language of Dr. Whitby, "Who can imagine that God, who sent his Son to declare this doctrine, and his Apostles, by the assistance of the Holy Spirit, to indite and speak it, and by so many miracles confirmed it to the world, should suffer any wicked persons to corrupt and alter any of those terms on which the happiness of mankind depends! It is absurd to say that God repented of His goodwill and kindness to mankind, in vouchsafing the gospel to them, as that he so far maligned the good of future generations, that he suffered wicked men to rob them of all the good intended to them by this declaration of His holy will."*

Still, it may be remarked, that differences have been found in the text of many manuscripts of the New Testament. This is the fact; but it cannot affect the authenticity of the sacred books. Some persons may indeed be alarmed at the idea of various readings being found in different copies of the inspired writings; but this was to have been expected, unless a perpetual miracle had been wrought to preserve the transcribers from error or mistake. Considering the many thousands of manuscript copies of the Scriptures which must have been made, during the period of fourteen hundred years before the invention of printing, and that many transcribers were ignorant or careless, though skilful in the mechanical art of writing, errata might reasonably be expected. These persons were not supernaturally preserved in their work of transcribing; and mistakes in one copy would unavoidably be propagated in all that were

* Preface to Commentary on the New Testament, p. 28.

taken from it, while each copy might have peculiar faults of its own; so that various readings in small matters, would thus be increased in proportion to the number of transcripts. Besides which, transcribers might increase various readings, by substituting, through ignorance, one letter or even word, for another; or, through inattention, omit a word, a line, or even a whole clause, as is found to be the case. These causes are such as are found still to operate in the same way in transcribing ordinary documents; and it cannot be a matter of surprise that in these different ways, reckoning all the minute diversities of single words, syllables and letters, that many thousands of various readings should have been discovered, in collating several hundred manuscripts of the whole, or parts, of so large a collection of writings as those of the Bible. Notwithstanding, it is most satisfactory to be assured, by those who have paid most attention to this branch of study, that all the various readings yet discovered, do not interfere with a single fact, or precept, or doctrine of Christianity!

CHAPTER VI.

DESIGN OF THE HOLY SCRIPTURES.

General design of the Scriptures-The happiness and improvement of mankind-Doctrine of Providence-The Redemption of the soul by Jesus Christ-The directory and rule of faith-Acquaintance with the Scriptures.

DIVINE Revelation in the Holy Scriptures, the inestimable boon from God to mankind, must have been given with the noblest and most benevolent design. Reason dictates this conclusion; and that grand design is acknowledged by every serious reader of the Bible. This cannot but regard the honour and praise of the blessed Donor, while it especially contemplates the improvement and happiness of a world of fallen creatures. Such a boon could not have been bestowed on man without an object altogether worthy of its heavenly origin. But the purpose for which the Holy Scriptures were given may be seen in every page. They are plainly adapted to manifest the glorious perfections and infinite moral excellencies of the blessed God; as they make the sublime discoveries of His divine nature in the holy commands and beneficial precepts which they enjoin; and show his gracious disposition in the "exceeding great and precious promises" which they offer to relieve the anxieties of sinners, and to make men

heirs of eternal life, through the mediation of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Man being a rational intelligent creature, though sinful and mortal, the sacred writings give all that kind of information which was so much needed by him on the most important subjects. Their teaching is suited to his mysterious nature. They declare the origin of his present corrupt state; and make known the alternative of his condition in another world. This most desirable knowledge could be derived only from God, who is "the Father of lights," "the fountain of wisdom," and the source of all our blessings.

Moses, the earliest of the sacred writers, was, therefore, inspired of God with the manifest design of satisfying the natural inquisitiveness of the human mind on subjects the most interesting to

race.

our

All

For this purpose he commences his first book with a declaration of the origin of all things, as they are existing in the whole universe, especially of those which are visible in the vastly expanded heavens and upon the extended surface of the earth. these he declares to have been the work of One omnipotent, self-existent, all-wise and beneficent Creator, whose boundless goodness moved Him to create innumerable beings, of various ranks, with intelligent natures, capable of contemplating their glorious Maker of receiving the kind expressions of His love and favour, and of rendering Him worship, so as to secure the continuance of happiness in His blissful service for time and eternity. This inspired servant of God has, therefore, delivered to us

a concise but explicit history of the origin of all things, with a general detail of the progress of the creation, in which were brought forth the various kinds of vegetable existences and of animal natures on earth, subjected to man as their constituted proprietor and lord. He, has informed us, also, concerning the originally perfect, holy and happy condition of our first parents in the garden of Eden, where, in loyal obedience, they enjoyed the most delightful intercourse with their bountiful, condescending and gracious Creator.

Divine Revelation was designed to teach us the doctrine of God's universal providence, carried on in wisdom and righteousness, and extending to all His creatures; discovering the source of all the miseries and sorrows of mankind, and of our humiliating mortality. These are shown to be not essential to our nature, but arising as the natural and necessary consequences of disobedience to the holy requirements of the blessed Creator. Moses has, therefore, not only given these historical facts, but instructively illustrated them in the biographies of the early and most famous patriarchs. He has also given the records of repeated intimations from God, concerning a mysterious person who should in due time mercifully appear as an all-sufficient Redeemer. In the book of Genesis are given-a vindication of God's righteous government in the universal deluge, sweeping away the corrupted race of mankind, and a history of the re-construction of society by the establishment of the ancient nations, several of which have continued nearly five thousand years, and are