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Tous las autres axemplaires originaux sont filmte 9n commandant par la premiere page qui comporte une amprainte d'impreaaion ou d'iliuatration at en terminant par la darniire page qui comports une telle empreinta. Un dee symboJaa suivants appsraitra sur la demiire image de cheque microfiche, selon le caa: le symbols -^signifie "A SUIVFiE", le symbols V signifie "FIN". Lee cartes, pianchee. tableaux, etc., pauvent dtra fiim^a i dee taux de rMuction diffirents. Lorsque le document est trop grand pour §tre reproduit en un seul cliche, ii eat film* i partir de Tangle sup4)rieur gauche, de gauche i droite. et de naut en baa, en pranant la nombra d'images ntesssaire. Las diagrammes suivants illuatrant la m^thode. 1 2 3 1 2 3 4 5 6 ■^ THE ^j^i^^ FIDELITY OF THE BIBLE! Being a Eeview of Colenso^s Writings against tl.»3 Pentateuch and Book of Joshua. By THB REV. JOHN STRAITP MlXrSTBR OF THE GOSPEL. '%\i Scrijturts tannot be Ijrohn;* •^'^ > INGERSOLL : PRINTED AT TUK ''INQHRBB" OFFTCE, KIVG STREI:T. 1864'. PREFACE. The most of this little pamphlet was prepared long ago, but on account of numerous duties which required all the time of the i-- author, it remained unfinished till he became doubtful of the pro- priety of publishing it at all. There are some who think that such works only serve to propagate more extensively, the moral poison which it is intended to destroy, as they bring the .eviewed ))ook anf^w into notice. The author of those lines does not think that the friends of truth shonld be afraid to face the foe, nor is ignorance of the manner jind matter of an enemy's assault the best security or defence- 'J'hu' Bible has nothing to fear from the most intense examination of all that its adversaries ever try to bring against it. On the c.utrary, I am convinced that the Berean course is right, and that we should "search the Scriptures daily whither these things are so." Nay, more— I am confident that a careful investigation of these so called difficulties will confirm every student that the Scripaires are the word of God, and infallibly true. Not only do the objections disappear ; new evidences make their appearance which the reader never before thought of. In fact, they multiply till they become overwhelming, and the faith of the reader becomes steeled a'ainst any and every infidel attack. At least, such is my *ixperi- \ eiice. I have often been pained to hear intelligent christians L-xpress themselves as if they were doubtful that no common rea<^er could venture to read such a book as that of Colenso's, because no ordinary man could touch his arguments. This seemed to me like a hoartles surrender to the enemy without a single stroke in the battle-field. Moreover, it implied that one must be a great scholar, and have a giant mind, before he cou'd know his Bible, iviid hold his ground against infidelity. I should say that the man who knows his Bible well, if he never saw another book, may bid defiance to all the crafty assaults of all the scholarly infidels in the world. It is in the hope of demonstrating this proposition that the toUowing treatise is offered to the public :--It is not pretended that the material is all original. Having read first Colenso's book, and tiled.such answers as occurred to my miud, I then read several JV. otUer.-! to sec how our views might compare ; 1 found a remarkable UTrecinent in many caaoti,. •■ The various jiiiblications which havu totue under mj notice are very good : hut I felt that there might bo ' improvements on every one of tkem. Most of them, I think, misi what r believe to be the very essence of Colenso's chief errur. I thought that a mind inferior to any of thes? al)le authors, with the assistance of th«nr productions, might provide a more brief, more dear, and yet more satisfactory reply to Bishop Colenso. I wish it therefore, to be understood, that for much of whiit is contained iu these pages 1 have l)een indebted to Dr. A. McCaul, of London, Prof. Green, of Princeton, and several others : while I have ventured to advance some things of importance not to be found iu any book I have seen . I hope the perusal of this littli.' book inay be a pleasure to the reader, and that the effect upon his mind may l)e such as was made upon mine by the study of the subject, viz. :— a most firm convic- tion that '"The Scripture cannot be l)roken :" '• that sooner will heaven and earth pass away, than one jot or one tittlo of the law fail."' 1 shall have failed in my object if the reader do not rise from the perusal of these pages, with a higher reverence for the tvord of God, and a l)etter appreciation of its infallible character, and eternally and infinitely im]>')rtant contents. October 16th. 18G1. THE AUTHOl 1 THE nDELTTY OF THE BIBLE. \ CHAPTER I. COl.BNBO'8 PRBFACI. la his preface Colenso insinuates many and grievous charges l..ain3t the morality and scientific accuracy of the Pentateuch, together with oth.r faths which he thinks proper to f ^ck only wit. a r..e^r^- .3 " tl.at .lone would make us ashamed o them and disown th .. f.r .vo.. Hr, s-.ys that a native of Nata , when helpi. g uim tc. tmnslat^ the story o? ihe deluge ^ked ' Is all that i^^ ' Do you .eaUy believe that all this happened thus - tlxat ail the be..ts and '.irds, aac er...ping things upon ihe earth -xr^2 ^.ad sma'ii a-o.u act c.mitnes and cold, came thus ^y ;:t' ;:d entered the ark .ith Noah.' And did Noah provide food for them all-for the beast., of p.ey as well ^s the rest? My heart answered in the words of the prophet: "Shall a man .peak lies in the name of the Lord ? I dared not do so. ' It would be wasting time to answer such an insinuation as this. SurMv. any one who belie-es in God at all, will not doubt that He who . -do, can easily collect his^ creatures by pairs, or any other way at will. Nor need the Bishop have any fears about the capacity of the Ark, which, according to the best computation could contain a pair of every genera of living creatures, with food for them, and twenty thousand men besides. The Bishop thinks the account of the miracle, (Joshua, x. 13)— ofthe sun standing still, and the moon staying-hard to under- stoud, and harder to believe. He observes, that if it were accom- plished by the stopping of the earth's diurnal motion, then '< A man's feet would be arrested while his body would be moving at the rat^ (on the equator), of one thousand miles an hour; so that everv human being and animal would be dashed to pieces m a moment,'" &c. How ridiculous and childish this reasoning: Whether is it easier to say to the whole mass of the earth, stop,, or to say the same word to the individuals, and little particles on its surface? Surely, if we admit that God's power can stop the whole .V •„ ;x *:«« K..« «aBv U wnnld be to keen the little thing* upoa it, in prop^ order I think wo had better leate the Almi.^hty to work hia own miraclci, without setting bound, to hi3 power, or wondering how they could b. done. The m.xst remarkable logic u the following: — t , a . «'The Bibie aomthe aun stood still, and the mojnstaf^iu, (p. J.) and the aZC of the earth's motion, while it in>ght caase th. appearance of ^fhe sua standing still, would not account for the ""TvenTurrt little school boy m>nld be disposed to laugh at that statement. It shows how men, of famous mathematical conceit. do sometimes make incredible blunders. A beginner m his lessons in Geography, could tell you that the ceasing of the dmrual ruotiou of the earth, would make the sun and moon appear to .Und still, while tl»e latter, in twelve hours, would seem to recede about sue aixd a half degree., which could scarcely be noticed by au ordinary observer. Such are some of the evidences upon which Coleuso would have us l^lievc that the Pentateuch is not histori There is'one paragraph in his preface which this Bishop would Uave done well to study. It is itself a most powerful argument against his whole book. 1 shall transcribe it. Here it is: (Page lb). "«' Besides which, it should be remembered always (as a friend very jostlr observed), that, in forming an estimate ot ancie docun cuts; of the early Scriptures, especially we are Jonig that thich IS like examinUrg judicially, the case ot one >vho is ahsea. and unable to give his own accomit of the matter VVe should e v^T scrupulmu about assmning, tl^t it is impossible o exp am satisfactorily, this or that, apparent inconsistency, con radiction, Tothe anL^^ and charging him with dishonestyot purpose ooSring that ours is an ex-parte statement, and incapable ot being submitted to the party against whom it is maae. Thia is a most reasonable rule. Colenso admits it, and yet, m the t^eth of it, he always insists upon the letter of the Scriptures, ana iiot only so, but fills up the history with suppositions of his own vrholly at vai-iance with what is writ«;en. In many cases, also, he refuses to take into account that there mav have been many things which the inspired historian did not record If all the events comiected with what is recorded, had h,ea written, what a bulky Bible we should have had ! The able Profeasor Greea has this pertinent remark on this subject :— u No statement is ever made, and no uarrative ever related, w-ith out leaving much to be supplied mentally by the hearer or reader. TerXinl can be converted into an absui^ity, . if no allowance* rl 2 J: £„^. nfl,;n ort mi.htsu.rgesttheide^of aship, such as Colenso would scout it S ^.' a pui assumption unwarranted by ^»y^^"g ^«\'f f^""' ^v the statement under examination."-(Col. 1 . _U4) • - and oa.y showin- how men will do violence to the plain reading of i m oXr to evade a difficultv.--(P. U.) ''The story savs notlun,' about this vessel, &c." '"This story involves so many impossilua- tiosannsirditles that I do not hJitate to declare this staten:eul utterly incredible, and impossible."— (P. HI.) Such is a sample of the arguments which the Bishop of ^ Mai brings against the Bible. He insists that the English Ch,ir.h should break down her bulwarks, and make room for such mhi.-ls as himself within her pale. He imagines he is de.-^tined to 1 e a .rreat reformer in that Church. We have often said that a traitor, ill tlie camp, is more to be dreaded than an enemy in the field. The English Church has need of reform ; hut heaven save all Churche! from such reformers as Colenso. But hear him. He savs— (P. 30.) " I trust that we shall not rest until the systo n ot ou'r Church be reformed, and her boundaries enlarged to make her what a National Church should be. Should the reception of this book, bv the more thoughtful portion of the communitv, ind.cite that such a reform is possible and probable, it will be but a que^- lionof time. &c." So it seems there is to be a grand re:orm wrought in the churches— and what is that reform ? The removal of the very foundation of all evangelical churches— the Bible ; or what is the same thing, or worse, it is to be regarded as increilible —preposterous in its matter. When a man breaks loose trorihis Bible, thore is no limit to his fren"? and conceit. In keeping with these remarks is another statement of this dignitary, (S. 172) which reads thus :—" But how thankful we must be', that we are no longer obliged to believe, as a matter of . fact, of vital consequence to our eternal hope, the story relat )d in Num. xxxi.^' A writer well remarks in irony, " The ^rol•ld will breathe freely, now that Colenso has arisen." It wouli no doubt be 'a matter of thankfulness to many whose conscien ;e is ill at ease, if they could prove the Bible~a fable. '^'L.it us break their bands assunder, and cast their cords from us." Alas fo- the man who calls it a relief to be delivei-ed from his faith in the Bible, or anv part of it. We would say to such : " Glory not, and lie not against the truth. This wisdom desceadeth not &om above, but is earthly, sensual deviliih.''