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15551

PREFACE TO THE ENGLISH VERSION

OF THE

POLYGLOTT BIBLE.

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thought necessary to repeat those references in the subsequent verses, except where something material is to be noticed. Thus also in the prophecy of Obadiah, which relates chiefly to the destruction of the Edomites, the prophecies of Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and Amos, on the same subject, having been once pointed out at the commencement, are not again referred to. And so in the history of our Lord's temptation, given in the fourth chapter of the Gospel by St. Matthew, reference being made from the first verse to the fourth chapter of that by St. Luke, where the same history is recorded, no further reference is made to that chapter in the subsequent verses; the connexion of the whole being obvious, and the comparison easy. More space has been thus retained for the illustration or confirmation of the subjects or sentences individually, which are comprised in the particular parts of the history or discourse.

The Marginal Readings contained in the folio and quarto Bibles are all introduced; the idioms of the original languages which are preserved in many of them, and also the various senses of particular words For a similar reason, where the same identical or phrases, being in most instances instructive, and words, or nearly so, might be found in a great numin all worthy to be known. But it has not been ber of texts, a few of these only have been selected; thought necessary, in giving these readings, to insert-illustration, not repetition, having been the object such words as are repeated in the text, and which in view. would therefore have fruitlessly occupied a portion of the space allotted to references.

The References, therefore, which fill the middle column, have all been diligently considered and apThe Various Readings are referred to by small plied with a particular attention to this specific end, figures placed immediately before the words for that none which were superfluous might be introwhich they are to be substituted; and the Refer-duced, while the most material purposes to be anences by Italic letters, which are generally placed swered by References might nevertheless be effectafter the first or second word of a verse, or clause of ually secured. a verse, when they are intended to illustrate the whole of that verse or clause: but when the principal force of the illustration rests on a single word, the letter reference is placed immediately after that word. This has been the general rule; and the exceptions have either been unavoidable, or are quite immaterial.

WHETHER the latitude or the limits of such an undertaking be considered, it is proper that the principles on which it has been conducted should be so far explained, as that the Reader may be apprised of what he is to expect from it, and in what branches of religious inquiry it may most materially assist him.

In referring to several relations of the same facts, by different Writers in the Sacred Volume, (as in In that grand enunciation of the dignity and dethe histories recorded by the Four Evangelists, and sign of the Sacred Volume, which is given by the in those contained in the Books of Kings and Chron- Apostle Paul, (2 Tim. iii. 16, 17,) we are told, that icles,) the corresponding chapters, or parts of chap-"ALL SCRIPTURE IS GIVEN BY INSPIRATION OF GOD, ters in each, having been once noted at the begin- AND IS PROFITABLE FOR DOCTRINE, FOR REPROof, ning of the history or subject, it has not been FOR CORRECTION, FOR INSTRUCTION IN RIGHTEOUS

PREFACE TO THE ENGLISH VERSION

NESS; THAT THE MAN OF GOD MAY BE PERFECT

THOROUGHLY FURNISHED UNTO ALL GOOD WORKS.'

But it must be evident, that the Scripture could not be effectually profitable for these great ends, nor make the man of God PERFECT,* if it were not perfect itself; if its different parts were at variance with each other: if, notwithstanding all the variety of matter, and multiplicity of detail, which such a book required, the doctrines revealed, and the moral duties enjoined, were not substantially and essentially the same throughout; and if all the parts did not concur in the plan of the whole. To exhibit, then, the harmony of the Sacred Writers, on the subjects of which they treat, has been the primary design of this selection. And as there are some subjects of leading importance, in which all the rest are included, and by means of which the harmony and perfection of the Inspired Pages are written, as with the beams of the sun; to these, especial care and attention have been devoted.

