me for you, to fulfil the word of God; (Colossians 1:25)); John closed it with the Revelation. This blessed book is assailed on every hand—its inspiration is openly denied, its Divine authority unblushingly called in question, and its heavenly doctrines made the sport of an unbelieving world. Yet its subjects are grand, momentous, and divine; its themes are heavenly and eternal. It is the Word of God, and therefore it liveth and abideth forever.
Its Title. - The title, "The Holy Bible," now everywhere happily accorded to the whole collection of the sacred writings, was first used in the middle of the fourth century. The titles "Old Testament" and "New Testament" were probably borrowed, the former from 2 Cor. 3:1414But their minds were blinded: for until this day remaineth the same vail untaken away in the reading of the old testament; which vail is done away in Christ. (2 Corinthians 3:14), and the latter from Matt. 26:2828For this is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins. (Matthew 26:28). These expressions originally contemplated the relationships in which the Jews and Christians stood before God—the former before, and the latter after, the work of the cross. They then came to be applied to the books in which these covenants were expressed, hence the "Old Testament" and "New Testament".
very learned Jew residing at Alexandria, and Josephus, the Jewish historian, equally learned, especially in all matters pertaining to his nation, and residing at Jerusalem, were both unbelievers, but both regarded the Old Testament as of divine origin, terming it "The Sacred Scriptures;" both, moreover, were contemporaries, and flourished in the middle of the first century. Both these scholarly Jews cruelly tampered with the very writings which they regarded as holy; Philo allegorizing almost everything related in them and turning facts into fancies; while Josephus distorted facts and exaggerated whatever would tend to the exaltation of himself and the glory of his nation.
The Truth Gradually Unfolded.-For a period of 4000 years and more, God at "sundry times and in divers manners" successively revealed His mind and will to man. This He did by revelations and communications, orally or otherwise delivered, from Adam to Moses; and then from Moses to the Apostle John (with an interregnum of about 500 years) in writing, thus fixing the truth and giving it a settled and definite form and character. What a mercy to hold in our hands not a but the Word of God! What a blessing to know the absolute certainty of those things whereof we are fully assured!
From Adam to Noah we have a period of more than 1600 years; again, from Noah till Abraham there is a period of about 400 years, and from Abraham till Moses about 500 years. Now carefully observe the facts. Adam lived 930 years (Gen. 5:55And all the days that Adam lived were nine hundred and thirty years: and he died. (Genesis 5:5)), and only died about 56 years before Enoch was translated. Noah, too, could have enjoyed several year's intercourse with Enoch. Thus the man "who walked with God" could have held the hand of Adam with one hand and that of Noah with the other. We thus bridge the first period of the world's history, and certainly the truth could not have suffered in its transmission, as Enoch is commended for his walk, and Noah for his testimony (Heb. 11:5-75By faith Enoch was translated that he should not see death; and was not found, because God had translated him: for before his translation he had this testimony, that he pleased God. 6But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him. 7By faith Noah, being warned of God of things not seen as yet, moved with fear, prepared an ark to the saving of his house; by the which he condemned the world, and became heir of the righteousness which is by faith. (Hebrews 11:5‑7)). Again, Shem, Noah's second son, the then depository of the truth (Gen. 9:2626And he said, Blessed be the Lord God of Shem; and Canaan shall be his servant. (Genesis 9:26)), was contemporary with Abraham for nearly a century. Thus we have Shem in special relationship with Jehovah, spanning the second and eventful period from the flood till the gracious call of Abraham, to whom further revelations of the truth were made. A new deposit of the truth was committed to Abraham—"to Abraham and his seed were the promises made" (Gal. 3:1616Now to Abraham and his seed were the promises made. He saith not, And to seeds, as of many; but as of one, And to thy seed, which is Christ. (Galatians 3:16)); and to each of the "Pilgrim Fathers" of Israel God communicated His mind. Thus we are carried up almost to the days of Moses, when the duration of human life became so curtailed (Psa. 90:1010The days of our years are threescore years and ten; and if by reason of strength they be fourscore years, yet is their strength labor and sorrow; for it is soon cut off, and we fly away. (Psalm 90:10)) that it would be impossible to hand down the truth with the certainty that its purity would be maintained, as it would have to flow through so many channels.