— (Jus. ui., U * i^-) -■^■k. In his introdactorj reraarlcB Colcneo lay* down his wisdom thus ■. "The Pentateuch, as a whole, cannot possibly have b*?en wiitiei hf Moses, or by any one acquainted, personally, with the facta ^hichit professes to describe; und, furthei, that the (so called) Mosaic narrative, by whomsoever written, and though impartinsr lu uri, as I fully believe it docs, revelations of the I>ivine Will anJ ciiaructer, cannot be regarded aaAi»<'^ca//y •' If the master (of a Hebrew servant), have giv«n hiiu a wi:i% and ahe have liorn him sons or dauj^htora. tkc wj/i; and her chil- dren shall be her matters, and he shall ^'<» out tree by hitiwelf." (Kx. XXI : 1). The wife and chiUiren, in ;.uch a ease, being placed under the protection of a vieh words as these ; — " If a man smite his servant or his maid, with a rod, and he die under his liand, he shall be surely punished; notwithstaudinx'. it he c 'iLtiiiue a day or two. li' shall not be punished, /»r he u his vu)neyr—(Ex. xxi.: 20 i I'J.) Colenso then proceeds to mfti,'nify aiul endorse the " revulsion of feoliuT with, which he says, an iutelli^'t-nt chriitiau imti.t- hoard these words : '"His whole soul revolted a^'ainst the notion that the Gieat and Blessed God, the Merciful F-^her of ul, mai?khid would speak of a servant or maid " as mcr -mouty." and allow u horriljle crime to go unpunished, &e. It i- paii:ful to see the irreverent and sneerini; mani'er in vhicli this liishop tami>ers with ihe word of viod, while a.- is eviilentlv ignorant of its meaning. One would think that the very form of expression in this pa ;age would have led any reader to ubservf that the meaning could not be absolutely according to the letter. Silver and gold were " currAjnt money with the merchants." Xo rational reinler will say that the slaves could be money, in tiu- literalsen.se; they would surely Ixe clum»y cash. We are, there- fore, compelled to seek out the meauiug of the exp'-ession — ••Ht; is his monev." It must be discovered by a ratioiml examination of Hebrew Scripture, and we need not search long to tind it out. The texts, at whose equity and morality Colenso cavals so muf"!i. are foimd in Ex. xxi., u porti«m '-f Scripture whieh iinmedian-iy follows the decalogue. In order to judge of any tf \t, it i.- a w»,'ll known priucii)le that we must take account of its conneetioiis. or. what is usually CflliHl, the context. Lat us see these versL's that are ao summarilv condemned: Verse 1 — t: '-Xow these arc the judgments wliii-h thou shalt set before them. If thou buy p. Hebre\v servant, six vears he shall serve, a.id in the s.-ventb hi- shall go out, by himself: if he were married, then bis wifi- shall gu out WMth him. " If his master Imve given him a wife, and she hav(^ born him sons or daughters, the witV- and her children shall be Itec rtMWters, and he shall ^'o out by liiniself.'" This is the first passage, and here follows the second: v. 1j<— 21 : <' And if men strive together, and one smite another with a stoni-, or with his fist, and he die not, but keep his b-ed : if he rise again, mia walk abroad upon his staff, then shall he that smote hm.. be quit ; only, be shall pav for the loss of his time, and shall causL- him to be th^^rou'rhlv healed. And if a man smite hid servant or 10 Lis maid, with ft rod, nnd he die uador his hand, he shall surelv be punished ; notwithstanding, if he continue a dav or two he IhaH cot he punished, for he is his mo .7." ' ' ^^^^^ Let it be observed, in the fi,-st place, that in no ease did a man become bound in servitude by the act of another-save in the lollowing cases, or similar onesi : _ l3t. A tliief might be sold into a state of servitude, as a fine imposed for his crime ,• just as now, he would be sent to peniten- tiary. See Ex. xxii : 3. 2nd. An insolvent debtor, (it would seem), bv law. became the servant of his creditor. 2 Kings, iv : 1. r>rd. A father wight sell his children ; jusi as at present, ho mav bind them as apprentices, or otherwise in their nonage. Exodus XXI.: T. The only other way in which a n.an could become bound, as a servant, was the most common and opdinarv wav, viz.- A ma-; inight sell himself. Lev. xxv : .39 & 4T. Jt was made a capital crime for any one to sell another to the ^ation.s around them. ''He that stealeth a man, and selleth him. or 1. he be found in his hand, he shall surely be put to death." Ex. xx-i : 10. Again : if any master was cruel to a servant, and he escaped from him, every one to whom he might come was bound to shelter him, and not give him up. Deut. xxiii: 15 & 16. One law regulated servitude among the Hebrews, viz: That none couM be bound for a terra of more than seven yedrs, and even then, he must receive wages in some sort. Deut. xv : 11 & 15 When any one required to hire, it was presum]itivo evidence, that he was poor, and usually required liis wages in adi-anr*^. Hence the n:itural and obvious meaning of the j.hrase : '' Uuvaservunt " The amount being already paid for the service, the' sorvaul so t' ngaged was the ^' money " of the mr,ste:-not that he wa.^ a chattel or piece of property ; but his service was, which could not Ik' separated from his person, until it was iulfilled. The patriarcli ov head of a family held .ery much the oflice of a magistrate or .iudg.>^ and levied judgment ou the guiltv. His power, however wxs du:y guarded and limited : but in the case of the servant whoso wages weie already paid, it would be regarded as presumptive evidence that he did not intend undue severity, because it would be contrary to his own interests, <^ He is his money./' The children of the servant, so bouirht. were Tf^mrA.>A no po.{ of the house-hold to which he belonged, and the master Mas bound to provide for, and iuitruci them accordingly. These wore r. usually attached tg the master as a father, and were, consequently more reliable and trustworthy than those who were bought (f hired.) Henco Solomon mentions it among the advantages whic ho enjoyed : " I had servants born in my houte,]' (Ecc. n : 7) hence, also, ** Abrahsm armed three hnndred and eighteen of h'. trained servants, born in his house," to recover Lot fror. captivity.— (Gen. xiv : 14. He could trust to these as sons t fif/ht. There was ihis distinction between a servant " born in tho house," and one ''bought with money." The latter was free in the seventh year (unless he voluntarily bound himself again, Ex. XXI : 5). The former was free only when he came of ago; but all were under religious instruction, and example, Genesis XVII : 12 & 13. Indeed those that were "born in the house," in the absence of more direct children, were heirs of tho master" « property. Gen. xv: 3. Had Colenso considered these things, he would not have been hor- Titled at the idea of a female servant being obliged to remain with her master till she had fulfilled her time. I wonder if he himself would consider it a just law if he hired a maid, for seven years, paid her wages in advance, and then some other servant would come and marry, and take her away, defrauding him of her service, without re fnding what he had paid for her. Nor need the husband be separated from his wife ; for the master -vas obliged to keep both. If required. It should be noticed, that, when a man did smite his neighbor, and hurt him, he must pay for the lo9t of his time, and cause him to be thoroughly healed, that is, pay expenses. But, in the case of a servant, he had no right to pay for the loss of his time. He had paid for that already, when he bought him. " He is his money," seeing it was vested in him for hi8°service, and the fact, that he had paid for his service, made it his interest not to disable him. No brutal murder nor horrible crime could be committed with impunity. The law for such was universal, and took no account of any relations— master or servant. He that amiteth a man. so that he die, shall surely be put to death." " Thou shalt give life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot, burning forburnmg, wound for wound, stripe for stripe." A careful examination of the system of Hebrew servitude, (or slavery, falsely so called), will, we think, convince any one that it was a just and equitable plan, securing the interests of all parties, .« ^.f iUa nresent aee. Had Colenso and most unlike thu sIm vxj considered well the texts he has condemned, he would have noted the excellence and equity of the law, especially, conaiderwg the 1- a2«! in which it was given, and the people among 'fchom it y?M to be enforced. There was, by Divine direction, no slavery in Ibkv^I cii'ter ihe modern style •, but there were prevalent many customs which were tolerated for the time. " The times of this ignoranoe Gttd winked at, but now commaudcth all men, everywhere, ta refKiut." ni w ai 8< ii t CHAPTER II. THE F AM I OP JUDAH* "he first arijjvimont, in due form, brought by Colenso again::! tho authority of the Pentateuch is in substance the following: In Gen. XLvi. wo read : And the sons of Jud^-^.h, Er and Onan, .md She.ah, and Pharcz, and Zarah ; but Er and Onan died in tho land of Canaan, and the sons of Pharez were Hezron and Ham\il. '*It appears to mo to be certain," (says C.) "that the writer means to say that Hezron and Haniid were born in the Land of Canaan, and were among the seventy persons (including Jacob himself, and Joseph, and his two sons), who came into Egypt with Jacob. ■ '•He repeats the words again and agam : — "These are the niimes of the Chilis loins, besides Jacob's son's wives, were three score and six, v. 2G — which they would not be without Hezroa and Hamul."-, In like manner he quotes Ex. i. : 1 & 5, Deut. x. : 25, andsays : - '' I assume, then, that it is absolutely undeniable, that the nar> , rative of the Exodus distinctly involves the statement, that the ' sixf-six persons ''out of the loins of Jacob,'' mentioned m Gea. xi.vi., and no others, went down wi:h him into Egypt. Now Judah was forty ttoo * years old, according to the story, • when he went down with Jacob into Egypt. But, if we turn to Gen. xxxviu.^ we shall find that m the coxirae- of these forty-two years. of Juduh',s life, the following events are recorded to have happened I, Judah grows up marries a wife—" at that time," v. 1, i. €., after Joseph's being sold into Egypt when he was "seventeen . years old," Gen. xxxvii. : 2; and when Judah, consequently, w;iar twenty years old,-— and has, separately three sons by her. • Joseph was iliirT^' Venrs <>trt wlieii he '-stood before Phariu>h."ns goVerne*^ of xheLauii oC i^tryi't.— ueii..x,i.i.: 4o ; ami, iVorn that .liiHe niiie vrsrs ?tet>s<^!! (seven of plenty and two of famme). before Jacob came down to Kgypt-at that ume, >htr4iore, Joseph ^VH« thirty-nine years oUl. But Judah was, about fhree years older than Joseph : for Judah Was born in the fourth year of Jacob's doul)l« marriaire. Gen. ixix. : 35: and Joseph ii> the seventh, Gen. a.ix.v*» * M; xi^i.: 41 • t»«uce. JudaJi was fortv-two veurso'U when Jacob wcntdowu to bgypt. V „. The eW»} of tboee jhroe S" |;-J ^ ^^f V-, ,lie»i Ihfi second grows *» „"'.X"^ .^o third Rrows to ■"»•" .,arr\eshUbro.hersw,dow and te, theth^r g^^ ^.^ (appose i^r"tX^dec v'e^judah himself, conceives by b,m, sons, Hezron and Hamul, J^^'"* \' • ^ incredible, we are obliged Tois, tiii^-^''-- -^^^^^^^ "^"^^ ^^ *"*^ ^^* 1^ v,o,.^ n^ conclude llxat tlie Pentateuch F- ''■""''■;:::r\'o' e:;—' a da.U d„nge„n, let „s :\:™:a7^e. , '.tt^ ..„ be^^orc se.o. difficuUie, co.pa.. ,„, that position than any c.he. ^^^^ ^^^ ^"""'"flhti s^^'TndeniXe • thatthe na^ative .e^esc,„» ..iissumes that d .s jj^^^^_^ ^,^j H^„„|, '''^'''rntf«r:nd 'Cent dow-n »ith" Jacob into En-pt. „re born before, ana ^^ ,, ^^^ ^^^ j^^„ Jnd. ^'^rZ'^:'XlL .entdo.n «ith Jacob into old, according to the story, ^»« Kjrypt." , . .vg ugtorv" affirms neither score and ton." (ien. ^'•";; ''; " ^,„a „„„ the Lord thy God Bgypt with three --": "^^'e^^o „,,uitude." Duet. x. 22. hath made thee a. the .tars of hea^e. ^^ ^^^^ ^^^_^ ^^^^^^^ ^^^^ To which we may acia i^x. i.. ^ «>''(-«ir camt C^cnso should quarrel .ith 'be ;— , ^ -/,,,,, ,,,, >-•> '^«-'"' :r 'ifi, :i; p ia 1 ::«' iu »'.«'-r .«« it can be seuenly came I « is smei) p , ^j^^^^^ ^^^^y said, that Ephrain, and Manasseh "^^"^ »"' °f ' jj,„„„ ^n,! «« born there; in the .ame --;;""/^''^i.,,„i,ut be enough ;ba:r:L^t:rt::r:;joseph.