I. It has appeared an object of the first magnitude, that the reader of the Holy Scriptures should be assisted by references from text to text, to have constantly in view the connexion of all the divine attributes, and the holy uniformity of God in his government, both of his Church, and of the world. A display of the true character and perfections of God is, without dispute, one chief design of the Inspired Volume. Here, as in Isaiah's miraculous vision, may Jehovah be seen, sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up; his train fills the temple, and the Sacred Writers, like the Seraphim, cover themselves, and cry one to another, and say, HOLY, HOLY, HOLY IS THE LORD OF HOSTS, THE WHOLE EARTH IS FULL OF HIS GLORY. It is this which gives to the Scripture its superlative grandeur. By it, God is known; his will is promulgated; his purposes are revealed; his mercy is announced; and he is every where exhibited as worthy of the supreme adoration, love, service, and praise, of all his intelligent creatures. Little do those who neglect their Bibles think what refined delight they lose, by thus turning away their eyes from the most sublime, the most glorious, and the most beatifying object of contemplation, that the whole universe affords.

II. But this manifestation of the Divine character and government is not presented to us as a matter of mere speculation, in which we have no immediate and personal interest. The Holy Scriptures are designed to promote the Glory of God BY THE SALVATION OF MAN. The peculiar purpose of the whole is, to turn men from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God; to raise them from the ruins of the Fall, and to put them in possession of the blessings of Redemption; to lead them from sin to holiness; to conduct them through a state of conflict and trial on earth, to a state of rest and felicity in heaven; and so to assist and direct them in all possible conditions in life, that they may not fail of these great ends, except by their own wilful rejection of the counsel of God against themselves. The salvation of his own soul should therefore be the grand concern of every reader of the Scripture. Here the immortality of the soul is brought to light, and placed in unquestionable evidence. Here, its defection from original purity is clearly demonstrated; the means of its restoration are set forth; and its future destiny is declared. It is an awful re

*'APTION, perfectus, integer, sanus, incolumis, consentaneus,

consummatus.-Hedcricus.

iv

sponsibility which they incur who wilfully neglect this holy book, and devote all their time, and the powers of their minds, to terrestrial, and subordinate objects. They slight the pearl of greatest price, which is no where else to be found; and seem as if they were determined to frustrate, as far as respects themselves, all that Divine wisdom and goodness have done to rescue the immortal mind of man from spiritual ignorance, error, vanity, vice, and ruin. Those, however, who are seeking to enjoy the blessings which the Gospel reveals, will, as they are able, search the Scriptures; and such persons will receive great help from having references at hand to assist their inquiries. "It were to be wished," says Bishop Horsley, "that no Bibles were printed without References. Particular diligence should be used in comparing the parallel texts of the Old and New Testaments. . . . It is incredible,” he adds, "to any one who has not made the experiment, what a proficiency may be made in that knowledge which maketh wise unto salvation, by studying the Scriptures in this manner, WITHOUT ANY OTHER COMMENTARY, OR EXPOSITION, THAN WHAT THE DIFFERENT PARTS OF THE SACRED VOLUME MUTUALLY FURNISH FOR EACH OTHER. Let the most illiterate Christian study them in this manner, and let him never cease to pray for the illumination of that spirit by which these books were dictated: and the whole compass of abstruse philosophy, and recondite history, shall furnish no argument with which the perverse will of man shall be able to shake this learned Christian's faith." So great and perfect is the coincidence of every part of the Word of God in the grand and merciful design of the whole!

III. This is more apparent, and the harmony and perfection of the Holy Scriptures are rendered more peculiarly evident and distinct, by the constant reference of all its writers to our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. TO HIM GIVE ALL THE PROPHETS WITNESS. Acts x. 43. The things which were written in the law of Moses, and in all the Prophets, and in the Psalms, concern HIM; (Luke xxiv. 27, 44;) and would come to nothing if he were separated from them. He is the bright and morning star; the true light that must lighten every man who comes to see the glory of Divine Revelation. Rev. xxii. 16. John i. 9. It has therefore been a chief design of this Work to connect and to exhibit the testimony which all the Sacred Penmen bear to the adorable Immanuel; to the proper and unequivocal Divinity of his nature, the necessity of his mediation, the reality and design of his incarnation, his spotless and exemplary life, his unparalleled sufferings, his vicarious death, the verity of his resurrection and ascension into heaven, the sufficiency of his rightcousness, the prevalence of his intercession, the spirituality of his kingdom, his sovereignty in the Church, his constant care and love of his people, and the certainty of his second coming to raise the dead and judge the world in righteousness;-grand and sublime truths, in which every individual of the human race is deeply and eternally interested.