Now we come to the written word, and here we would say that this form of communication exceeds by far any other mode of revelation whatever, "for Thou hast magnified Thy Word above all Thy name" (Psa. 138:22I will worship toward thy holy temple, and praise thy name for thy lovingkindness and for thy truth: for thou hast magnified thy word above all thy name. (Psalm 138:2)). The first mention of a "book" or of "writing" in the Bible is in Ex. 17:1414And the Lord said unto Moses, Write this for a memorial in a book, and rehearse it in the ears of Joshua: for I will utterly put out the remembrance of Amalek from under heaven. (Exodus 17:14). Moses began writing prior to the promulgation of the law. With certain intervals, the composition of the Old Testament extended through a period of about 1100 years, and was closed by the prophet Malachi. A few years after the death of Christ the books comprising the New Testament were begun with the Gospel of Matthew, and ere the first century of the Christian era closed, and before John the beloved apostle was taken to his Master, the whole of the New Testament was finished and in the hands and keeping of the Christian Church!
The Separate Books, Chapters, Verses, etc.-The first five books of Moses were originally written in one roll or book. The division into separate books and the titles of each are convenient for reference. They are very ancient, moreover, being arranged and titled in the Septuagint the same as in our Bibles. The two books of Samuel, the two books of Kings, and the two books of Chronicles were originally one book each. The separation of those three books into pairs is forced, and to some extent destroys the connection: it would have been better if the original arrangement had been adhered to and sectioned off for the English reader. The division of the Bible into chapters is comparatively a modern arrangement, and still more so into verses. Cardinal Hugo, who lived about the middle of the thirteenth century, proposed to himself the task of preparing a concordance for more easy reference to the Vulgate, the Latin version of the Bible. For this purpose he divided the whole into chapters, which were found so very useful that in all subsequent editions and versions they were incorporated. About two centuries afterward a learned Jewish Rabbi, Mordecai Nathan, in order to assist in the study of the Hebrew Bible, prepared a concordance, and in order probably to simplify his work, he divided the Old Testament into verses, adopting however Hugo's division of chapters. In our English Bibles, therefore, and in all modern versions and translations, we have not only Cardinal Hugo's chapters, but Rabbi Nathan's verses as to the Old Testament. Until the middle of the sixteenth century the whole Bible was divided into chapters, and the Old Testament only into verses. Robert Stephens, the indefatigable French printer and Bible publisher, adopting the Cardinal's chapters and the Rabbi's Old Testament verses, took in hand the New Testament, and divided it into verses, and then published the whole complete about 1551. Some 15 or 16 years afterward an English Archbishop, Parker, undertook to publish the Bible in our own language, with all the chapters and verses. This edition is generally spoken of as the Bishop's Bible. A little more than 40 years after the publication of the Bishop's Bible, our own version as in present use appeared—one, no doubt, capable of critical improvement, but hallowed and endeared to the hearts of many thousands in this and past centuries. The postscripts attached to the epistles should be rejected. They are certainly, some of them at least, very ancient, but also very misleading, and the reader will be safe in rejecting them as they are the work of copyists.
The Languages in which the Bible was Written.-The Bible was originally written in three languages, Hebrew, Syriac, and Greek. The whole of the New Testament was written in the Greek tongue. James wrote in it to the twelve scattered tribes of Israel, Peter to the Jews of the dispersion, and Paul to the Hebrews in Palestine as well as to the Christians in the world's metropolis—Rome.
The Old Testament was written in Hebrew—the oldest of known languages, and perhaps the primitive tongue of man—save certain small portions which God caused to be written in the Syriac language. The sublime strains of Isaiah, the weeping plaints of Jeremiah, and the abrupt, forcible, and striking style and imagery of Ezekiel, could only be fully expressed in Hebrew, the language of the heart, as Greek is that of the mind. The Phoenicians (whose country bordered the Mediterranean, and whose merchant navy carried the rich produce of Persia, Egypt, and even India, to far distant lands, and who are believed to have penetrated even to the coasts of Great Britain) spoke Hebrew. Thus, no doubt, some glimpses of the truth were carried to the heathen of the ancient world. Heber, the last of the fathers before the dispersion, and from whom the name "Hebrew" is derived, is believed to have spoken the Hebrew tongue; if so, it was likely the original language of mankind. The seven nations of Canaan also spoke Hebrew, and Abraham, when he left Mesopotamia, forsook his mother tongue, the Syriac, for that of the Canaanite.