^.or...do^- 14 Hezron and H^mul, who wore, aocordin- ta his '' awumiitton," in ih^ ,a,ne condition, would be such a coatradictiou as to pro^e the "alory" incredible I Acaia: if Coleu30 had looked at hi. Hebrew Bible he nonld have noticed that the preposition -with" is not the ^r^tov^^^J but the le, • and the literal rendering of Gen. xlvi. : 26 & 2* would then be aa follows : uxv the souk of (or belonging to), Jacob tlia^came Jnto K rvnt who came out of his loins, besides the wives of the sons ot is Tl th' souls, three score und six, a.id the sons of Joseph Sh we e bom of him, in Egypt, two souls, all the sou s of^ th, HduL .Tf Jacob, which came into Kgypt, three score and ton. The narrative does nof say that they were all born before Jacob came to Egypt, or that they came t.,7Mum ; but that they J can. out of his loins."' As to the expression - came ^"to L ^^p , -. I.nlie. to the sons of Jo.oph as much as to the sons of l'i^arez, and ''the meaning is obvious," as Colenso admits. But there is a reason why Hezron and Hamul are put in th. .eco^ in this list. Why is it said that '-all the souls of the houa. of Jacob, which came into Egypt, were seventy when U .s ev.deu IL we're others with these?" (e. g. Jaeob's son's w.ves, an^ likely many servants.) Why does not Colenso peck a that L/es-sion? And why are Er and Onan mentioned at all ; th* Slong the lioiJ, ? Un,uestionaby, to show " -n^ took the place of the deud. Surely there were others that died u Canaan besides Er and Onan; but their places were not re- fiUed .s theirs. We might expect, therefore, to find He-n and Hamu by adoption, in the room of Er and Onan becoming the heads oi tai;al Lilies, like Ephraim and Manasseh who, m th s way, became the p ogcnitors of tribes. Turn to Num. xxvi. : 19 & 21 , and there, after being again informed of the death o Er and Onan, weare odthatthe/cHezron and Hamul), were the progenitor, of thr tribal families that bear their names. Colenso asks w^y these two grand sons of Judah are mentioned in this list, when Itler. Ire not. The answor 5s-because they had been adopted to fiS^^^tL place of the SOI. that died, and they gave m^ lies which others did not. The sacred nistonan does not profe.. to give a minute detail of all the events, and individuals concerned ^J^ like any other good historian, he notes those only thai ar« important to the reader. . AS Hcbr.w irP« ar« uucommo., I Aall im. KiiglUk letw«. I I 4 y / i 15 It ia scarcely worth while, now, t:» dispute the second 'fafl>iumption," that Hezron and Hainul mu$t huv. been born in R,'Ypt. We may note, however, that it is by no .neana certain '.hat Judah was only forty-two years old when ho went down to E,'ypk. When he addressed Lkban ho did not say that he had been twenty vears in Padanarara. but '' This twenty years have I been with'thtt. Anda-ain: (Gen. ixxi, : 41), "Thus have I been twenty yearn i/i each family, "'rTtlThnilible that they could have muUiplied enough du i ■- their sojourn in Egypt, to make up that number ; and ta Iv omaui other rea.sous, not here menuoned there could ™ hi'v beeuso'nmuy. Therefore, the l'eut»tcuch ,s unh.sto, cal rather), m>truc. This is the grand design ot e-^ery chapter. Eryt'lce is levelled against the liible to make .t appear To wolr™ thought that these reasonings and conclusions Jud have driven a logician to r«.anune his premises, est here Tut be an error there, before he would coudcmn the book. It doe", not seem that such a though, occurred to h,m a all. 0„« bias only seems to have regulated every proces.s, vu. .to d sp«„ , onhTold Bible, aud relieve us from faith in the Pe,jtateuch. lifhhesays, co'uld net possibly ^^^ 1'^^'^.;'^:"^^^! any one acquainted with tire facts, wluch ,t pro Ws U de-crb.. B. what if it should turn out that his p.i3,n,ses a,-e talsc-tha. there were no such numbers a, Colenso, by Uis proces.s, prolesse, to prove? t I t i I i ■ ' .. V I 11 It ifltme, indeed, that the most able expoaitow and commenta- tor, hare generally set down the whole number of the Chddren o Israel, at the Exodus, as bein,; from two to three million* ; but it is cleLr that they did not enter into any mmute examination ot that subject; and it is not at all impossible that they may hav« been all misLkeu, and, fur more likely than that, the Peututeuc. is uuhistorical. One thing is cortain-the Bible ntter says that there were at that time, two millions, or any number approaching it ; anU i. would be strange if, notwithstanding the numerous and repeated statemeats of ih.ir numbers, their vcaL whole number should neve. ""^prS; therefore, to examine the premises of Colenso". ariiumeuts : * , , „* *i,.^ First, let us see how Colenso makes out that there were at the Evodus two millions of the Israelites. He says:— three millions. ' • i. i „j This reckoning appears very reasonable. Given six hundred thousand men, in the prime of life, in any country, and .ve may rL-asonubly expect a population of two millions. But if there were not six hundred thousand men, in the prime ol life all the conclusions drawn from that premise fall to the .round. This " ussumpJon," theiefore, should have been clearly r.rovod: nor should the critic be content with a mere translation, when the original Hebrew was at hand. It does not ai)pear, that in all his researches, he ever gave this question a critical examina- tion, though almost all his difficulties are bused upon it. ^\ hilc he was endeavoring to overturn the doctrines of other eommentators he followed them in this without investigation. But he is not the ti;st foolish man who has built a house without a good foundatio, . lu our examination of the important question, concerning th-. number of the Israelites at the Exodus, we must proceed some- what minutely : and, though we know that we have a great host ct . ^Zu.ull the nLtcal thai follows under thishead I ara md.bled ,o th. Rev. /. li.' Falun, oi !^'»«"»«Wv^V^-'*'i;n!:i"al'^ckiiovv1^ «'""- v^ioieuUy put any 4)yrliuu under tjuoialwu*. 1 3« wrgum^uw tujjjCbUd lij- his. 18 eminent expositors against our view of tte matter, we are at liberty to differ from tliem without any disreapect— for I do not believe that many of them thought it neces-sary to give that part of the subject a close examination. While we admire the able explanations of our fathers, we adore fur more the Bible itself, and must be guided by it alone. The first accovnit of the nnmber of the Children of Israel, at the Kxodus, is found in Ex. xii. : 37, and in our English version read* thus:— "And the Children of Israel journeyed from llameses to Succoth, about six hundred thousand on foot that tcere men, beside children." A very ordinary and unlearned reader would observe that this verse, in its present form, is not natural. The children are men- liune'i. and yet no -.voiuen. They could not be all men and children. Again he wil' notice that the two words "//jc* were " arc not in the original— they are sup})lied, and, therefore, put in Italic.^. The preposition on is not in the original either, and is guperflaous. Therefore, the proper rendering is,—" The Children of bruel journeyed fron^ Kunieses to Succoth, about six hundred thousand footmen, beside children." The original expression for footmen is, Jiagli Haghebarim. Ragli is assort of adverb, and literally means m foot— from the verb ragal to foot it. Wiebarim is from the verb Ghubar, to be or become strong. The primary idea being to bind up 5 hence, it naturally .signifies those who are strong, in maturity, in contrast vrith the young and feeble, and is in this text, therefore, contrasted ^vith childre-n. It is true that it is in the masculine gender, but giammaiiansknow that in every language, when both sexes are included, the mJasculine form is preferred. This signification is proved by comparing other Scriptures Avhere tie same word is translated s/rong.—l Sam. xiv.: 02; 2 King-K, XXIV.: IGj Ecc. ix. : U. The literal rendering is therefore, tlius:— ^^The Children of Israel journeyed from Kamtses to Succoth, about six hundred thousand on foot— the strong— besides children." This is perfectly intelligible. The historian is not writing of battles, where men alone would l>e engaged— but of journeyings in which those v ho were able, tiie strong, had to go '•'on foot," and the wealc, "the children," hod to be carried. It i:, noticeable, too, that the word used for " children " (taph), means "little ones," who could not travel "on foot=" By a remarkable and gracious Providence all those of matured age were liale. and able to go oa foot, as we ore informed— Pa. gy. : 2. 1 1 f \ 1 1 i I think every Hebrew scholar will admit the accuracy of tho renderinj< and meaninj,' I have given of the text now considered ; nor can I believe that it does not commend itself to any unlearned reader as the moat rational, and common sensa view. Let U8 see how it agrees with other Scripture :— Wo learn that after the Israelites came into the wilderneds, ungrateful for tho miraculous provisions given, thoy lusted for the flesh pots of E^'vpt. Then Moses was distressed, and said :— Num. xi. : lU. ■" Whence should 1 have flesh to give unto nil this people ? for they weep unto me saying:— Give us flesh that we may eat." The Lord in m^^^v promised them flesh to eat, for a whole month, till it should ''come out at their nostrils," v. 20. "And Moses said:— The people aun)ng whom I am, are six hundred thousand footmen (ragli) ; and thou hast said, I will give them flesh, that they may eat°a whole mouth. Shall the flocks aud the herds be slain for them, to Buftice them ? or shall all the Hsh of the sea be gathered together for them, to suttice them?" v. 21 & 22. Surely no one can look at this passage, and suppose that Moses intended onlj to mention the number of the able-bodied men in Israel. They were not the only ones that needed flesh to eat. He magnifies the ditficulty of providing flesh a whole month for so many. He does not say "therMcn," but ^' the peopW among wuom I am, aud ''x^' hence should I have flesh to give unto alUliis people (Kol ha am). There can be no ambiguity about it. The whole text and context make it plain that he means what he says— ".4i/ this people." The women, as well as the .men, lusted for flesh ; and it is utterly i-icredlble that, in these circumstances, Moses would mention' only a part of the people. I think this one text is suflicient to detennino the number of Israel ; and, unless I found some othtns incompatible with it, I could not doubt that the round .numbers of .the adults, male and female, are here siated. There are several other means by which we could an ve at a probable computation of the number of Israel at the Exodus. First, there is tke li,xed number of the first-born : — " And the Lord said unto .Moses, — number all the first-born of the males, of the Children of Israel, from a month old and upward, and take the number of their names.'?- Num. m. : 40. Who aie meant by the first-born, is plain enough from the statement con- .cerning them.— See verse 12, and elsewhere. " All the fi»st-b^rn .that r^peneth the raatnx among the Children of Israel.'- ihe number of first-born must, therefore, be, the same aa the .number of 20 muthers,*.ndof fuuulle3,8avo tbuw whose first-born were ncdnr "" Tirnmn'.>er of mules is stated a. twcnty-tvro thousand two ,,,,,,.1 and scventythree.-Num. in.: 43. Allowinj, as many fcuules we have the total, four hundred aud forty-hve thousund and ^"'Xho^' who set down the total number of Israel at two million., or more, say that twenty-two thousand two hund.ed and seventy- Zl, are not all the iirst-born males. That when a first-bom became hin.self the head of a family, he was not .uanbered Ih.. .uitosition, which has no Seripture to support it, ks d.rectly on- ulLudU the expie.sstutement:-" Number all th. first-bo. n of the nuUe;, fron. a n.onth old and uprvards.- ' A^.un jt .» su.d U,.t many of then, would be destroyed under the ouler ot Pharaoh I'utthis would b. the ease with the other n.ales as well, aud would ,H.t likelv aiVe^t the proportions in any sensible aegicc. I, ,Un,e adnutted however, that, sinee ^1- fi-t-born was tl. .Ah..tin the iVanilv, there would be more ol them dead than ot heivonnger brethren. Taking this into aceount, together .Uh L.e'undJ;- a aiouth ohl uho were not numbered, we may ve,^ .easouabiv allow Colenso's estimate, and eall the actual numb r o the first-borns sixty thousand, l^ut it, as some say, the tota number of Israel was over two millions, then every n.o her m ;:; i:!:::! have had, on an average, tlurtytkree children ! wlueh isinc-dible. Besides, it follows that there eould -^ ^e mor. than one woman (child-bearing), to ten men, which is alao "rl' we have shown aheady, that six Imndred and three thonsaml lU, hun.he.1 and fifty was the total number ot Israel, wlu.