read and studied in the original language. Did nothing prompt to a careful examination of sacred literature, save the dictates of taste and the demands of general scholarship, these should have been sufficient to lead to an attentive perusal of the venerable productions of inspired Israelites as well as of gifted Gentiles.

To the general scholar, who is anxious to become acquainted with the literature of nations-to the philologist, who seeks to unfold the affinities of all languages, and to resolve them into their elements-and to the mental philosopher who aims at the discovery of the mysterious nature of human speech, the Hebrew Scriptures present claims which cannot be overlooked without leaving a blank in their attainments and speculations, which the most familiar acquaintance with the classic remains of antiquity cannot supply. But to the Christian pastor, whose office it is to explain and illustrate the oracles of God, and to press on the attention of his fellow men, the high lessons of truth, which have been communicated immediately by Heaven, and which cannot be neglected or misunderstood, without periling their immortal well being, the language and literature of the Hebrews must, or at least should, present themselves invested with claims inexpressibly more imperative and solemn. Whilst the philosopher and the man of letters are invited to a study of the Hebrew language, in order to extend the limits of human learning, or to establish some principle in what has been denominated the "science of words," the teacher of Christianity is required to devote himself to the acquisition of this branch of knowledge, not merely that he may be qualified to admire the native beauty, and sublimity of Moses, Isaiah, and the Psalmist, but that he may become a scribe well instructed in the mysteries of sacred truth, fitted to declare the whole counsel of God, and competent to put to silence the foolishness of ignorant men. To an acquaintance with this ancient and sacred language, the Christian pastor is indeed imperatively urged, that he may understand for himself the ipsissima verba, in which the great truths of inspiration are conveyed, and that thus being fitted to perceive that minute and delicate signification of words, on which not unfrequently the spirit of appeals, precepts, promises, and prophecies depends, may at once impart richness and variety, to his stated ministrations, and be qualified, when circumstances require, to defend the great doctrines of religion from the slanders of illiterate and impious pretenders. Other branches of learning are unquestionably necessary to expand and invigorate his mind, and to fit him to secure, in this enlightened age, that respect which his office justly demands, but a knowledge of the original languages of the Scriptures, which are both the credentials of his ministry and the message he has to announce, must be deemed paramount. He may be distinguished by all that is elegant and profound in profane literature and science, he may have studied with enthusiasm the pages of Cicero and Demosthenes, and may have made himself inti

mately familiar with the discoveries which have been made, respecting the principles and laws of the material universe, but without a competent knowledge of the language and literature of the Hebrews, one of the most essential requisites-the very spirit of his acquirements as an interpreter of Scripture, is wanting. The canons of biblical criticism, on which the true illustration and most successful defence of sacred Scripture very frequently depend, are of necessity beyond his reach, nor can he understand their application to the science of interpretation, any more than one unacquainted with the axioms and postulates can rise to a perception of the splendid and far-reaching abstractions of pure mathematics. Whatever difficulties surround any text, or section of the sacred volume, must lie beyond his direct and immediate investigation, they cannot be solved by his own close and searching scrutiny, nor can he pronounce authoritatively respecting the justice and accuracy of the solutions which have emanated from the learned. In all the interesting, and oftentimes important questions, which arise out of idiomatic phrases, and peculiar combinations of words, he is forbidden to take part, and if, on any occasion, he is tempted to give an opinion, he is in extreme danger of darkening counsel by words without knowledge, and exposing himself to the charge of a presumptuous sciolist, or ignorant pretender. Hence a knowledge of the Hebrew language, which to the private Christian cannot fail to be beneficial, is to the public teacher of religion, of the highest importance-without it he is in a great measure disqualified for the duties of his office to him, there is a veil thrown over the face of Moses and the prophets-the range of his biblical researches must of necessity be limited, and consequently his interpretations of sacred writ must be devoid of that accuracy, richness, and depth, which otherwise might belong to them.