Hebrew died out as a spoken and written tongue soon after the Babylon-captivity. The mass of the people during their exile—70 years—learned the language of their conqueror's, and forgot their own, so that on the return of certain remnants to Jerusalem, the book of the law, which was read in Hebrew, had to be expounded in Syriac (Neh. 8).
About 280 years B. C., the Old Testament was translated into Greek, by order of Ptolemy Philadelphus, King of Egypt, who was desirous, not only of enriching the great Alexandrian library with a copy of the Jewish Scriptures, but also to put the Old Testament into Greek, the then current language, on behalf of the many thousands of Alexandrian Jews who knew nothing of Hebrew. The Alexandrian version of the Old Testament, or Septuagint, as it is generally termed, was in general use in Palestine during the time of Our Lord, and from it, He and the writers of the New Testament repeatedly quoted. The Hebrew text, however, is paramount as an authority, for the chief advantage of the Jews over all others consisted in this, "that to them were committed the oracles of God" (Rom. 3:22Much every way: chiefly, because that unto them were committed the oracles of God. (Romans 3:2)), and these written oracles were penned in Hebrew.
The other language used in the writing of the Old Testament is the Syriac, or more generally termed the "Aramean," from Aram, the Bible name of Syria (Gen. 10:22,2322The children of Shem; Elam, and Asshur, and Arphaxad, and Lud, and Aram. 23And the children of Aram; Uz, and Hul, and Gether, and Mash. (Genesis 10:22‑23)), sometimes also called, but erroneously, "Chaldean," that being a dialect peculiar to the learned in Babylon (Dan. 1:44Children in whom was no blemish, but well favored, and skilful in all wisdom, and cunning in knowledge, and understanding science, and such as had ability in them to stand in the king's palace, and whom they might teach the learning and the tongue of the Chaldeans. (Daniel 1:4)). The Syriac was the tongue spoken by the Assyrians who destroyed the kingdom of Israel, and of the Babylonians who destroyed Judah. The several instances in which this language is used in the Old Testament are, first, Jer. 10:1111Thus shall ye say unto them, The gods that have not made the heavens and the earth, even they shall perish from the earth, and from under these heavens. (Jeremiah 10:11). in which the triumphing heathen are abruptly informed that their gods are doomed to utter destruction; second, Ezra 4:88Rehum the chancellor and Shimshai the scribe wrote a letter against Jerusalem to Artaxerxes the king in this sort: (Ezra 4:8) to 6:18, and 7:12-26, in these portions the haughty Gentile conquerors of Judah are informed in their own language of Jehovah's abiding interest in His people, although but weak and few in number, having just emerged from their long captivity; third, in Dan. 2:44Then spake the Chaldeans to the king in Syriack, O king, live for ever: tell thy servants the dream, and we will show the interpretation. (Daniel 2:4) to the close of Dan. 7., here the rise, progress, and total destruction of Gentile power, is divinely sketched, and thus they are left without excuse.
The Hebrew tongue, Acts 26:1414And when we were all fallen to the earth, I heard a voice speaking unto me, and saying in the Hebrew tongue, Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me? it is hard for thee to kick against the pricks. (Acts 26:14), and the various Hebrew words and expressions, such as in Mark 5:41;7:34; 15:3441And he took the damsel by the hand, and said unto her, Talitha cumi; which is, being interpreted, Damsel, I say unto thee, arise. (Mark 5:41)
34And looking up to heaven, he sighed, and saith unto him, Ephphatha, that is, Be opened. (Mark 7:34)
34And at the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani? which is, being interpreted, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? (Mark 15:34) spoken by Christ; also John 5:22Now there is at Jerusalem by the sheep market a pool, which is called in the Hebrew tongue Bethesda, having five porches. (John 5:2); Rev. 9:1111And they had a king over them, which is the angel of the bottomless pit, whose name in the Hebrew tongue is Abaddon, but in the Greek tongue hath his name Apollyon. (Revelation 9:11), the original Hebrew language, but simply that then spoken by the Jews. In general, the Lord and the Apostles spoke the common tongue—Greek. The exceptions we have indicated, as also Paul's address on the Castle stairs at Jerusalem (Acts 2211And when I could not see for the glory of that light, being led by the hand of them that were with me, I came into Damascus. (Acts 22:11)) were in the Syriac tongue. The inscription affixed over the cross of Jesus was written in Greek, the language of the people, in Latin, the official language of the imperial power, and in Hebrew, the ecclesiastical tongue of the heads of Israel, this latter meaning the Aramean.
