The Bible and its readers

^..^^^nd its Headers.

:VA >SCHf.f.LlHE.

I

)^tiiWiyii^^zn*iii

^he Bible

AND nS READERS

EVA SCHEELINE.

" Go, lictle bark. 1 Bend thee out
Upon the Future's heaving eea,
And watch thee on thy trembling route —
For thou art all in all to me."

San Francisco.

P. J. UFAI.Y, PrUMKIIER

lt»«.

'^OPyrffi'httd. I89e!

James H. Barry, Printer, 429 Montgomery Street.

,3-1

TO THE

g xVATlVK DAUGIITEKS OF CALIFORN'IA

>^

oc FROM

-It
cc

3 A NATIVE DAUGHTER.

'•isi ) I i I

CONTENTS

PAGE

Preface 7

Introduction 11

CHAPTER I.— The Bible's View of the

Importance of Man. . .23
CHAPTER II.— The Mighty Scientific

Frown 30

CHAPTER III.— Three Conceptions of

Cod 37

CHAPTKH IV.— Gospel Traditions 46

CHAP'I'KR v.— Ditlerent Theories of In-
spiration 54

CHAFFEI? VT.— The Afrc ef Hie Earth . . .«(>
('fIAI''l'i:if VII.— Ifccjipilulnjion (if*

P li E F A C E

It is probable tli(^ impression that the
Bible teaches contradictions, is wider and
deeper than the facts warrant. If so,
pn^acliors themselves, and scientists, are
largely to blame. Preachers too often
think they infallibly know the teachings
of the Bible, while scientists too often
think ilic.\ inrallibly know the teachings
(tf I lie I'.ililc and (»!' scicnrc also. These are
large snbj<'ets, an<l it may not be deemed
liaisli r«»i- nic to inlimale thai tlxM-e is room
foi- mistake in liicsc matters. Ol" course,
ev«My thinking jx-rson will a<lniil thai he
entei'tains sdnic cn-oni'ctns hclicf. No
really sane man belie\es he is infallible.
While, as a matfer of fact, cveiy one holds

8 Preface.

some erroneous belief, no honest man holds
one conscientiously. To a man the whole
body of his beliefs is true. He, therefore,
believes some error to be true. It is re-
quired of every man, therefore, that he be
open to conviction.

We read into the Bible, or between the
lines, meanings found by scientists of later
days. So of metaphysical systems, Philo
found Plato in Moses, and the "Christian
Fathers" found the warfare of souls in the
tramps of Israel in the wilderness, as well
as in the battles. So the geological the-
ory is taught by Moses. So the evolution
theory is countenanced, at least, in the
Bible. It would be taught outright if the
theory of evolution were established as a
fact.

I believe that it is chiefly because claims
are made for the Bible which it does not
make itself, that so much indifference pre-
vails regarding its contents.

By the word Bible, I designate the Old

Preface. 9

and New Testaraents in their original
tongues.

I ask my readers to approach the study
of my theme, if not free from bias, at least
willing to investigate impartially, and to
accept that which is manifestly true.

Truth asks only a dispassionate hearing,
and scorns to be wooed and won by him
who grants it less.

With the sole purpose of contributing
something to the steady advance of truth,
I am,

Respectfully and sincerely.

Til 10 AITMOi:.

I y T K O I> U C T O R Y .

WIhmi tli<' forefathers of some modern
critics of Moses were naked savages, con-
testing witli fist, diib, stone, noose, and
spear, with ^\\]^\ beasts, for the mastery,
the chihlicji of Israel had overthrown dy-
ii;isries, snbjiiiiatcd kijii;(loins, built cities,
:i)hI |»('i'Vii(lc(l tlic cailli \\itli the idea of
the sacrcdiK'ss of iioiiic, and ihc oiiciicss of
(Joel. \\'ii('!i he was wiiliii.u of the ( 're-
aloi-, aii<l III. 111. ihc soil of (loil, iiiaih' in his
iiiiaiic, jimI |»ro]thcs\ lilt; Ihc doiiiinioii of
man over ;ill niiiiMhuic Ihiniis, llicv 1i:hI
scai'cclv ciioimh IniTc in ilieir spines to
stand (Tcet, lo i;a/<c witii diinili wondci-
into I h<' ilea \ ens.

Thiit <iod did iiol. dii-cclly or i iMlirecl ly,
make re\ cliif ions of hinisclf, liis woi-hl. ;ind

12 Introductory.

man, before the time of Moses, there is
no evidence to prove, either in the Bible
or out of it. Speech and writing existed
centuries before the time of Moses*; man
was as dear to the lieart of the Father
before Moses was born, as since; man was
as ignorant, as needy, as sinful, as help-
less, as undone, then as since then, and
God changes not! It Is unequivocally de-
clared that God "spake bv the mouth of
his holy prophets," who have heen since the
world began. Luther says "many things
were w^ritten and described ere Moses was
born."

But let us suppose that Moses, sirk at
soul of the lizard and calf gods of Egypt,
made up his mind that he would write of
God and creation; or, let ns suppose that
he, inspired by the thought of God and

* The 78th Psalm shows that history came down in tradi-
tion— "our fathers have told us." Lost books of the Bible;
also. Book of Warx (Xu7n. 21 : 14), Book of .lasher in .Joshua,
10 : 1.3.

The Book of Annals is mentioned more than thirty times in
the Book of Kings.

Introductory ■ 13

good, so wrote; in either case, the mean-
ing of what he wrote remains the same.

Suppose a mnltitude of people who are
skives in Egypt. Let that condition ex-
ist for a few centuries. Suppose, now,
that they shall leave Egypt. Their labor
had been profitable to their owners. They
were not released on economic grounds,
but their presence in Egypt had become
injurious, even blighting, to the dominant
race. Tliat is the result of slavery. It was
not, however, until the blight reached the
upper classes, that they were let go by
their masters. After releasing the slaves,
the Prince of Egypt changed iiis mind, and
|HirsiHMl tliciii. Sn|)|K>s<' :iii unarmed mul-
titude «»f men, women, and cliildreu, holly
])UJ*siicd by MM ;ii*iiiy on horseback. They
;n-<- liciiinicd in on ;ill si(h'S. Are you i-eady
n(»\v, in ihon;ziil, lo wiliH'Ss ;i whoh'sale
hntrh^'iy ? <Iod loibid. The sea before
them must open lo h'l llu'in ('S(;i|m'. It
matters not whet Ik r thcv iiirived al the

M Introductory.

precise moment when tlie waters ebbed by
the law of nature, that is, by God acting
through nature, or whether He caused a
wind to divide the sea. The fact is, they
did escape. If these helpless, hapless, and
innocent victims had been put to the sword
while in an honest effort to acquire peace-
ful liberty, that would have been a dark
problem to explain, beside which the
thought that God made the winds and the
waves serve Him, is luminous.

Now, is the moral sense satisfied simply
with the escape of the pursued? What of
their selfish and lustful pursuers? Let
them droicu: that is as little as can ap-
pease man's sense of justice. If theolo-
gians have followed the drowned host far-
ther than death, there is no warrant in the
story for that.

Naturally, the people who left Egypt
had a human leader. Name him Moses.
A mixed multitude followed him. He
leads them into a wilderness. He must

Introductory. 15

control his followers. His will must be
supreme. He must have power to execute
it, and also execute it unhesitatinj»ly on
occasions of need. He has no ordinary
task. Did he control this people unaided?
This people wlio certainly had not ini-
pro\«Ml \\\ the lash? This dissatisfied and
sonu'W hat sullen people? If Moses con-
trolled them unaided, he stands on a dizzy
pedestal far above the greatest leaders
with whom history brinp:s us into acquain-
tance.

Not only <lid Moses ((tntrol lliis mixed
iiiiilt it iide, hilt he evoked order oiil of an-
archy, and established sysleniaii( liaining
and discipline anions Ihem. Lei ns try to
ima^e the coiidilioiis, and see what was
ie(|nired.