^ accouliug to the census of the fi.st-borns, would .UU.w tei, on .m av.n..e, to each family. Th.s is not only credible, but >trr llUelv:when we look at the Divine promises to the patriarchs, thut"their seed should multiply a« the stars of heaven. I hese fact., I think, prove clearlv that we are right in mamtaming that s:x hundiei Ld three thousand five hundred and fifty was the wholo number of the adults of Israel, and not :i fraction only. We, therefore, turn the Bishop's figures against him and prove that it is his story that is incredible, and not the Pentateuch. Secondly, there is another remarkable co-incidence which confirms this view of the subject. Moses was commanded to number th« Levites in a manner pr^ci^ely the same as the first-borns-*' Every I V .1 V 21 male from a mouth oM and upward."— Nutr. iii. : 15. We might exi»!Ct that tribe to bo nearly oue-twelfth of the whole. No good reason can bu- shown why it .sliould b..' much larger or much len.-* than any of tl»e others. Thii number of miloH was tweuty-two thousand; the same M thatof th(i lir.Uborni, le:*i 2'. J. Djubliu,' th.U numbor, to alio sy jw uuuiv feniiloi, we have forty-four th )uia:id, .somewhat le« th:i i a twelfth. This fact uU,) very rem irkabiy cjnftrm^ what we have advanced about tlii relative proportionn of tl.e hrdt-boru.s. On loolvln,' at Nam. i., wo tiudthj following' are the numbers ut the tribes: — /> » t v» Ueubeu, 40,500 Judah, 7t,000 E;)hraim, 40,500 Dan, G2,70J Simeon, 50,300 [.s^aehar,54, 400 >la.i.i.sieli, 32,200 Asher, 4l,,)0J J^[ 45,(JoOZebuluii, 57,400 Benjamin, 35,400 Naph, o3,100 It; as alrea.ly .stated, we allow forty-four thjusaud to represe.it the number of the tribi of Levi, it i.s proportional to that ot the other t.-ibjd. There i.s just such a variety as we w.wld expect ; but if, as Colenso and some others say, the numbers of all the other tribes must be taken four-fold, how is it that the tribe of Levi is sj small ? It would be quite a contrast to any of the re.st. Colenso says, that proves the Pentateuch unhistorical. We would say it proves /lis promises false. There is yet another notable confirmation of what we have advanced : — Th--re was a tac laid upo" Israel as an atonement.— Lx. xxx. •. 12&10. '' VVh.in thou takest the .sum of the Children ot ^rael after their number, then shall they give every man (literally every one), a ransom for his soul unto the Lord, when thou numberest them; that there be no pla-ue among them, when thou number- est them." As to the parties for whom it is to be given the com- mand is plain— 'every one," without limitation. Then follow instructions hosv it is to be collected-for it would be impossible to collect it from "every one" separately, -from women and children. <'Thi3 thev shall give, every one that passeth among them that are nunbered;" the original is-Khol ha-ghnover-al-hap-pe-Kudun. The preposition al has the siguiticatioa for, on account (>/.~(bee Gesenius.) The exact rendering, therefore, would be, " This they shall give every one that passeth (i. e., representative), uu account (or on behalf), o: those numbered, every one from twenty years old and upv,Ard." This defines the persons who are to pay, viz. :— Those from twenty years old and upward. They pay lor the rest as 3tated-2 Kings xii. : 4, where the same tribute is i 2J •poken of in these woiila:— " And Juhoash said unto thr pric«ta— all the moiioy of the dedicrtted thin,!?8, that ia brought into thi houso of the Lonl, even the money of every one that passf^th C,'hnover), the account, the moimy that every one is set at/' (or, aa in the mur);in, "the money of tho sovils* of hi:» estimation.")— See also Neh. x. : 32. Wc have then only to find how much was paid for all Israel, at the rate of half a shekel e-ch soul. It was 100 talents, 1775 shekel*, Kx. XXXV III. : 23. "A bekah for every one, half a shekel after tho ghekel of the 3ai>ctnary, from every one that went to be nuni- ben^d," (hu gnuver, every one on behalf of tho numb-red), "fur i\K hundred th usund and throe thousand and five hundred and titty."' If these renderings bo correct, (and I think Hebron icholars will admit thoy arc), tluMi it is certain the number of Israel waw but a little over six hundred thousand, instead of twa milliong, and all Color o's arithmetic only demonstrates Mi rasihne.es, ii»te:id of provin,' the Pentateuch unhistoricaL There are yet two morv \exts, of great importance, bearing directly on this part of th'^ subject. "Take ye the sura of all tue congregation of the Children of Israel, after their families, by the bouse of their fathers, with tho number of their names, every male by their polls; from twenty years old and upward, all that are able to go forth to war iu Israel." — Num. i. : 2. Such was the order given to Moses. A careful perusal of which, will show, that a double ceusua was required. Tbe firsi, that oi' "all the congreg.;tion of Israel, after their fannlies, by the house of their fathers, with the number of their names." The second, " every malo by their polls ; from twenty years old and upv.u d, ill that are abla 10 go forth to war." The Hvst has no lim-: "■• i ^h; -ever ; it i^ 'Hho sum of all the congregation." The second has three, viz. : First males | second : "twenty years old and upward ;" third : "able to go forth to war " This seeuw clear enough f n m the present rendering. It is well-known, however, that the Hebrew was originally written, not only without any pauses marked, but even without separation of the words. It is not strange, then, that mistakes might occur in putting in the paust , a slight change of which, will greatly alter the sense. Moreover, the Hebrew is very elliptical, as are all ancient languages. 1, shall take the rendering given in an English review by an an- known w t I riter— a translation which uvery acholar will pronounce literal and correct. 23 '• Thke tno sum of all th'' C3u;?rc:;ation of hrrtol aflnr their fa» milies, after the huuse of thoir fathers, by uumb.-r. The names of every mal« by thuir pilKs, from twoiity years old atv.l upward, all who are able to march, noto th«m djwn, thou and Aaron" This mikei it plain. Tho whjle con,'re,'a(i )ii wc.r t.) be luiin'KTfd urKl the sum ot them taken, according to tlicir fiimilies. Not so tho.se who were fit for inilitiiry sorvici-. Thoy woro to be takt-n in a iijparate re^nnter by their polls without any re^'ard to their f»miIi(M. We mast read the roord of their numhera in thi? light of this commiswjion. Tho full rendering' of verse 20, in thi.-? chap, would then be — «* The children of Ueubeu, Israel's eldoU son, by thi-ir jrenerations, aftnr their farailit'.s, by the h la-se t»f tluMr fath.r.', in their num'jer (or sum) were numbered Aud alio the names by their polls of every male from tsvo.nty years old and upward ; all that were able to go forth to war" Their numbar, that i.s, of the tribe of Reuben, <'was forty and six thousand, and live hundred."' The rc'ietition of he name of the tribe shows that it is not the number of the " males by their polls," but il; t of the whole tribe that 13 iceorded The number of those fit for military scjrvi -e would be aseful at the time, but could be of no great interest to futur« a^es ; and, therefore, did not need to be recorded. This formula continues through '.he whole .-egi.^ter. We never read of the number of the mules, but ''Those that were numbered of thtm, even of the tube." Wherever a limit is made, it ii spe- o.ially stated, as in the case of the first-born and oO the Liviten. When the sum total is stated, it is in similar terms, v. LVtG. I uhall L'ive it littually, from the Hebrew no,v before nie. "And the chil- dren of Israel by the house of their father.-^ v go forth in the hosts of Israel (were numbered.) And their whole number was six hundred thousand, and three thousand and five hur^- dred and fifty.'' The other texts to which I refeired are in Num. xxvi. Tt is a ■well understood law, that when orders have once been issued, they need uwt be repeated in detail to '' ■ same person. This account \ for the brief manner in which th*- .ommaud to number the people is repeated in Chap, xxvi., v. 2. Take the sura of al! the congrt- gaticu of the Children of Israel. (Take the sum of those) from twenty years old and upward, throughout their father's liouse, a! I that are able to go to war in Israel. Tho meaning iiJ quite j>l.-iri. word "Lrae!.'' aad tb-at thtt P..X\ , Si i.Gr u wc aiiow verb u uuderstood lu tba lust clause. The modifications ^.hichwe have mtro S-^-^J ^. l-harez ; pevhaps he wa> •. y«un, man ;»d - to. -1 "^tho _„e^ .^ riitiunnexttothatot Josuua. ''"'"'-''"„ ;,', the Laii.! of futhor I'harez, was born, aceordn.S to *« «'">•,"'.'';'-,,, „„,„a- Canaan; so that Uezaleel was actually, sUll m the toartu „tneia tiou from one who went down mt.) hgypt. One would think that his own d nonstrat.on would convmee th^ logieiau that he can prove nothin, apon his p,n,c,,lo ; '-;■■■ """"^J ing to his own table, he has then, all in the ,/ura gaaerat ou, . . thrce-two of them are in the fourth, and one m the htth. 1„ his table ho has Riven eleven eases-only two ot winch are m e f mth generatio".. He puts Uri in the fourth generat.ou, and then tries to prove that his son liczalecl is m the fourth! Fe riel o prove hat Hezrou could not have been among those that wlntdoln into Egypt, and now he h:. the eftron.cry to assume '%i'r Ivor' anybody see such a s.yle of chronology as this .^ .la 10 k at itl Itseenrs we may eouut frou, the sou Lev, I fr'ntbe grandson Pharcz!! or from the great grandson Hczron ! ! ! at anv rale we will make out four generat.ous 1 _ . did .H>t Jacob, himself, go down into Egypt7 and ron, h.m even Moses might be put in the fifth genera and Bezaleol wmil "' be in the eiKhth. , ,,. , i There i- a tejt that is rather troublesome to the H.shop, n.tJ threatens to overturn all his theory, hence, he turns upon U a i'.erce attack. Ho says :— uT., 1 rhrnn rii ' 22 & 27, we have a remarkable exception to thoatveSXe^ofiud the genealogy of Jo.hua given a. f \ «9 follow! :— " Joshua, tb« ion of Nan, the son of EHshama, the so|i of Ammihud, the son of Laadan, the son of Tahan, the son of Telah, the &c^ of Itephah, the son of Beriah, the son of Ephraim, that is to >. Josh«a is giren in the ninth generation from Kphraim, ' s ianih from Joseph." Well, how will ho get rid of this witness against him? In accordance with former practice, ho might count from some great grandson, and so make out four generations. He docs not ; but hear him. He says: — " We are not concerned with the books of. Chronicles, but with the narrative in the Pentateuch itself."' If a witness comes into court, that is likely to damage your case, just turn him out. But Colenso evidently fears that this witness may be dantrorous even after he is turned out : and, therefore, he trie* to kill him thus. He says : — " But, ill truth, the account of Joshua's descent in 1 Chron. rn., involves a palpable contradiction. Thus we are told that Kphraim's daughter built two villages in the Land of Canaan, if WL- suppose this to mean that t]>c dexcendanls of Ephraim"i daughter, jvfter the conquest in the time of Joshua, did this, yet iu verse 22 & 23 : we have this most astoriirfhing fact stated,— thnt Ephraim himself, after the slaughter by the men of Gath of his descendants in the seventh generation, ''mourned many days,'" and then married a-^niin, and had a son lieriali, who was tJ)e ancestor of Joshua/ This Beriah, however, is not named at nil among the sons of Ephraim in the list given in Num. xxvi. : [][>.'' In order to show how heedlessly the Bishop reads his Bible, aiu connnlls the most egregious bliimlors in his interpretation of it. I shall ''ive the verses referred to : — " And the sons of Ephraira, iShuthelah, and Bered liis >*oi), and Tahath his son, and Eladah his son, and Tahath his son, and Ziibad his son, ar-d Shuthelah his son, and Ezer and Elead, whom the men of Gath that were born in that land slew, because thfv came down to take away their cattle; and Ephraini, their father, mourned many d.iys, and his brethren came to comfort him ; and when he went in unto his wife she conceived, and bare a son, and he called his name Beriah, because it went evil with his ho\w»e. (And his daughter was Sherah, who built >*othoron, the nether, ard the upper, and CJzzen — Sherah.'") Colenso puts Ezer and Elead along with Shuthelah the second, as the sons of Zabah, and in the seventh generation from Ephraim -. but the connective ^' and" joins them immediately with Shuthelah, the^rs^, whose descendants are parenthetically given. Errand Elead are, therefore, the sons of £ phr aim himself ^ who i* distinctly called their father. It is not strange that he would mourn for hie own sons, and have another one after. There is no mention of liis marrying again. The building of Bethoron, by the daughter of Ephraiir,, was, doubtless, in her life time and his : anij n t .30 what ii there incredible about that? Saroly, if he had read ther^e verses a aeooiid tim», he would uot have so exposed hia reckleisne*. and triHiii" with tho Scriptures. His error on these texts was pointed ouUohim by others, but he evidently did not understand them. , , c r \ H(^ observes, moreover, that Elishama, the grandson of Joshua, (Num 11. : IS, and Kx. xvii. : 8 & IG), and Joshua himselt were in active service nearly at the same time-" which also is hardly crecMble" Why so? Is nut the prime minister of England, a. this date, fourscore years of age?