Christ's Threefold Division of the Old Testament.-The division of the Old Testament into "the Law," "the Psalms," and "the Prophets," does not rest on the uncertain authority of Jewish tradition, but on the authoritative teaching of the risen Lord. Here are His own blessed words-"And He said unto them, These are the words which I spake unto you while I was yet with you, that all things must be fulfilled which were written in the Law of Moses, and in the Prophets, and in the Psalms, concerning Me" (Luke 24:4444And he said unto them, These are the words which I spake unto you, while I was yet with you, that all things must be fulfilled, which were written in the law of Moses, and in the prophets, and in the psalms, concerning me. (Luke 24:44)).
"The Law of Moses" here refers to the first five books of Scripture, generally termed "the Pentateuch." These books were originally written as one, and are read as such in modern Jewish synagogues. Christ is the holy burden of these books, as said Philip of Bethsaida (John 1:4545Philip findeth Nathanael, and saith unto him, We have found him, of whom Moses in the law, and the prophets, did write, Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph. (John 1:45)), and the Lord before (John 5:4646For had ye believed Moses, ye would have believed me: for he wrote of me. (John 5:46)) and after His death and resurrection (Luke 24:4444And he said unto them, These are the words which I spake unto you, while I was yet with you, that all things must be fulfilled, which were written in the law of Moses, and in the prophets, and in the psalms, concerning me. (Luke 24:44)).
"The Prophets" embrace that portion of the Bible which is strictly prophetic—from Isaiah to Malachi—and also the historical books, as all having one thought in common. A prophet is one that brings the mind of God to bear upon the conscience: it may be God's mind as to the present—that mainly characterizes the historical books—or His purpose concerning the future—as in the prophetic writings. But what is important to observe is, that in all these 29 books the mind of God is pressed upon the souls and consciences of Jehovah's people, and in certain cases on the Gentiles too; and further, that Christ, especially in His regal dignities and glories, is mirrored in these writings. Yes, He is the center of all revelation and the burden of all Scripture.
"The Psalms" are five in number-Job, Book of Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Song of Solomon. These books are denominated "the Psalms" because they are really the utterances and pulsations of the human heart. Their distinctly moral character and poetic strains have entitled them to be classed under one comprehensive title. The feelings and exercises of the Blessed One, and of Jewish saints in the future crisis of their history, are fully detailed in this divine section of Old Testament Scripture; the death of Jesus and resulting consequences are developed in the Law of Moses; while, the prophetic and kingly glories of the Messiah are, in the main, the themes in the second section of the Old Testament writings.
The divisional title "the Psalms," meaning the five books already alluded to, must not be confounded with "the book of Psalms." When this latter is spoken of in the New Testament, as in Acts 1:2020For it is written in the book of Psalms, Let his habitation be desolate, and let no man dwell therein: and his bishoprick let another take. (Acts 1:20) and Luke 20:4242And David himself saith in the book of Psalms, The Lord said unto my Lord, Sit thou on my right hand, (Luke 20:42), it refers to the separate book bearing that divine title. It may here be remarked, that Paul, by the Holy Ghost, recognizes the present numbering of "the book of Psalms," for in Acts 33, he refers to what is "written in the second psalm" in proof of God's accomplishment of His promises.
It is important to remark that Jesus was not a manifestation of God. Revelations by and manifestations of God are characteristic of the Old Testament; but in Jesus, as portrayed to us in the Gospels, God is perfectly revealed; "and without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifested in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory" (1 Tim 3:16).