Tln-re is a ninhitndc li\inu out d(n>rs,
slce|iiiiii in tfiils. Tlicy needed a general
cliail of conijiicl. That rii;iil needed
a ni ln-nt ic;it jdii as sii|tr'eiiic :ind indexible.
He j;i\-cs the |M'op|c "'i'cn W'onis;" he

16 Introductory.

claims be received them from God. These
"Ten Words" rebuked idolatry, lying, lust,
dishonesty, in stern and uncompromising
tones. True, some of these "Ten Words"
were kuowu doAvn in Egypt, but they were
known as dictates of policy; known from
a utilitarian standpoint.

Moses gives these, and others, unknown
in Egypt, as alive with the utterance and
power of God. He needed more than to
be learned in all the learning of Egypt to
put behind the "Ten Words" the aAvful
majesty of the One Eternal. A priestly
invention, this? All the priests in Egypt
had not the capacity to make the inven-
tion. He was immeasurably the superior
of the priests of Egypt before then — then,
and even down to the present day. It is
easier to believe that he made a just claim
— that God did speak to his servant,
Moses.

But it is in human nature to violate
moral law, and commit crimes. Moses

Introductory. 17

was dealing with man, not only as an in-
diyidual, but as a community. Every
crime possible to man must be depicted,
analyzed, defined, and their punishments
allotted. This is not a pleasant duty, nor
does it make pleasant reading. It results
in the penal code of a people. If theolo-
gians have thought that the penal code
of the Israelites was to be read in public,
to men, women, and children, they thought
wrongly; the thought is not in the code.
If "infidels" have objected to the code
being published at all, IIk'v have made an
ignorant objection.

But it is better to prevent < liiuc than to
punish it; so this should receive consider-
ation from Moses in liis mighty problems
in IIh' wilderness. If :i stjilc of niind posi-
tiv<' against crime could he hi-ouglit about
— if the Sinless One would ;ii<l man! So
Moses s(»uglit to l»i-iiig his pec.ph' into ser-
vice to (lod. lie iiicnlcjiled wdiship. Peo-
ple niust have forms of worship. He gave

18 Introductory.

them forms. These forms are so given as
to cultivate order, exactness, ideas of
beauty, grandeur, holiness; and behind
the form stood the Former; they were
types of thought to impress in man true
conceptions of God. Moses inculcated
obedience to God, and love to the neigh-
bor. That he wrought wisely is evident,
for he laid an eternal moral basis under
his people.

Yet, let him do his best, man does fall
into folly. "Shall Gold hold out against
man forever? Shall God not pity? Yea,
he shall; but man must lay down his will-
ful rebellion." To such "the Lord will pro-
claim himself as merciful, long suffering,
plenteous in grace?" This idea was sought
to be brought about by the ceremonies of
atonement. In after years, through no
fault of Moses, some Israelites thought
that there was virtue in sacrifices in and
of themselves. Isaiah rebuked this in
stern tones. He set the sacrifices upon

Introductory. 19

their true Mosaic foimdation, as being
iiieaut as the yisibk^ expressious of inward
efforts at cleansing, and worthless without
the latter. (Is. 1:10-18.)

The people in the wilderness must have
a Civil Code also. Moses gave them a Civil
Code. This code takes property as it was,
recognizes the rights of property, and
wliile slavery was an institution in the
oicUm- of things, made it less grievous.

\(»r did Moses pretend to be infallible
ill Ills methods of administrating the gov-
enmieiil. He was a teachable, humble
111:111, as is manifest by the readiness with
wliicli he ;i(l<»pt<Ml ail iiiijtrovcment sug-
gcsKMl hy his r;illi<'i-iii-l:i\v, .I('tlii-(», priest
of Midiaii. (Ivx. 1S:1, \:\-2{\.)

r.iit, a |«'<»plc living out doors, in a
wihIcriM'ss, ;ii'c |i('(iiliiirly liable lo sickness
and coniauioii, arising lioni any iiciilccl
(»f clcanliiu'ss. Tlicrr slioiild ix' broad and
(•<ini|>i<'lii'nsi\c rules laid down lor llicni,
under the streiigesl |(<tssildi' anllieiilica

20 Introductory.

tion. Moses did so. Only the foolish think
he ought not to have done this. Only silly
people think they were given to be read
from tlie pulpit, or in family worship.

During the stay in the wilderness, some
object lessons in crime were enacted. Man
is not seen at his best in these matters.
But man, if he is to be known as he is,
must be seen at his worst. That would
not be a book of life, onl}- a make-believe,
which represented man in one phase alone.
We insist that the ugly aspects of man are
not meant for public exhibition. We in-
sist that only in the administration of laic
and justice, or to aid both, should they be
dragged into liglit. They were told in this
connection. They were the reports of criminal
procedures. He sins against man, who, for
purposes of evil, exposes deformities of
body <»r mind to the public.

Men in war are not seen to the best ail-
vantage. Even a good man cannot fight
in the best of humor. He will do things

Introductory. 21

then that misrepresent the real man he is.
When he misrepresents himself, if he says
anything about God or man, he will mis-
represent them.

If a people enter a strange land which is
inhabited, the strangers ask questions, and
begin aggressing. Those who enter must
fight or (|uit the land. Should the Israel-
ites go back to Egypt? The earth belongs
to man, but not to one man, nor a race of
men. If the new comers had to fight, what
could put more nerve into them than to
tell them that "the Lord is on their side?"
Moses did right in so assuring his people.
E\<'iifs h;i\(' sh(»\\ii he \\;is riglil. The na-
lious ilijit ripposcd liiiii iiii mil, wiiile Israel,
thoii^ili srjii icicd, is yel helping to shape
f(»I- lioiid the df'Sl iiijcs ^\{' liiiili.

"As a man, man is the creature with whom I have to do,
and the varieties of his character interest me more than all the
possible varieties of mosses, shells, and fossils."— Hannah
More.

CHAPTER I.
THE BIBLE.

To whom written and to wliom not written.

Tli(? Bible was not written to Atheists.
It assumes the existence of God. It was
not wriltoii for Deists. It assumes that
(mmI (Iocs coninuinicate witli man. It does
iioi iliiiiU ;i denial of this worth a mo-
niciit's cniisidci alion.

Il \\;is not written \\>v A^iiosties. Zo-
jdiiir is rhiiiiK'd ;is (tiic ol' this cijiss. The
r.ihh- iciiiidiiitcs /opli.-ir (dob. 12:7-1>). An
iinl<no\\ii ;iiid ;il»soiiit('l V iMi l< tKtwjildc <l<»d
is |»r;irt icjiii \ the SMIilc ;is Ilo (i(>(K .Mll(dl
N'ss \\;is tin- r.ilth' w lit ten loi- (liosc Aj^ncts-
tics who, wliih' liuldiii^ that the l<'irst
(":iiis«' is iiiil.H'iirn mid iiiilnnirdhh . pi'oceod

24 The Bible and Its Readers.

to tell us about him; how he brought man
and the world to their present condition,
and how he must govern them in the fu-
ture, or forfeit their approval.

The Bible is written to Theists. In its
opening sentence it assumes the existence
of God as a matter of course, and the ex-
istence of a belief in God by man as funda-
mental. Nowhere does it recognize that a
reasonable doubt of God's existence is
possible, and where one is mentioned as
denying that there is a God, he is de-
nounced as a fool.

True to these necessary assumptions,
the Bible, everywhere, assumes that man is
a Theist. It is thus true to man's history
ujxm the earth. Man could not be a poly-
theist without believing in God, any more
than a man could believe in the multipli-
cation table without believing in a unit.
Man could not even be an idolator without
believing in God, for an idol would have
no meaning, unless it were taken to be a
God, or to represent a God.