- his duties are very arduous. He mi-ht well have a grandson able to command an army. J>ut in thes°e days a man could be found a hundred and twenty years oid — - his eves not dim, nor his natural force abated." It seems to me evident, that, during the stay of Israel m Egypt, from live to ten generations arose •, and yet it could, with periect accuracy be said, that in the fourth generation (from their descent;, ■ thev came hither (to the I.ukI of Canaan), again, if there were evJn two, (and there were doubtless many), in that generation This is in accordance with the usus loqatndi of both ancient and modemtimes. Thus we are told that Job lived to see -^lussons sons even/our generations.-Job xui. : 15.' ' Any one wouui say iKat a people who went to a foreign land, returned in the fourth veneration, though there were not more than two ot them m that ^ank. The design is evidently to state how many generation, absolutelv passed away before their leturn-but a generation ha. not passJd while one of them is left. This is, in iact. the oiuy way sul-ii an utterance can be understood, to have any dehnUe meanin utall; for when it was said, -In the fourth gene, ation they sha. come hither again," no man in his senses would suppose t^iey wou.i be all in the fourth generation.^ Many might be m the tenth, while some of the fourth yet lived. •,•..• The object of Colenso in the two chapters last examined is p.a.n from the followmg paragraph. He says:— ... ., ^^Fwm this it can be shown, beyond a doubt that i is qm .) unnos Ue hat there should have been such a number ot the people Pf'utateuch itself." „., , ., To this I would answer first, that the Bible never says there were so many warriors in the prime of life ; ^f^^^J^' ^^^^ P'^^" Tred to show; that it is by no means impomble if it Aarf «id ie, and shall do io iu the chapter following. I H - -=^ 81 1 V CHAPTER VII. tUK NCMBEB CF ISRAEL AT THE TIME OP TUB EXODUS. I sliall first give the substauce of Colenso'a arguraenta itKl coucluaions. He says:— , , ., , '' In the first place, it must 1)0 obsorve-l, as already note ,th,it wo no where read of kny mry larg>i /a»l^/»e5 amon..^ the Uuklreu ot' J veob, or their descemlauts to tli. time ot the Lxodu... W e n av urn ose, iu order that we may have the population as arge a. p "Vw?^ tl a very tew died pre.naturely, and that those who were Corn al nust all lived and multiplied IJut we have no reason "vh- 'ever, from the data furnishe-.l by the sacred booKS themsel es lo assume that thev had families materially larger than tK..e o the iresent day. 'Thus we are told in Gen. xi.Vr., that Reuben had four^soTsh -^n six, Levi three, Judah five Issachar .t<.ur, /e >- uun three, Gad seven, Asher four, Joseph t.-o, Benjamn-. ten Dm one. Naphtali four. It is strange that, among all the sixtN- ni^ Chi dren, an.i grand children, and great gvand children ot Ju'ob who went down with hin^ into Egypt, f-^- ^f^-^^f., ^ ^y one dm-hter mentioned, an.l one grand daughter. ilo ^^ > murbe lu- of these two kmong the seventy souls shows that th. Z^Tontof the loins of Jacob were not omitted mtentwnabj Te twelve sons of Jacob, then, as appears from the above, had between them fifty-three sons, that is, on the average, tour and a ha f each, Let us suppose that they increased m this way t om ener ion to generatiin. Then, in the Jirst generat:on that ut felr 1 there would be fiftv-four males-(accordmg to the s ory ^t^o^^v^y fiftv-one; since Er and Onau died m the Land Oa • a 1 V. 12, without issue)-iu the second, that ol Amram. two an.he aiid for t'y-three ; iu t'i tfdvd, that of Moses and Aaron, one hou and and ninetv-four ; and in the fourth, that ot Joshua .^ d EW , four thousand nine hundred andtwenty-three-that is to lav, iiSead of six hundred thousand warriors m the prime ot life there could not have been five thousand. He proposes to add to these all th« males hi all the generations, and the number of the^///i, twenty-two thousand one hundred and fiftv-four ''who would be mostly children," and adds ''the sum total of males of all generations could not, according to these data, have exceeded twenty-eight tliousand four bundreu and sixty-five, instead of being one million." „^ , . , According to Colenso's estimate the Children of Israel aojourned . „ . ... i--a thin *^^ bnnrirpd and ten years. If there were, aa he affirms, only four generations, (the fifth bemg children every man must have been vhont ffty years old before be married 1 All the aboT« reaaoning aaaumei that. 3t v., in he !.»» th. preemption to put Jo.ha« in the fifth f»n»rl. ,;«„ ■houL-1. by his oTcn .dmiMion, the Scripture, put h.m m th« r.'h ri^.h r, he «a™ .e do not road of large fannl.e. amo.g ildL of jLcob, and take, the number of those in the f.n,d,«. e .in.c of the,^n,i«ration, a.umin.th.. the, ^ere oon, le e. „„d not a 80ul of that generation ««. born m Egypt. l>'i th... 1" «ivo, of Jacob's sons cease to bear when the, went to VCV There is good reuson to believe that those enumerated ':«y;ung and m'stlikel, many vvere ,«lded to them after therr :m"raio:. Fot anything said in '^^■' J-'"''^'^^ '''Z^^ZJ, mav-have been more than doubled. Colenso, mdeed labored .^ nrJve timt .ome ../ Ih,m must have been bom m bgjpt. 11,. may say as before, that, "we do not read" of any bomR J::iS E,yp.. Then I suppose we ^'f^^':, Ihal many were ,„^ 6or» «< ""- s>nce we "do not read o U. . r O;. The same observation, apply to his statements about ;,';:; hte., ace„rdi„g to his logic, wo -".^ ;™lf '^ ™":;- „ daughter and grand-daughter-among Jacobs ?«"'"'>*"'" ,he, w^ut down to E.ypt ; therefore there were no ™--''>» ' ,i.v;v.seven males, and only two females ; therelore, the books Lre unliUtorieul I This is strange logic. ■ I . „„ ,n answer to another writer he says, " the .^enptures .mp y no ,r t freunditv among the Hebrews;" and above "we do no. ::, of large .{.milies." He refe« to Ex. t. . let h.m put o„ lus spectacles and see if he ca» read, for it is plamly F'f V" V !!xi c Children of Israel were nuitful, and increased abundanth nnd axed exceeding mighty ;, and the land was ., le.t wththem .» .,1-1 r,r.+«t^(^ pvnccted to inultiply latt, Itishop colenso s,«s they could not-bc expect ^^ I^^)^ ^^^^^ because they were oppressed; but see v. l-. - afBicted the'n, the more they multiplied and grew. K an. l.,„,-ua"e can express very great feevndity it is hero. The Hebrew verb l-haraiz, here translated multiply^ literally mcins to s>..arm like fish, and Is so aiiplicd.-Ciei,. '■■''>■ L us see, then, what would be "erclible," in regard U, ,h. increase of I rael. It is certain that Egypt has alway^ been famous ,or arfecundity of its inhabitants, apart from any Div.ue .nterpo- .Uion, -chasw^spronusedtols^ad^ ^,^^ ^^^^^ ^ ^^^^^ be id those mentioued, but wo shall not reckon them. V^ e shaU also strike offt^n from the number, and suppose they might be old -past progenitive ,.ge. Then, whether there were women among .l,c« that went down or not, these si.ty men n,„st have got wne. • < V, j^m wi 33 ih tixty fumiliet. Suppose that somewhere, so that we be^... they Kcnrally nmrried about tweuty-one, then about tea S'^v^nv- lions w,>uld arise. At leaat this is not - incredible." (Joshua wa.s about that rank.) Then, by comparison of the number of hrst- boms, we found the ratio of increase to be about ten children, on an average, to each family. This would r ,t be extraordinary m a people that "multiplied or swarmed exceedin^^ly. Ihen we have just to multiply sixty by ten, nine time.:, dividin,' the product in each case by two, to form them (j. e.. each generation), into families ; and what is the result ? Instead of two niillwns w« have two hundred and thirty four million^' three hundred and seventy /i>ef/iOM.sanrf-and that number would only represent OMC genera- tion, while mn«t of four would, d.)ubtless, bo living at the same time, the younger being children. These figures are enormous ; y.-t, no one will say that ar.y part of th.^: supposition is in any degree " incredible." But .suppose a generation should arise only in thirty years, then there would be seven from the immigration to the Exodus. The last alone would be eighteen millions seven hundre.l and fitty thousand— allowing the parents and grand-parents to represe-a such as had died. Or, if w-. allow only suv generations, there would bo over three millions. In any case we cannot say that the numbers stated, as having sprung from sixty iamilic-^ m two hundred and ten v..-rs, are in the least degree mihkely. In the U<'ht of the promises, and facts stated concerning them, we might have expected lamer numbers than those given. Thus vanishes the " impossibility '' and "incredibility'" which it seems tloat.-l in the cranium of" the Bishop of Natal ; in the Divine Scriptuies- nowheic. CHAPTER VIII, THE DAKITES AKD I-EVITES AT THE TIME OF TllK KXOl.fS. The " Impossibilies " and "incredibilities" which Colcnso tries to bring forward under this head are similar to these in the preceding. He says :— ^ . . ,. " Dan, in the first generation, has one son Hush.m-Gen xi.vi. : 2:^; that' he had no mo. ^ born to h.m m '^^^^f^:^^^^^^:'J^^ therefore, had only one son, appear, trom Num. -^^j;- •^-:;^^;^^;; the sous of Dan consist o only one fannly.^^ Hence .. n a^ reckon that in the ii)urlh genurauuu i;c "'^••-^ "-;..;. ; Uv^uv -seven warriors descended from him, mstead of sixty -t>vo I ? U - 34 thousand rtcvcn hundred, JW they are nuraborcd in Num. ii. : 26, iacrC£WL'd to sixtv-tbur thousand and four hundred, in Num. xxvi. ; \i 111 order lo have hud this number born to him, we miut *U!)rosf that nun's one son, and eaeh of his sons and grand-«on* must have had about ei-^hty children of both sexes. NVe ma/ o^werre, also, that the oHkpring of the one son of Dan, siXty-two thouHund seven hundi-ed, is represented .« neaily double that of the ten rttnis of lienjaiuin, thirty-five thousand and four bundled. — Num. li. : 23." McOuul in his able pamphlet observoa, justly, *' He (Colcnso), tlunk.^ :t is utterly incredible that any man could have forty Hons ; vet. Alial. hadsJventyso.s; Ahaziali, Kin>,' of Judah, had forty brolhois; (^.ideonhad seveMy sons; Jair had thirty; Ibzan had thinv ; Abdon had forly." The HiKhop would have us believo thut'onlv three generations could have arisen in more than two c.'iituries. That is absurd-one only in every seventy years, »,H;e:'dinjr to bis arithnietii-. Ilo insists, also, that no more wore born to Ban in Egypt. b.-cuu..' no nn.re a":; mentioned in the families. The same remark would applv to all the others, so that the wives of JacoD's sons mnst hav,. all left off bearing as soon as they left for Egypt : but b.t that -...uss. M/ght not this same Hushim, son of Dan, have had g«v t.Mi sons ; eaeh of these might bring up a family of say ten or iJt.'ive. Atlhi-'ratfc, before the Exodus in tho .seventh ge4iera- i-oM, (J.C., at tho rate of one generation in thirty year:-), the chiidren of Dan would have been three hundred and iwelva thousand and five hundre.l-n.ore than half the numb.