IV. The chief purpose of Christ's mission being that such as believe on him might be saved from sin, which is the transgression of the Divine law, and from the punishment due to it; it has been thought important frequently to connect those texts which speak of transgressions, with those in which the

Horsley's Nine Sermons, p. 224-238.

OF THE POLYGLOTT BIBLE.

law concerning them is to be found, and in which punishment is threatened; and sometimes with those in which the atonement is set forth, and pardon is proclaimed; or in which sanctification is promised, or enforced; and these again with such as relate to the future happiness and glory which is promised to the faithful, or punishment and misery denounced against the impenitent. A small body of divinity is sometimes comprised in a few texts connected together in this way. Thus, from those words in Eze. xxiii. 49. Ye shall bear the sins of your idols, the Reader is referred first to Numb. xiv. 34, as a parallel passage, shewing God visiting sin upon the transgressors themselves; then to Numb. xviii. 23. to shew the typical visitation of it upon the Levitical priesthood; then to Isajah liii. 11. to shew the prophetic declaration of its being laid on Christ; and, lastly, to 1 Pet. ii. 24. to shew the actual fulfilment of that prophecy, and the end to be answered by it: for there we are told, that He that judgeth righteously, "his own self, bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sin, should live to righteousness."

world at large, are consistent with those pronounced by other Prophets. The accounts of the Jewish polity under its various vicissitudes, are confirmed by the writings of the Prophets who lived during or after those vicissitudes; while the former tend reciprocally to establish the authenticity of the latter. The histories of the Four Evangelists have a regular connexion and parallelism, especially those of Matthew, Mark, and Luke. The recital of the transactions of the Apostles, after the ascension of our Lord, strongly authenticates the Apostolic Epistles : and Archdeacon Paley has well shewn the confirmation which the Epistles of St. Paul derive from the circumstances recorded by St. Luke, in his book of the Acts. Prophecies are connected with their accomplishments, as far as those accomplishments are included in the Scripture History. Promises and threatenings are connected with their respective fulfilments; precept with example, and with supplication; and the prayers of believers with the answers they have received. All these relations have been carefully regarded in this compilation.

V. The concurrence of the Old and New Testa- VIII. Further, the Scriptures are not merely inment with each other, and the relation of the types tended to lead men to godliness: they are intendbefore and under the Mosaic law, to their comple-ed also to exemplify it. Repentance, Faith, Hope, tion under the Gospel, have been studiously regard- Charity, and Devotion, are here exhibited in the ed, so as to render it evident, that whatever varia- most perfect models; and it has therefore entered tions may have been made in the form and adminis- into the design of this Work to shew the correspondtration of external worship, true religion, under the ing emotions and conduct of the Saints, both of the former dispensations, was always essentially the Old Testament and the New, when under the influsame as true religion under the present; that "he is ence of those dispositions, contemplations, and emonot a Jew which is one outwardly; neither is that tions, which are most peculiarly characteristic of circumcision which is outward in the flesh: but he true piety; and also to connect the devotional parts is a Jew which is one inwardly; and circumcision of Scripture with the occurrences which gave rise is that of the heart, in the spirit, and not in the let-to them, as far as they can be ascertained. Thus is ter; whose praise is not of men, but of God. For Religion known by its fruits: not as a thing merely in every nation, he that feareth God, and worketh of times and circumstances: but a living principle righteousness, is accepted of him." Rom. ii. 28, 29. in the mind, which times and circumstances call Acts x. 35. In this, the revelation made before the into action, and contribute to display. institution of the Levitical priesthood, that made during its continuance, and that which has been made since its termination, all agree. The Mosaic ritual was the shadow of good things to come; so were the priesthood and kingdom of Melchisedec: and the body is Christ, who is essentially the same, both in his person and in his government, yesterday, to-day, and for ever. Heb. xiii. 8.