The Bible and Its Readers. 25

Upon these essential assumptions the
Bible states that nature is alive with the
idea of (rod; so nature is represented as
declaring the glory of Go<l, showing His
handiwork, and manifesting His eternal
power and God head. It does not sav that
these can be inferred from nature by a
process of reasoning, but that they are
direct and immediate communications
from nature — God's nature to man, God's
son. From the Bible standpoint, an argu-
ment t(» i>i'ove the existence of God is an
nnnecessaiy impertinence.

Think of a man argning lo pntM- llial
the snn sliincsl 'Plic sun |»r(»\('s ilscif by
a <lii-<M'| ;i |)pca I lo man.

Hence, I In- r»il»l(' simply pi-ocrcds (o
make God nioD- fnlly known lo man, and
this in\'oi\cs \\\c idea liial man ran lest
r<'\ clal ion. According lo iln- llilih-, man is
God's son. I'fom lliis stamlpftini wo
should cxpoci ijini nioic spacr ;i ml coiisid-
ciMlion woiiM he gi\('ii to man ihan to all
((IImt snhiccls, ami thai al! oihoi- snbjccls

26 The Bible and Its Readers.

should be viewed principally as they are
related to man. One line is devoted to
making the stars. "lie made the stars,
also." Details are given in relation to
making man. The earth is exalted as
man's home, above the remainder of the
universe. This is as it should be. Breath-
ing space on the earth is worth more to
man than all the "milky way." The sun,
the moon, the stars, are bodies of light. It
matters not whether they borrow light, or
have it in their nature, they give it to man.
The}' ])erform uses for him. They are
much, besides, but they are mostly man's
servants. If they had no relation to man,
they would have no existence to him. The
Bible is written in the assumption that
man is the greatest being in this universe.
The assumption is tnie in fact, and must
be held true in theory, or man will lose
himself in his insignificance* among the

* Ps., 8 : 3-4. '• When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy
fingers, the moon and the stars, which thou hast ordained, what
is man, that thou art mindful of him, and the son of man, that
Ihou vlsltest him?

The Bible and Its Readers. 27

rocks, inquiring- their age, or among little
bugs with long names, or among the fos-
sils. Whether we will or not, man, to
whom nothing exists which cannot mani-
fest itself through his senses or faculties,
is the central fact in the universe, and any
revehiTioii which should regard him other-
wise would he false, and any science which
should iciijii'd hi III otherw'ise is false. The
earth, the heavens, the universe, from
man's view, wei-e made to serve him. The
sun, the iiiooii, niid stars, shine for him,
water Mows, hre burns, ihe earth spins,
gravity attracts, grass grows — all things
are and do I'oi- him. 'IMie\ may (h» much,
J)esi(h'S, ;iiid foi- iiuiiiy oliieis, bill I hey do
these things lor iiini ;is iiiiich ;is it he were
the only being on Hie cniili. The scientist
seems to lliinls- tlmt ;i ring ai-«»iiii<l Salui-ii
is of iiKdr im|ioit;in((' lluiii man. When
he w riles ;i l»o(d< <»!' 111:111, he di\ id<'s il soni«'-
what asl'ollows: l-'irsl, not liing; seroiidly,
prolo])Iasiii; liiiidly, evolution; roiiilhly,

28 The Bible and Its Readers.

variations; fiftlily, missing links — then,
after dizzy ages have transpired, man, pro-
toplasm plus, and finally dust, nought!

To man, man is the center and circum-
ference of the universe, and a real book of
man must recognize this inevitable fact.
To man there is nothing above him but the
One who is in him and of him, as cause
and destiny; who can be conceived of as
God, only as first conceived of through
man. Let a man but really believe that he
is a son of God, and systems of worlds are
flecks of dirt compared to him. The whole
universe waits on man. Man, being able
to think and suffer, is of more importance
to God than all the dirt, elements, or
atoms aside from him, past, present, or
future. The Bible was wise when it made
man and his home paramount to all else,
terrestrial and celestial. That ancient
sase* who said that man was made for a

*Ps..8:5. "For thou hast made him a little lower than the
angels, and hast crowned him with glory and honor."

The Bible and Its Readers. 29

little time lower than the angels, was not
on his knees to ought except God. There
is naught in the Heavens or in the Deep^
that man can rationalh^ prostrate himself
before, except the Maker of Man. God did,
God should, talk to man as to the son of
the KinQ- Eternal.

"Is there in us mind and reason, and shall there be no mind
elsewhere in the universe?"— Socrates.

CHAPTEK II.
THE TIME DEMON. EVOLUTION.

What does time do? Notliiug. What is
time? Only a hollow somewhat in which
things are done. We get down before this
Time Demon and worship him. This ap-
pears even in our proverbs. Time cures
all sorrows; time makes all things even.
Empty nonsense! During time all sorrows
may be cured by a curer; during time Jus-
tice may make things even.

So the scientist is down on his knees
before the '^rime Demon. Grant him but a
few cycles of time, and a tad-pole can be-
come a man! If the tad-pole has not in
him the essential elements of man, all eter-
nity can not bring them out Time is not
a cause. Eternitv is not a cause. Time is

The Bible and Its Readers. 31

only that in which causes operate. Time
has no more power as cause than space has.
The reliance of the evolutionist, however,
is on time. Give him time enough. Great
is time!

Scioicc Objects.

We will make a brief survey of the ob-
jections wliich science interposes to reve-
lation.

Priests of science believe in evolution.
Evolution is a word they employ to em-
brace several conflicting theories of the
begiiiiiiiigs of lliiiigs. First, there is the
evolution lli(viry, which assiiiiics an iin-
Uiiowii and inikiiowabic ('ansc lor I lie ])res-
enl order of iiatni-c. Tliis nnUnown and
indaiow able ("ansc is l:ii<)irii lo be nnknown
and nnktiowablcl W'c liavc here a coiilra-
diclion (»r terms. The i-aiional genlh-nM-n
\\'\\n liohl Mils thcor_\ proceed lo JnTorni us,
in deiail, jiow iliis ('ansc began, and estab-
lished the nin verse. Thc\ hold, I hercrorc.

32 The Bible and Its Readers.

that they kiioir his operations. Next, they
tell us that the operation is based upon an
"upward tendency," the lower forms be-
coming; higher ones; the homogeneous, or
simple, becoming heterogeneous, or com-
plex; the like diversifying into the unlike.
This process has taken incalculable ages to
accomplish. According to their theory,
the process should continue forever, until
the homogeneous protoplasm — whatever
that means — becomes one heterogeneous
infinitude, or more.

Another theory is the same, except that
it arrests evolution at the threshhold of
man. Another is a combination of both
theories, and one additional, in that it has
no First Cause. In this theory, nothing, a
few million years ago, began to evolve a
world. If nothing did that well, now, that
it has intelligence, power, etc., to co-oper-
ate with, it should end by making God, and
then many Gods.

Another theorv is to the effect that

The Bible mid Its Readers. 33

things change, grow, develop; hence
change, growth, development, instead of
being results, are causes; and we, and that
which is and shall come after us, are the
effects of the causes; ''causes which we
see constantly in operation around us."

Grant that man exists; grant that that
which testifies to the existence of man is
not, in its root, a lie; that is, grant that
you are not a delusion and a cheat, it fol-
lows:

1. That man is eternal- -never began,
and ncvci- will cease; or,

'2. That l)efore he was, he made him-
self; or,

.*>. That man uas made l>y the ('"irst
Cause.

The Mist pi<)|»(»sil i<iii I will not aM<Miii>t
to explain. It is oim' theory (»!' <1(»<|. The
second one is rout ladidory ami iiii|»ossible.
The third o?i<- is left foi- ialii»ii:il minds.

ivxclise IIS because we a<eepl I lie third
]U*oposition. Retwe<Mi man as eleiiial, both

34 The Bible and Its Readers.

as to past and future, aud man as nothing
creating himself, and as to man being made
by the Eternal, we accept the last hypothe-
sis.