-r of all Israel ! Yet, Colenso thinks it impossible that there could W uun fiAh of that number. -, ^ i Nor is it singular that the offspring of tlie one son of Dan shouul 1,,-doublc that of the im sons of Benjamin. Jt is just such a ivHult as verv commonly happens, and marks the narrative aa Imvin ' the stamp of true history. A fictitious writer would never Imve Uiought of putting in such as that, without at lea^t giving some explanation of it; buc it needs none. The children of tlie Danitcs might be mostly males : those ot Benjamin mostly females, which would increase the one, and retard the other, the offspring being reckoned to the male parent of course. -The number of the Levites." says Colenso, "at the second C.M1SUS, compared with that of the fi.st, involve.H a great inconsist- oncv At the second, thev ni mber twenty-three thousand, hU males from a month old nnd upward ; at the first twenty-two thousand. Hence, during thirty-eight years in the wilderness, tb.>T Uud onlv increased one thou-and. He stvys the Levite^j were \ 1 35 not numbered with the Isrualitcs, and were not included in the sontonce uj;ainst them, for Elca^&ar, the son of Aaron, was ministering in the piiesL'tJ office ut Sinai, and was alive after lh« death of Joshua."— Num. xxvi. : 52 & Gf). Lit ua turn to that text, and wo find Eleazar, with Mosrn, >»iini- bered the people. Concerning thoic that they numbered, it is Baid, << There was not a man of them wkoin Mosea, and Aaron, the priest, numbered, when they numbered the Children of Israel in the wilderness of Sinai." But Eleazar, iiku Moses, was not among the numbered. He did the numl)ering. Colenso might as well count a father among his sons. There is no reason to suppose tliat the Levitos ware exempted from the sontoace whic-U wi«4 declared against the whole congregation, of which ther vtere c^-rtainly a part. Other sj called diffijulties, referreil to, in thtu chi nter, are too childish to call for any attention. Indeed. ih«y are ulreadv refuted in the above. CHAPTEll IX. \ TUK SI2B OF TUB COURT OF THE TAl5i:USACI,E COMl'ARLu) WITH THR nl'mher of the conurkgai'ion. I now come to take account of some of the uiffieuitics raised by Colenso, which are not so directly airectcd by our first chapter*.. They will be found mostly to be enors of interpretation, which ie often too literal. Such incredibilities would be found ab ,int iu any book that ever wiiS written. '< And Jehovah spake unto Moses, saying, '• gather thou all the congregation together unto the door of the tabernacle, and Moses did as Jehovah commanded him." — Lev. viii. : 4. , Colenso says that "all the congregation" means "the whole body of the people. At all events, the adult males in the prime of life j" that they, coming to the door of the tabornacle, must have eome xeithin the court ; th-.it the width of the tabernacle was ten cabita or eighteen feet, and nine men could have stood in front of it. The whole congregation would have formed a column twenty miles long. The court could only have contained five thousand people; therefore, such a command never could have been uttered by Jehovah, and the Pentateuch is consequenUy "unhie- torical." 36 We will a>?rco with him that iuch a command as ^e tayi novcr couia have been «pokcn by Jehovuh. Nay nv.. ; by w W couM «uch u st^ement over have been ma^lo or recorded .' Well ,ays McCaul: " Does Colen«o thi.ik Moses wu3 a iool, or wrot^J lor ft nation of fools?'' , ,, n e I woHia ob«erve,>«on mount Ebal to curse; and the Lerites shall sjieak, and say unto all the men of Israel with a loud mice, &c.'"— Deut. xxvii. : 12-14. Jo.sliua would stand before all the congregation, like a chief captain, and read slowly, while the Levites, as inferior oflicere, "Tkould stand at proper distances, and repeat it with a "loud voice." The people would thus have time to digest the solemn truths, and say Amen. Fourthly,— vfQ have shown already that there were not somtmy people as Colenso estimates, «fcc. Fifthly,— though we have shown that the Lerites likely read the law to the people, there is no reason for supposing that they could not all hear the voice of one man. Those who have been on the spot are better fitted to judge of the acoustics of that remarltable vale. Dr. Thomson thus writer : — " Imagine lliat the lofty ra-ige of mountains running north and south was cleft open to its base by some tremendous convulsion of nature, at right angles to its own line of extension, and the broad llsdure thus made is the vale of Naljlous. Mount Ebal is on the uorth, Gerizim on the south, and the city between. Near the eastern end the vale is not more than sixty rods wide, and just here, I suppose, the tribes assembled to hear "the blessings and the cursings" read by the l^evites. I have shouted to hear tli8 er.ho aud then funcied how it must Imve beon w hen the loud-voioed Levites, proclaimed from the naked cliffs of Ebal: — "Cursed be :ha man who maketh a graven image, an abomiuatioQ to N. *■',*■ 'l-s ■«vs > i"^',! J 89 Jehorah;" and then the tremendous "AMEN," ten fold loader froiu the mighty congregation, rising and swelling from Ebal to Gerizira, and from Geriiim to Ebal." Dr. Bonar also states that "it is quite a common thing for villagers to call to each other from the opposite hills, and that the Toice is heard quite distinctly." It is remarkable that modern travellers, who have examined the ground, thus r*^ port notable facts which corroborate the statements of those sublime passages of holy writ. Coleuso is evidently ignorant of two things : first, the i)roper meaning of the texts themselves ; and second, the ,-ecaUar form of the grounds to v oich they refer. CHAPTEii X. S. THS EXTENT OF THE CAMP COMI'AUED WITH THE PRIKSt'S DUTIES, AND THE DAILY NECESSITIES OF THE PEOPLE. " Vnd the skin of the bullock, and all lus fle^h with his head, and with his legs, and his inwards, aiul his duuj, even the whole bullock shall he (the priest), carry forth without the camp unto a clean place, where the ashes are poured out, and burn him on the wood with lire; where the ashes are poured out shall he be burnt. Lev. IV. : 11-12. Goleuso states that a camp of more than two millions of people would occupy an area of more than a mile and a half across,^ in each direction, with the tabernacle in the centre ; so that the priest would have to carry the refuse of the sacritices three quarters of a mile. ■ r But, he adds, "this would be an excessively crammet, area tor 8ucl L multitude." Ho, therefore, takes Scotfs estimate of twelve miles square, and says : — .'•We have to imagine th;3 priest having, himself to carry, on his back, on foot, from St. Paul's to the out-skirts ot the metropo- lis, the skin, and flesh, and heal, and logs, and inwards, and dung, even the whole bullock | and the people having to carry out their rubbish in like manner, and bring in their supplies ot water and fuel— after first cutting do .vi the latter where they could hud it. Further, we have to imagine half r. million of men going out d'uly— the twenty-two thousand Levites, for a tl'stance of siJf miks-io the suburbs ^r the neoesHities of nature ! 1 he supposi- tion involves, of course, an absurdity. But it la our duty to look plain facta in the face." 40 1 think wo may safelf agree with the Bishop for once, that th« "auppoaition" iavolres an absurdity. Did it not occur to him tliat it waa therefore absurd to suppose it ? for iu the Bible it hai no place. Firstly,— the Scriptures say not a word about the priest carry- iu- the refuse of the .crifices himadf ; nor anybody else carryin;^ them "oj» back on foot.'' All this is found only in Colenso's sncorin^ supposition. The comnwn English veraion does not say that the priest must carry the oGfal himaelf. The Hebrew is yet more pointed. Had he read it in the original he would have found the verb Vafza, to go out, in the Hiphil form- -Hotzi. h^, shall cause to go out. The thing was done by order of the priest- In common language, one is said to do that, which he c^msed to bo done. Besides, none w.ould need to carry the refuse on his back, since they had beasts of burden to bear it for them. No unbiased reader would think of such a ridiculous s. ise in such a phrase. Did Jacob carry away all his cattle " on his back on foot'' from I'aduuaram to Canuuu ?-(;ea. xxxi. : 18. Did Shalamanezer carryall Israel <'on his back, on foot," from Canaan to Halah audHabor?— 2Klng.sxYii. : G. Or would Colouso say that tho authors of these books moaut to say so ? Sec'mdly,—hiid Coleuso known or thought about the manner of encampment, he wouil never have dreamed of one continuous camp "twelve miles squan^.'' Such a camp would likely be, m \U order, about as much ^oafused as the Bishop's brains seem to have been when he wrote about it. Common sense would suggest that such a multitude of people would encamp in divisions according to convenience. Accordingly, by turning to Num. II., it will bo found that there wevGjive camps, with their ensigns, four of them/ar(# about the tabernacle— 1. e., on the east, south, west, and north sides of the tabernacle, which was in the camp of the I-evites in the centre.^ The priesta would, therefore, have to perform the hard task of sending the offal of the sacrifices beyond one fenf-thut of Moses and Aaron, which alone was in front of the tabernacle, m. 38. The fuel and water, I suppose, the people would collect where they could find, within or without the camp. Tho "necessities ot nature," to which this dignitary refers with ridicule, were subjected to such sanitary laws as govern a well-ordered city corporation, l^t Christians n->t how their piety should be adorned with outward cleanl- v>.^-. .ud order, which have liJO me thing to do iu th dt tl e b r commending th ,.{ioa to the world. 41 !t Ifl «ad to ttfJtict how snch men m Colenso make merry orer thei«o Divine teachia^ni— "aporting themaelvei with their ow« diiceiviags." CHAPTER XI. TUa JTL'UaBR or tUE PEOIM.K at THR first muster, C0MPARJ5D WITH THK poll-tax RAISED SIX MOKTIIS PREVIOUSLY. la Ex. XXX. : 11-l.S wo wcA that Moses was directed to '' tak« the giiin of the Children of Israel after their number -/'.and that ther were to give a poll-tax of '' half a shekel after the shekel of the eanctuary." Colenso raiintaitis thit this phraseology "could hardly have been used in this v/ay, until there was a sanctuary in existence, or rather, until the sanctuary had been some time in existence, and each a phrase had become /a wuVmr in me mouths of the people.'' We remark/riJf, — that he has excluded from hia ^[notation an important part of the text. After iutroducin<,f the phrase here for the first time, the sacred historian defines it: " A shekel is twenty •lerahs."' What could be m^re natural than this ? Whetlier there were a sanctuary or no, the measure is introduced, and itt capacity defined, that then, and ever after, it would be understood. Seconrf/y,— does Colenso mean to say that Israel had no manner of worship among them till the tabernacle was built? if they had, surely shekel, Imkodesk, (literally holy shekel), would have as much meaning K'fore, as after the cor.sttuction of the aanctuary or tabernacle. Thirdly, — i\iii contributions for the tabernacle itself would call for the use of this measure, by which they would be guided in pro- viding for its erection. It must therefore have been introduced before the tabernacle was built : nor could it become *' familiar " » till it was introduced. But t.io chief dithculty, he says, is, that the number of the peojtle (six hundred and three thousand five hundred and fifty), wa* identically the same [on the first occasion of numbering,— Num. xx£. : 11-12], as it was half a year afterwards. — Num. i. : 1--46. He ''supposes" that on the first occasion, whea the people were numbered they were taxed, and on the second when they were taxed they were numbered, though the Scriptures are silent oii 4.2 IhHt point. Here .ga a he is wise above what I. written According to his owa rules, we have no right to '-suppose any such thiu^^ The Scriptures say nothing of this taxing m the ouo caie nor numbering in the other. ,, , t » A.ain,-he stated it, as if it were an indisputable fact, thatwha ho calls the second numbering was ,si.. months .fter the first Of that there is no eviden .e. And what could be the use ot number, in- the people twice within six months ? There are simply two things mentioned herc-a taxmg, and a uumbering. The silver to be collected by tax was needed fo :::ing sockets to the sanctuary, Kx. xxxviu : 2, and w^^^^^^^^^^^ l>e required till the tabernacle was nearly erectea. It v. as rearea up on the first day of the first month of the second y-'^^'-^l' ,1 . 