VI. But the instruction diffused through the Scriptures, respecting the gracious and indispensable operations of the Holy Ghost the Sanctifier, has not been forgotten and the references on this article will shew, that, as to his sacred influence on the minds of the Inspired Penmen, we are indebted for all the truths they have taught us; so to his influence on the minds of those who receive and regard them, must such persons be indebted for all they have learned, or can learn, of them. His work completes the great design of the whole; and his assistance and blessing are distinctly promised to all who sincerely ask them.

VII. As the Scriptures harmonize in their primary and general objects, so do they with regard to the particular subjects comprehended in their plan. Historical accounts are verified by other coincident ones, or by accounts of the persons or places to which they refer. The prophecies of one Prophet, concerning events which were to take place, relating either to kingdoms, families, individuals, or the

IX. The aphoristic and poetical parts of the Sacred Writings are also connected, so as to illustrate and enforce each other; that the Reader may be constantly impressed with those momentous truths, and that sublime language with which they abound, and which afford perpetual food for the best exercises of the understanding, and the finest emotions of the heart; at once furnishing materials for the most rational entertainment, and the most solid instruction. In this respect, the Scriptures will be found to resemble the garden of Eden, in which the Lord God has made to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for spiritual food. But no Cherubim or flaming sword are here to prohibit access to the Tree of Life. The children of the second Adam may freely, and without fear or interruption, now put forth their hands to its soul-reviving fruit, and take, and eat, and live for ever.

X. The agreement of the Sacred Writers with each other will be found not only to exist in the subjects on which they treat, but to extend to their own individual characters. It will appear that they were all animated by the same Spirit; that they were all holy men, speaking as they were moved by the Holy Ghost, calling men to holiness, as the indispensable requisite to the enjoyment of everlasting happiness ;--men, nevertheless, of like passions with ourselves, conscious of their own natural infirmity

V

PREFACE TO THE ENGLISH VERSION, &c.

and sinfulness, and of the mercy of God through Christ Jesus, as their only refuge from his just displeasure. In short, they were men fearing God; loving God; loving his character, his laws, his will; admiring his great and wonderful purposes, and voluntarily, deliberately, and determinedly devoting themselves to his service, whatever it might cost them, and to whatever it might expose them. On all these accounts, they are held forth as examples, whose faith, patience, and practice, Christians are to follow. 1 Cor. xi. 1. Heb. xiii. 7. Ja. v. 10.

It is thus that the Scriptures are PROFITABLE to all the purposes for which they are destined, and are calculated to make the man of God PERFECT, and thoroughly furnished unto all good works. To the Inspired Pages at large may be applied the remarks of the excellent Bishop Horne (on the Psalms.) "Indited under the influence of Him, to whom all hearts are known, and all events foreknown, they suit mankind in all situations, grateful as the manna which descended from above, and conformed itself to every palate. The fairest produc

VI

tions of human wit, after a few perusals, like gathered flowers, wither in our hands, and lose their fragrancy; but these unfading plants of Paradise become, as we are accustomed to them, still more and more beautiful; their bloom appears to be daily heightened, fresh odours are emitted, and new sweets extracted from them. He who hath once tasted their excellences, will desire to taste them yet again; and he who tastes them oftenest will relish them best."

Happy in having labored to facilitate the acquaintance of the Christian with this invaluable treasure, the Editor has now only to implore the blessing of Him by whom its exhaustless stores have been bestowed on sinful man; and to hope that his feeble endeavours may be instrumental in advancing the Reader's edification, and, in their humble measure, tend to promote that happy state of things, so long foretold, and so ardently to be desired, in which THE

EARTH SHALL BE FILLED WITH THE KNOWLEDGE OF

THE GLORY OF JEHOVAH AS THE WATERS COVER
THE SEA. Heb. ii. 14. Is. xi. 9.
T. C.

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