Roll'uKj (111(11/ (I fStone.

It is presumed that man is here! For
all practical purposes, man can be fully
studied without any reference to his origin.
If it could be demonstrated that man began
in protoplasm, he would require the same
food, clothing, shelter, education, etc., that
he does now. If chemists could make proto-
plasm and start it on its way to evolve a
man, when the man arrived, after count-
less ages, or after twenty-four hours, he
would be the same creature. He would be
man. The laws by which man, as an indi-
vidual, or as a community, must be gov-
erned in his relations to the universe, are
just the same upon any theory of his ori-
gin, supposed or supposable. If we believe
an utter absurdity, as that man, before he
had any existence, said to himself "Be,"

The Bible and Its Readers. 35

and thus became man as he is, would still
be the same for all purposes of science.
Nay, even the question of what relation he,
who became, sustains to him who said "Be,"
man, as a product to man, as a creator,
would still remain.

It requires men having a peculiar gift
to dispute, in hot terms, about the age of a
skull, while indifferent to the moanings of
pain all around them; to dispute whether
a splinter from a rock is 50,000, or 50,000,-
000 years old, while undisturbed by the
march of famine and pestilence. Peace!
There are skulls with brains in them that
demand attention. Peace! It is the same
splinter, under any theory, or under none.

Let mail and the earth be accepted as
facts; it is not necessary to have a theory
of creation in order to love man and serve
him, nor to make the earfli minister to his
good. Wlx'tber man asks for bread for
body or mind, it can be given without first
stopping to loll away a stone from I he
tomb of the past.

36 The Bible and Its Readers.

Here is uiau with great needs, none of
which can be supplied by studying him as
protoplasm. The Bible presents man to us
as man. The sight presents him the same.
A glance at man's history shows man suc-
ceeding man, as far back as the Eternal.
No one can see a break in the procession.
This is not studying man with an hypothe-
sis. The last look you can take is of a man
in the form of man.

First and last, therefore, the Bible view
of the physical man is that which attests
itself to the universal history of man. It is
not an hypothesis. It is demonstrable
fact.

"No man liveth to himself."

A world of mere phenomena, all events
bound together by an inflexible law of
cause and effect, is a dead machine. The
human heart, which must not be left out in
the consideration of any subject affecting
man, refuses to believe in a universe with-
out purpose and will.

" It is as easy to close the eyes of the mind as those of the
body."— Butler.

CHAPTER III.

TPIE AFTEK-DINXEK THEOEY.

It is conceded and deplored by the Tem-
ple and the Church, that there is a growing
disbelief in the Bible. A favorite explana-
tion of the fact is that this is due to sin.
To many people, sin, instead of itself need-
ing explanation, explains all mysteries,
oven jicconnting for the pangs and death
of nil ;iiiim;ils, na well ;is iiuiti.

'riicic is MO sill I'oi- wliicli ;iiiy iu;m needs
reject ilic r.ihie lo coiriiiiil, I'oi' there is no
sill that is not comniil ted by belie\('fs in
the Hible. AiioiIh'T e.\pl;iiialioii is, that
there is ;i coiillict b«'t>veen science and the
Jiibh'. In ;i snbse<|neiit cha])ter (his will
be explained. In the nie;intinie, suHice it
to sav that there is no conlli<t belw«'e?i the

2M« i I I I

38 The Bible and Its Readers.

real Bible and real science. The conflict
is on false issues.

A third explanation is, that the Bible
gives unworthy views of God, which offend
the moral sense of man, and will offend it
more and more as his moral sense devel-
opes.

The after-dinner theory of inspiration,
that every sentence, word, syllable, and
letter in the Bible, is the word of God, from
His Throne, is largely responsible for the
rejection of the whole Bible. That foolish
theory maintains that one must accept the
whole Bible as the Word of God, or reject
it all. No sane man believes, or can be-
lieve, that all the Bible is inspired. There
are falsehoods in the Bible, words of bad
men, and even of good men in bad moods.
Hence, the man who still believes is com-
pelled to reject the after-dinner theory.
Many people never make a revision of their
belief, but steadily scorn the whole book.
This theory of inspiration is the fertile
parent of infidels, atheists, and agnostics.

The Bible and Its Readers. 39

A careful analysis of the arguments of
"infidels" against the Bible will show that
thej are based on a high conception of the
character of God. The thought of an eter-
nal hell made Col. Ingersoll frantic; the
same thought made Jonathan Edwards re-
joice. (The mistake Mr. Ingersoll made,
is in not appreciating the joy to the
Edwards' minds, of which class there are
many.) When any doctrine hurts a man, he
will let go of it.

The fact that God can reveal himself to
man at all, presupposes that man can un-
derstand the revelation, and is capable of
recognizing libels against ITis character.
Besides, the Bible conldiiis hitih revelations
of Ills (iltrihiitrs, which <<»nl radict the mon-
strosities to which we have referred.

Thrrc CoHcciilioiis o\ (lod.

There aic I h fee Liciieral coiic('|>t ions of
Cod. Tliei-e is the coiicritt ion that lie is an
enlar;^e<l man, li-jhtini: for iis when we ai-e

40 The Bible and Its Readers.

his triomls, and against ns when we are his
enemies. He seeks his will, and the only
law he recognizes is to do what i)leases
him. He is very easily displeased. Those
who accejit this conception can readily be-
lieve that if a man is a friend of such a
God, he nmy deceiA^e man, cheat, lie, even
murder, and say he was commanded by
God to do so; he may do any crime in the
universe, and say that God approves it,
provided the crime be committed against
an enemy of God. This is the God that
tells a man to kill his son, and when the
mau has become the murderer of his son
in intent, can change the fact, and prevent
its outward expression. He catches a goat
in a tliickot as a substitute. But he must
have blood — he loves the smell of blood.
He sees the bleeding victim, and takes
pleasure in its agony. He can take pleas-
ure in the death pangs of doves and lambs.
He is simply the hnifal and murdfrous in-
stincts of man, icritten large, and lawless, and
poweA'fid.

The Bible and Its Readers. 41

He is i-f strained only by lack of power.
People liaviuji iron eh a Hots are too strong
for him. (Jiidoes, 1:11).) That is, he dies
when civilization sets in. He is still the
God of the savage American Indian; of
the Cherokees and Cherokee preachers.
'W'itii refinement of tiuelly Ixtrdering on
the infinite, some conceive this God to have
a toi'tiiic hole for ills enemies in the eter-
nities.

Conceiving that this creature is the God
revealed by the Bible, men of heart reject
this liook. He is not the (Jod of tlu" Bible.
Mail, ill his Itlackcst and grossest moods,
made this iiorr<»r. WIm-h iti:iii is sci on lire
with lyiii^. Ilidt. Inst, iialc, :ind war, h<'
caiinol rc\«';il (!od. I0\ <'r_\ I liiiig In- says of
(Jod liicn is Calsc, lihclfius, lilasplirnioiis.