17 On the first day of the ne.vt rtionth, the command was .Wen to number the people ^^ after their Jurmlies^^ ^^e direc- tion for taking the poll-tax does not say that it la to be done imr^e^ di-aeW, but ^^when thou takest the sum ot the Children of I.rael. 'ere is no evidence that there wore even two months between th.se transactions. Any one can see that thes« two things an, supplementary, and form parts of one business. n ^^'■^>^^- ^ i/i! written.' - When thou takest the .um ot the ^1"W-'^J>; l.-acl after their number, (marg.tLui that m-e t<. be --^-«^>^ then shall they give every man a ransom fur his soul unto tU« ^Tl'Num. i: » Take ye the sum of all the congregation of the Children of Israel after their tamilies, by the house of their tatUurs. with the number of their names." Two things -- -an ed- he sum of the Children of Israel after t/mr number, for oUecing h ax; and the sum afur their familUs, for recording their amos. When we learn that these two things were done almost at t^.e same time, we may reasonably conclude they are co.mecied. The numbering, therefore, after the tax, would be little else ban arranging the rolls already provided. It is not surprising there- for. that the numbers, according to the taxing, and thoso according to the registration, should agrce-it would be strange if they did not. . . .r • . . Tlius it appears that the more we exai.iine mto the minute details of these heavenly records, the more irresirtible the evidence of their perfect accuracy ; and the more we study tliem, the greater .... p f,,» +1.,.;.. Ki«.auPfl onntnnts. " If they hear not Mo6es and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded, though ouo ryse from the dead." ibi d li a t] I ( 1 I 43 CHAPTER XII. THE ISRAKMTES DWELLING IN TKNT3. KxoJu* «Takc ye every man for tLam which are in hia tenti. ' XVI. : 16. r r . I Coleuso thinks thia command implies that every one of Isratl dwelt in tents-allowing ten to each tent, they must have had two hmidred thousatid tents, '' This statement/' he says, '* conH.ct.. stran^elv with that in Lev. xx.il.: 42-13, where it is assigned as a "eaaon for their divetUns in booths for seven days at tho tea-t of tabernacles, " that your generations .nay know that 1 made the Children of Israel to dwell in booths when i brought them out ol the land of Kgvpt. wv , ,. • He Insists nmreovor, that, as the wonl t<,r tent (Ochel; ^^ different from that which is translated booth, (Su..mh), they cannot mean the same thing. Then how could the Children ol Israel acquire all these tents? They had not prepared them m Iv^vpt ; for the blood of the paschal-lamb was to be sprmkled on -the two sidevosls, and lii.tels, or upper door-i>od s oi their houses, E.K. XII. : 7, and none of them was to go out ot the diyor of his housed Therefore, they all dwelt, not in tents, but lu houses. Thev had no time to }.repare tents, for they fled l» haslt ; and if they had them, how could they carry them? One tent to hold two persons, he says, will weigh twentylive to lorty pounds : an ox nnght carry four, and then they would need fiftv thousa.id oxen. Besides, he thinks the Hebrew tents were made of hair or skin, and were, therefore, much heavier. One ox might have carried one such tent with its appendages, ih.'retore, they would need two hundred thousand oxen. Upon all this 1 would remark :— j,'jV^.f/y -that Coleuso's statement that Ochtl~i\ tent, and SuchaU-ii booth, never mean the same thing, only exposes hii ignorance of the Hebrew language. Ockel sometimea means a hou»e, not a tent.-l Kings v,.i.: 66; Ps, C'xxxii. : 3. Uie generic meaning is dit-e//in^. The generic meaning o( Sucfiah, is a covenng, from a verb which signifies to >yeave, to cover. It is applied to the tabernacle of God.-See Psalm xxvii. : 5, where the two words are used in the same verse referring to the very _ . 1 • •> o__ _. . 11 -foi. ♦out*- tame thing. He says, "It i6 usea in - oa^u. ^x. . - •■' —- -; but improperly." So it seem* he thinks he kaowa Hebrew better 4A thfin th^.^o ih.U wrote it. We must, however, prefer Moso« to Coloiiao, who wo;:l'i tell us that Suchah—fk roof or coverin,?, \* the fjoneric term of which tent and booth are species, comp. i Kiiv^M XX. : 13-16; Job xxxvi. : 29. Secondly,— I have ulrciidy shown that there were no such num- bei-3 of the Israelites, and no they would not need so many tonta. 77i». /y,— Colcnso la a;(ain mistaken when he says they had no tenia in E^'vj.t. The statements about door-posts and lintcU apply quite ^as well to tents, as to houses of brick or stone. Th« chief employment of the Israelites was that of shepherd'*, whoiw defli isolation was, "sMc/i as aVd// in fenfs."— Gen. iv. 20; Cant. I.: 8; I Chron. 1V.4I, v. O-IO. Kor is it true that they could only have hair or skins to coTer their tent.^. If they could imiko scarlet, and fineHwined linen, lUty could makt' li,-,'ht coverings for tents— and we have no reaaou to say tilt y did not. We shall have occasion to notice in another place the assump- tion that the Israelites hanei warriors ? Knino havui" snMonso.l that thev mav have stripped the dead "**~ii •' * * 1/1* bodies of the Egyptians that floated ashore, Colenso thinks " thu is far-fetchod, especially, when the uarrative itself is silent on the 46 subject ; and farther, while body-armor might haro been obtained in thia way, how could swordd, and ahielda, aud speara, be washed ashore by the wavea? " Why not ? would not those weapons bo fastened to their bodies ? how could the bodies come ashore without them? "But,'' s!x\h ('ok'uso, "the Bible story says nothing' about thiS strippin,^ of the dead — as surely it must have done if it really took place." It would seem he can insist upon ''suppositions" against the atory, but none are admissible, when they would harmonize it. We must not then suppose that a hand or foot was moved, saved what is stated in the writings ! Verily if every thing that happened had been written, our Bible had been greater far than the Shastora of India. The Israelites, doubtless, could get armor enough for all that oould use them. It is very natural for us to think of armor according to our own ago ; but the armor of those days was of the rudest kind. The rib of an ox often served for a sword or spear. The bow and arrow took the place of a rifle ; and other harness was in like manner primitive. Iron and steel weapons were made, of course, l)ut they "were not very common. But wo must rept\at that the Scriptures no where say that they were arpaed at all — "they went up harnessed." What means that term ? A carefxil examination of the subject will show that it signifies only that thoy M-ere equipped for the journey. " The people took their dough before it was leavened, their hieading irow^hs being bound up with their clothes upon their shoulders.'^ Thus wen* they harnessed. How many of them had armor we cannot tell ; but it is not wonderful that thoy should dread an encounter with the Egyptians who had the advantage of them in every respect. Maiiy of Colenso's errors arise from his understanding little of matteis of antitjuity. W^hen it is said, " They went up harnessed."' I suppose he would think of the polished-steel sword— the glitter- ing spear— the minnie rifle, and burnished helmet, with knap- Backs, &c., &Q., and wonders how they could have got them all ; and well he might, for it would have been hard to get suck harness three thousand four hundred years ago. I do not believe that the term harnessed refers to their armor at all. It is applied, not to the wan-iors, but to all the people, and seems to signify their being equipped for the journey— " Their kneading troughs, and clothes, being bound upon their ghouldors." The Bilde does not say tney were armed— much le;« does it say what, or how many arms they had. Colenso's diffi- culty in this matter is, therefore, wholly without foundation. V 4,1 CHAPTEIi XIV. TUB IKSTITUTIOy OF THE PAflSOVEIl. them . Dr..» out now, and take you a iamb according to vour Upon this ColeiiSO makes his comments thus :-- " That is to say in one single day, the ^vhole immense normla. tion, ad hu-i;e as the city uf Lunduir was instruct f.L^tK TKissover, and actually did keep it. I htvo J id ' i.. ^- ^' day ; for the first notice of an^su.h ftasl t^ b" Lep " i."" "u't thaa very chapter, where we find it writt<>n, v. 12!'^* I SIZ throu„^hthelandofE,^rypt«/u-««,V/t/ and vil sini e .dl H . i ? bum in the land of Jvy/.t, both nun 'and bJIst ! ^ '^"^ ^'''' It cannot be said that they luul notice several davs before hund Jiiu /via It on tlie fourteenth, v. 5 (] 'iml «,, „ i-) 1 means to say, .^ou that ni,ht-Jthe ni^ll;^ onh^fJurt Lh^ Will pa.s throu^^h the laud of E.^ypt;" fj, ,],, e.vp ciio n v !•> ^ .L.tn.tly Wh, ^. /A,. . S)^.1A. "^/"S day shall be unto you for a memorial &c " Ihe difliculty which Colenso finds is simply this:-There could not be, he thinks, more than twelve hours to convey the order to such a mult.tude of people, (two miHinns), who must have been scattered over a vast extent of country, lloyr then could themnmtedetads of the command, concerniHg the passover, (a matter of hfe and death), be conveyed to each family, and not only the .lue preparations made for the service, but men and wcmeu were to borrow, at the same time, jewels of gold, and jewels of silver, so that they spoiled the Egyptians ? This is the sum of hi "mcredibihty '• m this part. It would be a sufficient answer ^ say wuh Mcaml: <• That similar things, quite as unlikelv, ha^^ actually been done, and therefore it cannot be impossible -''But,- 1 me It IS a matter of surprise that such an imaginary difficultj should ever have been thought of. ' In Chap XL we are informed of a preparatory warning giveo both to Pharaoh, and to Israel: ''Yet will I bring one «to^ more upon Pharaoh, and upon Egypt; afterwards he will let jou go hence ; when he shull let you go, he shall surely thruat ron out hence altogether- Speak now in the ears of the people, and let every man borrow (aak to give), of hi. neighbor, and every it 48 . vnnian of her neighbor, jewcle of silver, nnd jewels of gold." Whon Mo«t'S Icfi Pharaoh, after the ninth plague, lie told him thai hi 8 face no more; " which proves that he knew he Fhould "see w ell what was to follow. Nor was this the first intimation. The first message that Moses brought to Israel was, that, ''the Lord had «een their affliction, and had come down to deliver them," and the people believed.-Ex. in.: 7-8, i v. : 30-31. From t}a[ time thoy were waiting impatiently for the prom/eed deliver ance. The manner of it is then stated— Chap, xi.— how long before, we are not told ; at hnirit before the beginning of the passover-raonth. Then the particulars are stated in these words: .• This month shall be unto you the beginning of month:; ; it shaU be the first month of the year unto you. Speak ye unto all the congregation of Israel, saying : In the tenth day of this month they shall take to them every man a lamb, uccording to the house .,f their fathers, a lamb for a house." Surely no rational man will denv that this order must have been delivered, at least, in the beginning of the month. According to Colenso's logic, the order to ^" take" the lamb on the tonlh day, and keep it up till the fourteenth, was i.isued on the/ouWeen//i-i.e., foui dai,s after it must be executed ! Wwi (says Colenso), the first notice of the fea«t is given " in ihi* very chapter.'' That is not so— but supi)Ose it were—did every thins, written in the same chapter, happen on the same dayl Asain he rests his proof upon the i)ronoun Hazzeh— '•' ^/it»," which he says is to be distinguished from 11-a\\\\~" that,'' and implies that the things must be done on the self-same day on which t was spoken. He seems ignorant of the fact that these two pronouns in the Hebrew, as in English, refer, the one to the ^rst mentioned the other to the /as<.