Butit may be maintained, that so much has been done by critics and commentators, of the highest learning and soundest creed, to elucidate and simplify the inspired volume, that the necessity of studying the original language is, in a great measure, if not altogether, superseded. It is true, indeed, that difficulties have been removed, and that much of what seemed unintelligible has been explained by the learning of the most distinguished scholars, and our opinions may derive confirmation from the interpretations which they have given; but no one, who occupies the solemn and responsible position of a sentinel on the walls of Zion, of an instructor of his fellow-men on the awfully momentous subjects of "righteousness, temperance, and judgment to come," should be contented to accept with servile implicitness, the critical digests and literary canons of others, whatever their antiquity, or the weight of their authority. If there is a possibility of reaching the fountain, the streams should not be deemed satisfactory-if the luminaries of heavenly wisdom may be looked upon without any obscuring cloud, or deceptive medium, dim, imperfect, and it may be, distorted reflections should

not be regarded as sufficient - if the scriptures cannot be read and examined in the original languages, human renderings and interpretations should not be implicitly followed by him, whose high and imperative duty it is, at once to feed the flock committed to his charge, and to defend the great doctrines of Christianity, from heretical perversions and infidel violence. Nor can the high-toned and conscientious mind, that is distinguished by a trembling anxiety to discern the right import of the sacred volume-that regards truth as a pearl of great price, fail to deem it alike unsatisfactory and unsafe, to be uniformly reduced to the necessity of adopting the views, sentiments, and literary decisions of others, without possessing the power to bring them to the touchstone of grammatical principles, and critical canons. As the great business of the Christian pastor's life is to interpret Scripture, to enforce its precepts, and to vindicate its doctrines; and as no translation of an author from one language into another, can be regarded as exhibiting throughout, the meaning of the original with force and faithfulness, a knowledge of the Hebrew must be deemed essential, in order to give confidence and calmness to his own mind, by removing doubts, deepen. ing convictions, and confirming opinions, and to qualify him for shielding those who wait on his ministrations from that vacillating fickleness and trembling insecurity, which are not unfrequently seen spreading with the universality of sympathy, among the flock of an ignorant preacher, Although for the discharge of his ministerial functions, and for leading his people to regard him with mingled confidence and affection as com petent to teach, it may not be expected, that the Christian pastor should be able to speak on every passage of sacred writ with the high tone of an oracle, or, with the infallibility of inspiration, it is nevertheless supposed that, on all such topics as are not acknowledged to be mysterious and beyond the reach of the human understanding, he should be qualified to state his opinion, supported, or substantiated by reasoning founded on a critical knowledge of Scripture. But in order to meet this expectation, and to be competent to propound opinions, and deliver instructions which the dexterity of any vulgar caviller may not perplex, or the ingenuity of any ordinary scholar may not overthrow, he must not rest satisfied wish a general acquaintance with the comments and criticisms of others--he must be qualified to sustain himself by an appeal to the original languages, which, in all questions vitally and essentially important, must be deemed the ultimate court of appeal. If, then, the interpreter of Scripture is unacquainted with the Hebrew language, which is essential to an exact and critical knowledge of the New Testament as well as the Old, he must frequently feel himself resisted, by insurmountable obstacles, if not confounded by unintelligible mysteries, and consequently will be in danger of betraying his ignorance and perplexity to the people over whom he presides, and may forfeit

their confidence, whilst he gives occasion to the progress of mistaken opinion and the growth of error.