L'. Til ere IS I Ik' r(ni(C|»t ion I li;i I < !od is a
fjiiinrc. lie nndcrlook lo iiiakc ni;iii in His
iina;:c, [Ov niaii's good jiiid Mis l:Ioi\. Tiiis
ima;;*' of Cod roil on ilic first cncoiinler
wilh c\il. This first man Icii as easily as

42 The Bible and Its Readers.

any mau. No man ever fell before he was
encountered by temptation. No man could
fall into temptation before he was tempted.
Well did Paul say of Adam, that he was of
the earth earthy. Then, either God did not
succeed in making man in His image, or
the image of God is not what it is supposed
to be. The conception of God as a failure
is not in the first chapter of Genesis. In
the third chapter the Creator is repre-
sented as having made man, issued him
commands, which man broke. The Creator
cursed man, the ground, the serpent, all
concerned. Grant, with some commenta-
tors, that the ground was cursed for man's
good. This recognizes the necessity of the
curse, only shifting its purpose. The fact
is, that the Creator here is represented as
disappointed, angry, defeated, at least tem-
porarily. Suppose He promised that man
would issue in final triumph. This proph-
ecy cannot come to pass if sin is not
utterly destroyed. If God did not purpose

The Bible and Its Readers. 43

sin, something has happened contrarj- to
His purpose. Suppose, then, that God does
promise triumph over the serpent. This
promise is of no importance if the serpent
can defeat God. If the serpent overthrew
God's plans for one instant, he was the su-
perior of God for that instant. There was
then no God, for the serpent was upon the
Throne ruling man, defeating God. If the
serpent was ever the superior, the victor
over God, he will always be, for God
changes not! This is Serpent Worship.
This leaf is no part of the Hebrew Scrip-
tures. It is false to the whole tenor of
those S( iij»tures. No where else is it even
intimated that the Eternal God is in a los-
ing conflict witli a serpent, or thai He is
endcavoiiii'j, to rccov**!' groiiiKi already
lost. Tliis leaf Moated in fcoiii an (Hilside
tradition. No in;4<'nui(y of man, wliellier
the story be taken literally, mystically, or
allegorically, can show that it does m»t put
man as a batth'field, wliei-eon ICvil is tri-

44 The Bible and Its Readers.

unipliant, without A^alid reason to believe
that it will ever be otherwise than triumph-
ant It is the worship of Evil. It is the
religion of China.

3. There is the scientitie conception of
God. His master is Law. It is unchange-
able. It made nature, or it is nature. God
is chained and gagged, and helpless. He is
not even large enough to be chained. He
is tied up with pack thread, and cannot
break a thread of it. He cannot make a
puff of wind only as Law permits him to
do so. If Law says, "take some jelly, work
cycles of time and make man," by so say-
ing Law galvanizes a sort of life into this
baby God, and He goes mechanically to
w^ork, moving as Law leads Him.

The first chapter of the Bible stands God
above and out of Nature, making the uni-
verse with as much ease as a boy blows
soap bubbles. That God is worth some-
thing. He spoke the world into existence
for man, and he will look it into nothing-

The Bible and Its Readers. 45

ness if it ever gets in man's way. He can
make evil to serve Him, out of the darkness
bringing light, out of its bitterness bring-
ing the sweetness of sympathy and the
healing of mercy; revealing Himself more
fully because of evil, and when He is done
making it serve man, He can throw it in
the face of the sun and burn it like a gnat.

"To love truth, for truth's sake, is the principal part of hu-
man perfection in this world, and the seed plot of all other vir-
tues."—Locke.

CHAPTER IV.

GOSPEL TEADITIONS.

The popular use of the word Bible,
means a translation in the vernacular; but
all modern standard translations of the
Bible contain things that are not at all in
the originals, which are mistaken for a
part of the Bible. For instance, the open-
ing words in the English Bible are, "The
first book of Moses called." These are an
interpolation, without any authority in the
original. These, together with "The sec-
ond book of Moses called." "The third
book of Moses called." "The fourth book
of Moses called." "The fifth book of Moses
called" — all interpolations, are commonly
understood to mean that the Bible claims

The Bible and Its Readers. 47

that Moses was the author of these five
books. The Bible makes no such claim.
Tradition asserts these books to Moses;
but the validity of a tradition is one thing,
and the validity of a claim made by the
Bible is another thing, quite another! The
discussion has been shifted so that unin-
formed people believe that an attack on the
Mosaic authority of tlie Bible is virtually
an attack on the Bible.

In the margin of the English Bible cre-
ation is dated B. C. 4004. Geology has at-
tacked tliis date successfully. Many have
tlioiight tliat tliis attack sweeps away the
Bible. I( docs iioi touch tlic l>ibl«'. There
are no cliroii()l()<^i(;il notes in (he margin
of file original liilde.

The references a, b, c, d, etc., in (he Eng-
lish P>i}»]e, are no |>;ir( of (he Bible. Occa-
sionally ii refei'cnce h;is some heiiring ujum
a text, but nsiuilly the\ ;ii'e misleading.

It is (iMie that the ofigiiKils, (hemselves,
(lilTer in m;iny |(la<'<'S. These <lilTerent

48 The Bible and Its Readers.

readings do, iu some cases, affect the sense,
but ill no case do they affect the central
thought of the Bible, that God is, that man
is his creature, and that God is in the des-
tiny of man.

It puzzles many to understand why there
are so many disagreements regarding the
teachings of the Bible among scholarly and
pious men, who are quite certain, each for
himself, and not one for the other, that
his views are exclusively and authorita-
tively tauglit in the "Infallible Book."
Little disagreements are becoming more
and more ignored, not settled, as the com-
mon sense of mankind comes to the rescue,
as to feet washing, ornaments, hats on or
off during service, the color and texture of
priestly robes, the style of hair to be worn,
singing hymns or psalms, the use of instru-
ments of music in divine worship, the pos-
ture of the body iu public prayers. Ink is
still shed copiously by some on these top-
ics, but bones are not now broken, nor
human blood spilled.

The Bible and Its Readers. 49

However, there are fundamental differ-
ences among recognized Bible expounders
regarding the teachings of the Bible on
mighty subjects and vast problems. Is
God a person, two persons, three persons?
How many Gods are there? Is there a
Goddess also? The mother of God? Have
the plans of God failed? ^Yill they fail
eternally? Or are plans being carried out
according to decrees which go so hard with
the majority of mankind? Or will all be
saved finally? Is Satan a person, a prin-
ciple, a personification of evil? W<*11,
about evil, how did it come? When? In
a pre-existent state? Who is to blame for
it? Is Satan more tlian a match for Deity?
^\'ill lie li;l\(' the li»»ii's slijil'c wIicTi the
si)oils if h;it(I<' ;ii(' dixidccl? Is iiinii free,
or necessitate* I? Is 111:111 siivcd by faith
alone? 1)\ fjiilli .itid \\<»rl<s? by I lie <!('-
crecs of God? Is .Icsiis (!od iiiinsclf? or
e(|nal witli God? or onc-tliiid p;iil of the
Trinity? oi- (Jod-TiiMii? or iii;iii-< lod? or

50 The Bible and Its Readers.

mere man? Is the spirit entitled to the
pronoun he? or it? Is the Bible the voice
of God from His Throne, in every text, sen-
tence, word, syllable, and letter? or does it
contain the word of God? Is it inspired
in streaks? Does it teach all worth know-
ing about religion and science? or about
religion only? What is the meaning of
death, heaven, hell, paradise? How many
states after death? One, two, three? What
day of the week is the Sabbath? Does "to
create" mean to make out of nothing? or
to form out of pre-existing elements? Has
man a soul? Is it immortal? Is not im-
mortality conditional? What about the
resurrection of the body?

None will dispute that the Churches
teach conflicting doctrines. That each sect
denies that the other teaches the whole
counsel of God; but modestly — so mod-
estly— claims to do so itself. Each claims
its doctrines are in the Bible. If we sum-
marize this Judgment of the sects, they tes-

The Bible and Its Readers. 51

tify as a whole, that the Bible teaches
different and conflicting doctrines. Now,
if each sect is doing its best to understand
and teach the Bible, the Bible is either the
most difficult book possible to be under-
stood, or it does teach conflicting doctrines.
To say that the sects are not doing their
best, is to impeach human nature in its
best representatives. The Jewish Sect, the
Roman Sect, the Anglican Sect, the Lu-
theran Sect, contain the best and wisest
men in the world. It is not true that any of
them are willfully misteaching the Bible.
It is impossible for us to escape the conclu-
sion that the Bible contains conflicting doc-
trines. Some r)f the wisest and best men
on oartli conscientiously hold doctrines
wliifli coiitlict with \vh;it (ttlicrs of the
wisest and best ('(nisciciit ioiisly hohl, and
tlu'y all cite t<'xts. Sonic ol' t licsc men
wonld <s(i l<» the staUc. Men have g(me ex-
nltingly to death f(»r ccrlain d(Mtrines;
others have gone as cxnltingly for opposite

52 The Bible and Its Readers.

doctrines. They all glorified in their
knowledge of the truth until flames licked
up their lives.

How often do we meet professors of
Christianity, who, more like gladiators
than followers of the meek and lowly
Prince of Peace, contend about the dot of
a letter, or the use of a preposition, as if
the whole world depended upon the result.
It cannot be denied that some of the wisest
and best men on the earth conscientiously
hold doctrines which are irreconcilable
with the doctrines of others who are their
equals in every particular, and that each
party especially affirms that its doctrines
are according to the Word of God. What
does this mean? It means that the Bible
actually contains the main doctrines of
both parties.

Any doctrine is the Word of God which
lifts man out of subjection to the flesh, out
of bondage to sin, out of "fear that hath
torment," into wise and loving service of

The Bible and Its Readers. 53

man, and into fellowship with the Beauti-
ful, the Wise, the Merciful, and the Good.

Since the minds of men perceive from so
man}' points of view, that book is the
holiest and wisest which, so to speak, best
adapts itself to the angels of vision, reflect-
ing the view which each person most needs
in order to poise his soul and make him
strong to conquer self. I believe the Bible
is that kind of book.

"Prove all things; hold fast to that ■which is good."— Padl.

CHAPTER V.

DIFFERENT THEORIES OF INSPIRATION.

Only a cursory inspection of the Bible is
required to find that it claims that Two
Voices talk to man; one, the Voice of God,
the other the Voice of Evil. The Voice of
God is represented as speaking truths, to
be believed and obeyed; the Voice of Evil
as speaking falsehoods, to be disbelieved
and disobeyed. Not only are the Two
Voices represented as speaking directly to
man, but the Voice of God is represented
as speaking through good men to man, and
the Voice of Evil as speaking through evil
men to man. It is apparent that the say-
ings of good men should not be classified
with the sayings of evil men. The lies of
evil men — there are many of them in the
Bible — are given to be rejected.

The Bible and Its Readers. 55

From this paragraph and the preceding
one, it follows necessarily that there are
many things in the Bible which man must
disbelieve and disobey, or suffer the conse-
quences; that there are, and must be, in
the nature of the case, essential and funda-
mental contradictions in the Bible, and
that there is an Inspiration of Good, and
an Inspiration of Evil in the Bible.

We now present Paul as a careful
thinker of the Scriptures. He defines the
Holy Scriptures to be "Every Scripture in-
spired by God, and profitable for doctrine,
foi- r('i)r()<>l', for conviction, for instruction
ill righteousness." (2 Tim., 3:1(5.) This
(h'fiiiitioii roiiiiiH'uds itself to reason, and
is, \\i(li;il, i»r;i(ii<;il. That Scripture is
holy, is (Jo(l-l)r(';illi('(l, which brings a man
into <'omiiiunioii with the Father, and into
loving servi(«' of iii;iii. 'IMiis definition was
poniMMl ])rior to Uk- coniiiosition of a hirge
l»art of the New Testament, but it is the
statement of a iirinciplc which is line for

56 The Bible and Its Readers.

all time. That Scripture is unholy, unin-
spired, which causes a man to ignore God
and to wrong man; it is from evil, its root
lays hold on dense darkness, and its fruits
are bitterness of soul.

This rule is simple, and can be tested. It
is presunjed by us that the converse of the
definition is so plain that Paul did not
think it necessary to state it. Every Scrip-
ture that is not profitable for doctrine, for
reproof, etc., is not Inspired by God.

Then it follows that the Scriptural idea
of truth, as Paul understood it, if we under-
stand him aright, is not in the verbal
phraseology, but in the power to quicken
the life of God in the soul of man.

A thing may be literally false, and yet
quite true in this sense. For instance,
"The heavens declare the glory of God," is
literally an impossibility, yet they do give
us an idea of the glory of God, which we
feel to be true. The heavens tell the glory
of God as a flower tells of beauty. The

The Bible and Its Readers. 57

world manifests the eternal power and
Godhead of the Deity as the sun manifests
light.

Grant that God has made a written
revelation to man. It must have been
written in human language, and according
to man's view of things. Then physical
facts will have been communicated accord-
ing to their forms, or appearances.

iSouK' ^^iiiiijlr Truths nhuut Lduyuayi:

It is impfjssible to speak or write even
one intelligent sentence concerning God,
without using woi'ds which apply ])ri-
iiiarily to man, or the world. Only those
who liav<' never considered tliis jd'oposit ion
think that this necessary use of words l»y a
speaker or wrilei- |>r(»\('S that he believes
that God is man, iiiatlei-, or foi-c*-. \e\er-
theh'ss, a hirge lib]-ai-\ wouhl be i-e(|iiire(|
to contain all the b(»oks which haxc been
7)nblished <'onten(ling (»l herw ise. Not only
is it necessary to speak or write of (okI in

58 IThe Bible and Its Readers.

words primarily applicable to man, or the
world, but it is necessary to speak or write
of all other subjects in the same manner.
Whether we will or not, man is the center
of thought conception and language, and
all things are more or less humanized in
our conceptions and utterances. We can-
not communicate a thought relative to the
world without using words which have and
can have no meaning apart from the senses
and faculties of man. Not only, therefore,
is God humanized in thought, conception,
and forms of expression, but all other sub-
jects are likewise so humanized. Take the
simplest idea in the world, according to the
materialistic dictum of things, to wit:
Force. What does man know? What can
he say of Force, except as it impresses him
through his senses and faculties?

Write the shortest possible sentence of
God. God is. Both these words have, pri-
marily, reference to human language,
which is based and rooted in man's senses

The Bible and Its Readers. 59

and faculties. Attempt to put an intelli-
gible meaning in God, and you begin to
give it "power," of which you could have
no conception without your muscular and
nervous systems, and your will. You now
add, say, "wisdom." What would you
know of Avisdoii) without relating it to the
operation of mind? You add, say, "good-
ness," "love." I'hese all have no base of
meaning to man apart from a foundation
in man.

Take "is." Does it mean exists? Plainly
it is rooted in man, and the world. Does
"God is" imply what? Then the answer
to "wliat?" carries ahmu more i(h'as, wliicli
W(* could not even have without being what
we are,

\\'liil(' it is true, as stated iu llie opening
sentence, it is ;ilso liin' lli;il if ;iu authoi-
phiinly shows thai he iuleuds to liuiil his
meaning, to the lirsl use (»(' words, Im- must
be lieM to tench th;it <!«mI is uuiii, oi- uiat-
ter, or torce. Hut no author shouhl hv. held

GO The Bible and Its Readers.

to such a view except on his own showing,
by his limitation of words to their primary
signification. It is manifestly unfair for
one to maintain that the use of words im-
plying seeing, hearing, etc., should always
be used in their first sense. That people
know better is evident from the fact that
they do not accuse one who speaks of na-
ture as seeing, hearing, etc., of believing
that nature has human eyes, ears, etc.

The question arises, could God, even if
He took a pen in His hand and wrote every
word of the Bible, set Himself down clearly
and fully in it? Is it large enough to con-
tain the Infinite? Is human language in
one book, or in all books, capable of ex-
pressing the Absolute and Limitless One?
If human language is finite, imperfect, it
cannot reveal the Infinite perfectly. Since
man and nature are also both finite, they
lie under the same disability. There is as
much obscurity, imperfections, and so-called
contradictions, in man and vatiirc as in the
written revelations of (iod.