But further, a knowledge of the Hebrew language is essential to fit the public teacher of Christianity to contend successfully with the varied forms of fanaticism, imposture, and infidelity, which spring up around, all professing to appeal to the Scriptures for their justification and defence. The impious cavils of sceptics, and the sacrilegious refinements of false teachers, are both numerous and imposing. There is no expression within the whole compass of the inspired volume, susceptible of perversion, or false rendering, that has not been eagerly appropriated by the projectors of fanciful and extravagant systems, or seized upon by the disciples of infidelity, and held up with an air of malignant triumph, as defeating the entire plan of evangelical doctrine, or overthrowing the whole scheme of the Christian faith. And, as this oft-repeated and insidious mode of assailing the truth has its origin and stronghold very generally in a specious criticism, or a pretended knowledge of the original languages, the only efficient arguments to be employed in exposing its fallacy and overthrowing its weakness must be derived from an appeal to the canons of translation and the principles of grammar. There is no possibility of meeting and successfully resisting those enemies of Christianity, who profess to take their stand on literary grounds, save by turning against them the very weapons which they profess to employ. None, therefore, but such as possess a competent knowledge of the original languages can be of any service in protecting the temple of truth from the polluted touch of learned enthusiasts, or the incendiary madness of accomplished infidels. If with something like an array of learning, impious men will frequently attempt to transmute the language of Scripture into such constructions as seem to support their sceptical or extravagant opinions, the only legitimate and conclusive mode of defeating the malignant effects of such attempts, is to meet them by an appeal to the original languages. It cannot be efficiently done by turning to the sacred oracles, as presented to us in the translation used and sanctioned by the churches in this country. For, whilst that translation is distinguished by numerous excellences of the highest order, rendering the original generally with a faithfulness and a beauty that cannot be surpassed; clothing the sentiments and thoughts of patriarchs and prophets in pure and expressive Saxon, which, perhaps, of all known languages, is the fittest substitute for Hebrew; and giving all their native prominence and majestic simplicity to the great doctrines of Divine grace and compassion; yet it is often lamentably deficient in clearness, connectedness, and harmony. It often involves the original in such hopeless mystery, that to untye the gordian knot would be a simpler task, than to extract a meaning from the strange combination of words put forth as a translation. It has often left the sense so vaguely, or indefinitely expressed, as to give birth to endless disputes, and to lead

the weak-minded and the fanciful to build up opinions and theories which, when brought to the test of the Hebrew or Greek, have been found "baseless as the fabric of a vision." And occasionally it has rendered passages in such a way as to present a vulnerable point to the shafts of infidelity, and to furnish a strong hold for the abettors of error. In order, therefore, to remedy these defects; to counteract the pernicious consequences which result from them; and to meet the disciples of infidelity and false opinion on the high literary ground, which they often profess to assume, it is indispensably necessary that the interpreter of Scripture should be conversant with the original languages. If, indeed, the crude and monstrous notions of impostors and false teachers had been uniformly summoned by the public advocates of Christianity, to the bar of sound Biblical interpretation, or, in other words, if every Christian pastor had been conversant with the original languages, it is more than probable that such notions, which now throng around us, cloud-like and numerous as the locusts of Egypt, would either never have existed, or would have been strangled in their birth. Did a knowledge of the Hebrew language, then, serve no other purpose, than to become an auxiliary in cleansing the temple of Christianity from the foul and pestilent things which have sprung up within its hallowed enclosure, it must be regarded by every friend of truth as stamped with the seal of importance, and as imperatively claiming the attention of every pastor, who would be a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the words of inspiration, at once for the edification of the believing, and for the conviction and conversion of them that oppose themselves.

In conclusion, a knowledge of the Hebrew language appears to be of the utmost importance to the interpreter of Scripture, as it tends to enlighten and establish his own mind; to lead to the confirmation of those who wait on his ministrations; and to furnish him with an instrumentality for repelling the slanderous misrepresentations, and unfounded assumptions of mystic extravagance, spurious evangelical notions, and literate infidelity. Newcastle-on-Tyne.

C.

THE HOLY INQUISITION JUSTIFIED FROM SCRIPTURE! BY THE LATE MR. T. WEMYSS, AUTHOR OF BIBLICAL GLEANINGS, &c. MOST singular it is to observe the reasonings which men have made use of in former ages, and would use still if permitted, to justify their atrocious persecution of those who differ from them in religious matters. One of the punishments of the Inquisition, miscalled holy, was the confiscation of goods; and this they derived from the example of God himself, as they pretended, who, not contented with the sentence of death pronounced against our first parents, drove them out of Paradise, and stripped them of all their goods and chattels, condemning them to