The Bible and Its Readers. 61

For example, uo man can reconcile the
tooth and daw of a lion with the tooth and
hoof of a sheep.

We stand in the presence of mystery,
with or without the Bible. Do you say that
sin explains such divergent texts of nature?
The answer is easy. First, sin itself needs
explanation ; secondly, sin has not changed
the tooth and chnv of the lion. Do you say
that sin brought sulfering and death into
the world? It is not true. Even if it were
true, why sliould man's sin inliict suffering
and death upon beasts, that are incapable
of sin? 1'he answer is still easier. Tlie lion
liiiiiself suffers i»ain and deatli, and his en-
joyment should uol be considered alone.
^\'ll;ll mIm»iiI I lie p:iiii cd' his victim? Men
wrih' glildy oT IIm- ;i(l;i|»I;ilion — the proof
of wisdom in il til ilic ciiiiiiNcioiis beast
to seize jiiid i\ i 1 1 ils pley, hill o\-erlool< (lie
want oC ;i(l:i pi:iiioii in (lie prey <o protect
itself. Do yoii s;iy lli:il siinVrinu ;ind dentil
are essen(i;il lo picxciil (lie "o<(juj)ai)cy of

62 The Bible ayid Its Readers.

the world by the lower orders of exis-
ence?" The statement is tiatly denied.
Vegetables are removed without pain. It
is conceivable that the sheep might have
been so made, as when the crisis came to
enjoy being eaten as much as his eater en-
joys eating him. Do you answer, finally,
that the capacity to enjoy pleasure carries
with it the capacity to suffer pain? The
answer is. You have placed pleasure and
pain, in the nature of things, where they be-
long, and have dropped sin as the cause of
pain and death.

If we have shown that nature has its
mysteries also, we are ready to proceed,
merely intimating that mysteries which
exist in nature are not altributed to the Bible
hy candid and thoughtful people. The Bible
has imported no mystery into the universe,
but it is an attempt to explain mystery.

Suppose that (lod could and did write
himself down fully in the Bible, has man
the capacity to understand the writing?

The Bible and Its Readers. 63

Yes? Then what is the meaning of the
Babel among the Sects?

It is patent that in order for one to as-
sert that there is a conflict between the
utterance of any bool^ in regard to facts,
and the utterance of nature in regard to
the same facts, one must understand what
both the books and nature affirm in the
premises. While it may be safely held that
it is a difficult thing for one person to
understand the allegations of the Bible re-
garding facts, it may be safely held that it
is a more difficult thing for one person to
understand the allegations of the Bible
thereon mid the allegations of nature.

The theologian may pretend to know
much, but the ]>ri«'st of science pretends to
know viislly Miorc. Tlic liibic is ji large
subject. The Bibh' mid N'Mliirc :i Inrger
subject. It is possildc one iiuiy iiiiike a
mistake in both, not to s;iy in cither. It is
certjiin lli;it lln- r.jMc hriniis no new diffi-
cnlty ini(( lininiin tlioiiulil oi- concept ion.

64 The Bible and Its Readers.

The origin of the universe? the nature and
destiny of man? God? who? what? where?
how many? are fundamental problems,
and they exist where there is no letter of
the Bible.

There is as much difference between the
tooth of a lion and the tooth of a sheep,
viewed singly, as between any two texts in
the Bible. That speaks of blood, the inflic-
tion of suffering, savageness; this of peace,
the reception of suffering. No one makes
the mistake, however, of denying the ex-
istence of either tooth. The earth is full
of discordant texts. It puzzles the wise to
relate them harmoniously. To intimate
that the sin of man has changed the tooth
of the lion is absurd. Whether or not man
sinned, the lion would tear flesh and eat
suffering victims, buffering, itself, is a
mystery.

Wise or unwise, the Bible claims to be
an effort to explain these matters. In
thought, strike the Bible into nothingness.

The Bible and Its Readers. 65

You are yet there with your past, present,
future, and the world is yet there, and God
yet is, or Not is! We protest with all our
might against any one attributing to the
Bible problems that exist in the nature of
things.

" A wise man will weigh evidence the more carefully, the
more important the subject."— Whatkly.

CHAPTER VI.

LET THE FACT STAND.

Beresliith is the first word in the Bible.
It is translated "In the beginning," instead
of "In beginning." The difference between
the two conceptions is vast. That refers to
time, this to action; that seems to justify
people in hunting a date, this gives an ex-
cuse for such useless and fruitless work.
It was that erroneous "the" which led
Usher to cipher, and his poor ciphering is
responsible for the date affixed to creation
in the English Bible B. C. 4004. Some men
seem to think that the Bible is responsible
for the date, and that Geology has im-
pugned the Bible, when it has impugned
only an interpolation. Little did those men
who wrote "bereshith" dream that "how

The Bible and Its Readers. 67

old is the earth?" would become a vital
question.

It is philosophically possible that matter
is only a various form of force; but the
Bible does not say so, nor attempt to give
the hoic of its genesis any more than the
when. A wise book, this Bible! If it had
said absolutely that matter was created
out of nothing, these objectors would have
had reasons satisfactory to themselves to
reject it; if it had said absolutely that mat-
ter was not created out of nothing, men
who thought that ought to be the mode of
creation, would have had difficulties to en-
counter, flence, as a fact, the Bible says
nothing decisively <ni the subject. It stead-
ily avoids i-aisiiig iimiecessary questions.
If iimiecessaiy (|uestionH be raised by the
liiiiii:iii intellect, it leaves llieiii iiii-
unswered.

The learned lell us lh:it b'reshitli is a
Hubstnutive femiiiiMe willi femiiiiue termi-
nation Hh — prefix It root, /">>/'. The word

68 The Bible and Its Readers.

heads, in (Gen., 2: 10) is the plural of rosh;
and the primary idea of rosh is motion. It
is evident that Usher was misled by the
"the" in the English Translation.

"In beginning" refers to action^ not to
time. There was neither tick of clock, beat
of pulse, nor ebb of tide, by which to com-
pute time.

"In beginning" simply means commenc-
ing. Whether the earth w^as made 6,000 or
6,000,000 years ago, is of no vital impor-
tance. It is the same earth; it seeds the
same and grows wheat the same, no matter
tclien it came from the creative act of God.
If the disciples of Usher desire to squabble
with the disciples of Lyell as to its age,
there is no law except common sense and
duty to man against it.

If the earth's precise age to a day could
be ascertained, there would be nothing
added to the stock of knowledge but a date.
Oh! the little things which disturb man.

"The best preacher is the heart; the best teacher is time;
the best book is the world; the best friend is God." — Mishna.

CHAPTER VII.

There are three views as regards how
the Bible should be received. One that the
Priests, or Church recoguized, are the ex-
pouuders thereof. This view sets the
Priests, or Church, above the Bible.

The second view is that laymen have the
right, and it is their duty, to compare what
the Cliui'ch teaches with tlu^ Bible, and
wliaL the itible says is authoritative. This
view sets the Bible uj) above man.

The third view is that man has the right,
and il is his duly, hi judge I he contents •»!'
the Bilde, whether I hey !»(• true or lulsc
This view sets iii;iti ;iiM»ve Ihr iJihh'.

All n.'iliniis h;ive Iheji- Tdhh-s, cillier
oral or written, 'rime hiiiius the idcii of
sacrediiess, the i(h';i of sinicdiM'Ss blinds
mjinv to faults. Thcit- ;ire dilTeroucfs of

70 The Bible and Its Readers.

opinion — honest and intelligent diiferences
of opinion — held bj^ thousands as to the
real doctrines of the Bible. It is folly to
attempt to extinguish reason and stifle
conscience by an appeal to a text of any
book. If a book teaches what is unreason-
able the teaching is false, though it be ac-
companied by thunder and threatenings
and what not!

During the history of the Church there
have been two parties, one endeavoring to
prevent the people reading the Scriptures,
which they proclaim to be the Word of
God, and the other demanding that the peo-
ple read them. The former admits that
the Scriptures are difficult to understand,
the latter assert that the Scriptures are
very plain — that "a wayfaring man, though
a fool, need not err therein." We admit,
with the former, that the Scriptures are
difficult to understand, but we deny that
"one faith" means "one doctrine" or "one
creed." The root of the word translated

The Bible and Its Readers. 71

faith is obedience, and the idea is of obedi-
ence to God's moral laws. There is noth-
ing in the Old Testament that warrants
the notion that a man is to be saved or
damned b^' his opinions, nor in the New
Testament. It is, "1 was hungry, and ye
fed me," etc. It is not, "You had the true
set of dogmas."

The Bible is not a systematic Theology.
Christianity is a life, not a creed!

The Bible was not given so much to af-
fect the head as to inspire the heart; he
knows all of it worth knowing who loves
(jod and his neighbor — he knows less than
nothing of it who hates man. One who
was a great teacher viewed from any
standpoint represents Ood as judging
men, not by tlicir cn'ods or rituals or no-
tions, but hv their deeds of kindness and
acts of mercy.

A tendency in iiuin to conceive of God is
in harmony with man's character. Said a
Greek satirist, Xenophanes, "Mortals think

72 The Bible and Its Readers.

the gods are born and have shape and
voice and raiment like themselves."

According to our view of the Bible, that
conception which is best suited to bring you
to God will mold you. Possibly you may
have first one conception, then another,
then another. If you change thus, the
Bible will change to you.

That it is wrong to murder, is true. It is
not wrong to murder because the Bible for-
bids it, but the Bible forbids it because it
is wrong. Right and wrong existed before
the first word of the Bible was written.
The utmost that the Bible can do is to re-
veal truths. The Bible contains many
imperishable and incontestable truths.
The question of the authorship, or source
of a book, is not the question of the truth
if its contents.

That God should reveal himself to man,
is not difficult to believe. The real diffi-
culty is not in believing that God has com-
municated to man, but that he has ceased

The Bible and Its Readers. 73

to communicate. That God did not reveal
himself to man before the time of Moses,
or since the time of Malachi, or of John the
Evangelist, if accepted, must be accepted
by faith alone. That the Bible claims all
the revelation of God which lie ha.s made
to man, is a dogma which faith alone can
receive. No valid human reason can be
rendered thereon.

The Bible wisely leaves vagaries un-
touched, and handles essential problems.
It is intensely practical. It leaves a man
free to accept man as he is, and do some-
thing for him.

Tiic main purpose of the Bible is to alTect
our lives; to "write the laws of God in our
hearts." The book being mainly ccmcerued
about, liow l(» live aright , shoiihl touch man
at all points of his naliii-c. The man who
cannot, be mo\r(l hy a highci- iiiolivf, h't
him be moM'd by a htwci' one, only thai Ik-
move forwaixl. There are passages and in-
cidents in tho I*ook of Lives that are essen-

74 The Bible and Its Readers.

tial to a full representation of human
nature at its lowest phases. These pas-
sages and incidents were not given to be
read in public, or to justify the ugliness
which they depict. Those who assert that
every word in the Bible is meant for pub-
lic reading, and the scoffers who assert that
low phases of life should not be given, are
equally in error. The method of the Jew-
ish Church concerning these matters is
based upon well established facts, as well
as upon common sense. Paul, addressing
the "brethren" in a public capacity, takes
the same ground. (Phil., 4: 8: 9.) "Finally,
brethren, whatsoever things are true,
whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever
things are just, whatsoever things are pure,
whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever
things are of good report; if there be any
virtue, and if there be any praise, think on
these things."

"Those things which ye have both
learned, and received, and heard, and seen

The Bible and Its Readers. 75

in me, do; and the God of peace shall be
with you."

Besides otlier codes, a nation must have
its penal code; it must recognize the exist-
ence of (nery crime possible to man; it
must deline, denounce, and punish — or
perish! The penal codes in the Bible arise
ont of the human effort to deal with man
as a criminal. Tlie question of the human
punishment for a crime against man, is a
matter that man has been left to experi-
ment with. Of course God sanctions all
honest efforts to prevent iind punish crime;
that Moses meant no more than a general
sanction, is a])parent w Ikmi he accepted the
views of .feflii'o in the administration of
.Justice ;is against some of wliicli lie had
ap|»ended the name <)f the Lord.

'riiei'e Is nothing; ^i"a|i))lin^ willi the life
of man that is nnworthy (»f notice and syin-
jtathy hy all iIh- llea\ens. .Man, though
disfignied sonie, is y<'t of <1(mJ and in his
image.

76 The Bible and Its Readers.

Many beneficial results come to us from
the accounts of the wanderings of the
Israelites in the wilderness. The divine
thought that God is in the human race, is
only an expounded form of the thought
that God is in one man, or in one race. "Is
not one man as dear to the heart of the
Father as another?"

One good result of accepting the story of
creation in Genesis, is that it leaves man
free to do something for the good of his
fellow beings, while if it should become
thought to be a vital question as to just
how, or precisely when, the earth was
made, there are everlasting problems for
men which direct their minds into useless
channels of effort.

How the battle has raged in regard to
the authorship of the Pentateuch, and over
the account of Moses' death ! The one who
wrote of the death of Moses was probably
some simple minded man, unable to write
a book, but able to pour out his soul over

The Bible and Its Readers. 77

the dead, and touch a tomb with hope and
beauty! That the J^ord buried Moses can-
not be proved, nor disproved ; but the Lord
was with him in his last struggle — that is
true. That he cared even tor the dust of
a man gives us a glimpse into the Lord's
heart worth more than what all the higher
critics, and their friends, the bug-hunters,
have said or can say. ('all this epitaph a
note from an unknown author. It states
as a ma11<M' of fa<-t what man must needs
believe, if he would fr(»ii1 the world without
fear or tiinching, that the Loid will be with
his servjuit in his hist gas)», and will ten-
derly i<'g;ii(l I lie (lust from which the spirit
h;is uio\(mI oil.

The liiiH' (dUH's to :ill w lieu I licv wish to
know I hcuischcs ;is llicx ;ii-c, ;ind th<'r<' is
only <UH' l*o(»k we know of fluil hiys (he
liUMKiii iMMit Ikiic wilhoiil fV;ii' of ll;i(l<'i'v
—that liool: is thr lilljr. It will sift Ji man,
search liiin out, ;m<l by fijish of fii'c, or thun-
der pciil, tlir'e;il, L:lo(»iiiy silence, or gentle

78 The Bible and Its Headers.

wliisperiuj»'8, iu some way stir his iuward
world until lie shall waut to "lay dowu
arms." It does still more. It declares that
God takes him as he is, aud will stand by
him as long as he gropes upward.

It is good that the Bible was written for
the clinging soul that needs a God In-
vincible; for the sturdy, self-willed man
who feels strong enough to supplement
God in His weakness of will; for the ten-
der hearted brother who cannot have peace
in his soul with the thought that one is
lost.

If it were written for either of these
alone, it would not be a book, but a frag-
ment; it would not have represented all
the phases of thought, but one phase; it
would have been accepted only by those
whose thought it expressed in clear-cut
terms.

It is the wisest of Books, for the very rea-
son that it is the most many sided. If it
encourages your heart to think you may

The Bible and its Readers. 79

progress forever, that is there; if the
weary look forward to a peaceful rest after
this fever called "life" is over, that is there;
there is no thought good for man or help-
ful to him, in any mood, or place, or con-
dition, that is not there for him. It is good
that the Bible was not made for one creed.
God is in the human race, and will stay
and help in every effort to rise out of that
which hurts, or destroys, or even makes
afraid — His children.

UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA AT UOS ANGELES

THE UNIVERSITY LIBRARY
This book is DUE on the last date stamped below

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