— See Gen. vii. : 11-13. Mo^os having spoken of the tenth day, (v. 3) and then of the fourteenth, (v. 6) says, (v. 12) "I will pass through the land this (the last mentioned) night." Many more evidences could be adduced to prove that, so far from le-ael having only a few hours warning of the passover, and of their departure, they liad a general intimation of it from the time that Moses came to Egypt, and particular instructions from the beginning of the month at least,— i.e., fourteen days before the event. "^ There is, therefore, nothing incredible in the Btateraent that anv number of people, so instructed, should keep the passover, and depart from their housee the same night. ■ 49 1 CHAPTER XV. THI IIARCO OUT OF EOTPT. '* And the Childrea of Israel journeyed from Ramcsea to Sue- <>*,:-.," Ac. Ex. XII. : 37-38. Colenso refers to his own experience in this chapter, and says, he ikiid his family were compelled or*e night to fleo in great confusion, when a false alarm was made that a Zulu force was making ita way " direct for our station, killing right and left." From bis ^'experience" he insists that it is "utterly impossible and incredi- ble that a multitude like that of Israel, amounting to two millioni, with sick and aged, womv;n in recent and imminent child-birth, and infants," &c , spread over an extensive country, could be summoned 4o start, and actually 8*art, with all their flocks and herds, eveu very much cattle. Again he t.-ys : *' But this is but a very small part of the difiSculty. We are re- en/y- two miles lon\;,'^ so that the lust of them could not have started till the firs', had advanced two days' journey, and then the sheep and cattle must have formed another vast column covering a greater space, and such grass as there was, if not eaten would be trodden down by the first ranks. '^ What, then, di-' *hose millions of sheep and oxen live upon during this journey irom Rameses to Succoth, and from Succoth to Kthani, aud from Ethaiu to the Bed Sea?" But what if neither people nor cattle did travel Jifty abreast 1 The Scriptures say nothing about the number abreast. Reason '^ould suggest that any people, in such a case, would not concern themselves about how many were in any rank. They M'ould most likely travel just as it might be convenient. They were limUed to no road nor space. It is not very likely that the cattle would be driven in "dense columns," since the whole country was before them, and they had their freedom of it. He slill further insists that they could not have performed the journey to the sea in three days. That the shortest route from Rameses to the Ree pas- tured there. To these remarks I would reply : — FirsUyj — It is no prooi' that they had great flocks and herds for forty years because they had them theirs* and secxmd. Nor does the Scripture to which ho refers (Nuio. xi. : 22) state that they had them even the second year. Moses asks the question, '' shall the flocks and the herds be slain for them to suffice them ?" What flocks and herds ? The ai-ticle (l/*e) is not in the original. " Shall flocks and herds be slain for them, or shall all the fish of the sea be gath* ered together to suffice them." If that proves that they had the flocks and herds mentioned, it follows Ihat they had aU t/ie Jish of the sea ; for the one is spoken of in the same terms as the other. Is it likely that the pe pie would have murmured for flesh and yet spare numerous flocks in their ossession ? Is it reasonable that Moses should say^ "Whence si. .uld I have flesh to give unto all this people?" when he had (as Colenso says) flocks and herds without numlxjr ? it is a new way of proving that they had great herds, to refer us to a text which tells us that the people lusted for flesh and it could not be provided but by a great miracle ! The last we hoar of flocks, after the Isra':>lites left Egypt, was under Sinai, and wo are not informed that they v»-ere large. They probably existed only as a remnant. We may turn Colenso's manner of reasoning against him, and say, "The Scriptures say not a word of these (locks in the desert during thirty-eight years, which sm-ely they must have done if such did exist." But, says Colenso, the children of RouT)en and of Gad had a great multitude of cattle. He admits that many were taken from the Midianitos, but thoy would be distributed among all the tribes. That is not said. J^ay, more, the very mention of these two tribes- possessing so many, implies that the others had not many. It i» most likely that the cattle would fall into the hands of few, wliile- other spoil would suit others better. At all events some of them could not but have a great multitude of cattle, sinc-f; they took from the Midianites 675,000 sheep, 72,000 beeves and 1,000 assess —Num. XXXI. : 32-34. only mark the line of their march; nothing is saia aoout the time 4 \ ' % f \ ' 53 Nor wnuld they need but a fraction of the nrnnber of the sheep he mentions to enable them to keep the Passover under Sinai. He Reckons two million people, and one lamb to every tea. We have already shown that both estimates arc far astray. At all events, it is no proof that they htwl great flocks all the forty years, even if thoy had them at the end of the fii-st. And how does he prove that the flocks 'vcre "all collected in one place with the people ?" He says they were with the people under Si- nai, for Musos was commaudt'd not to let the herds feed before the mount, i.e., the evidence of their being there, is the command that ihcy should not he allowed there / '' The story says uotliiag and implies nothing " that would con- flict with the herds being scattered any distitnco. Common sense would suggest that they were certainly not in the same place with the people. That there was pasturage in the region of Mt. Sinai is evident from the fact that Moses went thither before with the flocks of hia father-in-law- — Ex. ill.: 1. He refers to Dou. xxxii. : 10, viii. : 15, Jer. ii. : 6, and says the country has undoi-gone no change. He is unfortunate in his choice of texts, for every one of these to which he directs us, speaks of tho Divine interposition in protecting and providing for Israel and their flocks. " Thy paths drop fatness. They drop upon the paa. tures of the wilderness, and the little hills rejoice on every side." It is disliiictly stated that the Lord went before his people, and pre- pared and made the \,ilderness, what it had never been before, and likely will never be again. <' The heavens dropped at the presence of God. Thou, (J God, didst send ti plentiful rain, whereby thou didst confirm thine iiihcritauoe when it was wearv, thv cou^'re^a tion hath dwelt thoreiu." — Ps. Lxvin. : 7-10. Colenso makes the fullowing (Quotation from Canon Stanley to prove that the mi'ibar (desert) was a place where there was no moisture, and no grass could grow. He savs : — <•! cannot too i)ften repeat that these wadys are exactly like riv- ers, e.rcv^f in having' no water ; and it is this appearance of tor- rent-bed, and banks, and clefts in the rocks for tnbutarv streams, and at times even rushes and shrubs fringing their course which gives to the whole wildoruess a doubly dry and thirsty aspect,— signs of wuitr, tvaicr everywhere, and nut a drop to drink.'' After noticing what many might mistake for signs of volcanic actidn, he adds: "Everywhere there are signs of ih^ action of water, nowhere of fire-" Let Coleuao account for these unmiatakeable traces of wattr, m water everywhere^ An effect must have had a cause. If these water marks are there so clear, these '^ rivers and tributary streams " must have run some time, and when more lii<:ely than when the Lord made the ^' keavens drop abundantly ^^ for the supply of his people ? Stanley and others declare that a change must have taken place, and this accords with the Scripture that saith, "' He turneth the wilderness into a standing water." — Ps. cvii. : 3j-33, There is, therefore, j?nfi//;, no'evidence that the Israelites had any flocks in the desert, for more than thirty-eight years. Secondly, if they had, there is no evidence from any source to prove that they could not, ct that time, have found pasturage enough. He that said, ''I have led you forty years in the wilderness, your clothes are not waxen old upon you, and thy shoe is not waxen old upon thv foot" (Deut. XXIV. : o), would not have suffered their Hocks to perish for want of grass. Jiy th« way. Why did not Colenso raise a great dithculty upon tlint text, and prove that it wbs impossible that clothes and shoes could last forty years ? It would have been as likely an those he has produced. He says that Num. xx. ; 5, ('^neither is tlisere any water to drink,") and Deut. viii. : 15, prove that the water from the sniittoi rook did not follow them. The latter text reads thus: -'Who led thee through the groat and terrible wilderness, wherein were iiery se; - pents and scorpions, where there was no water, N/ho brought thee forth water out of the rock of flint.'' God"s mercies: are here re- counted, and among them this one, that wherear* the wilderness was dry, he supplied water in a miraculous manner, '-out of tlxe rock of flint.'' It implies that the water did follow them, since they wanted no more till they came to Kadesh, where the miracle was repeated.~Num. xx. : 5. If the water from the rock in Uephid- im did not follow them, where could they get any water at all, if, as Colenso says, the desert was so dry ? The second miracle for their su-^ply indicates tlwxt the stream from Rephidim did not fail till then. Moses says, he did cast the small dust of the golden calf into the "6rooA; that descended out of the mount." '—Deut. ix. : 21. The psalmist says, '' He brought streams also out of the rock, and caused water to run down like rivers. He .smote the rock that the water gushed out, and the streams overflowed,^^ Ps. lxxviii. : 16, 20, and again, " He opened the rock and the waters gushed out, they ran in the dry places like a river/^ — Ps. cv. : 46. Paul aays, "They drank of the 3i)iritual rock thai followed them." Tbeso divinely taught witnesses all agree. There are no evideucea ajrainst them in the Bible or out of it. Whom shall we believe* Moses, David and Paul, or Coleiiso ? CHAPTER XVII. THE NUMBER OF THK IHUAKMTKS fOMl'AUKD AVITH THE EXTENT OF THE LAND OF CANAAN. Referrin'T to Ex. xxiii.: 27-:{0, Coleuso muintains that the prom- ised land had an urea of only 11,000 s(i[uare miles, or 7,000,000 acres, and as there were about 2.000,000 of Israel, the population would have been as thick as that of the three counties of En-rhuid, Norfolk, Suffolk and E^sex, or tiventi/ tin»o,-j as thick as that of Natal, in which leopards, wild boars, hyenas and jackals are killed, but many, like himself, have lived there many years and never saw one: therefore, the story of the Pentateuch about ''thu land becojning desolate," suid "the beast of the field multiplying^ against the people " is incredible. This lof ic reminds me of a brave sou of Erin, who when he wa» told that there were two witnesses who swore that they saw him commit the crime, replied, that he could find twenty to swear that they did not see him do it. The Bishop has lived so lon^' in Na; tal and never saw one of these ferocious beasts, when others write of their bein.^^ in Palestine three thousand years ago, he exclaims "incredible." Firstli/, — He takes for granted, as before, that Israel numbered two millions. His conclusions are, therefore, astray. Nor does he consider how many of them would be helpless or defenceless, such as women and children. Secondly,— The boundaries of the promised land are not as ho has described them. Canaan was but n portion of it. In the very next verse, following that which he quoteJ, it is sta- ted, 'tif, XI. : 24 Josh» 1. : 4. Thouirh they set- tied first in Canaan, David went to recover his border at the river Euphrates. — 2 Sam. viii. : 3; and Solomoi, reigned ''from the river unto the land of the Philistines, and unto the border of Egypt." — 2 Chron. tx. : 26. Even if there had been two millionj^ what would they be on such a va»t country as this ? ^jwim m Thirdly, — If Colenso has not seen such wild beasts in Natal in tliis age, they may have been in Palestine in ages long past. The beasts of pioy which he names are only small craft compared with what ranged in the East. How many such bishops would be needod to face such a lion as Samson slew ? Jud. xiv. : 6, or the lion and bear from which David delivered the lambs? 1 Sam. xvll.: 35, or the lions that infested the heathen ? 2 Kings, xvil. : 2r), or the bears that tore the wicked children ? 2 Kings, ii. : 24. These are but samples of the ravages made when Israel had multijdied in the land, and they are mentioned incidentally. Though the province of Bengal is densely peopled, it is still in- fested with tigers. Colenso errs by squaring everything according to what he has seen and known. CHAPTER XVni. THK NIMBKR OF TlIK PRIESTS AT THE EXODl'S COMrAUED Wlia THKIK DITIES, AND THE I'ROVlSlONS MAIJE FOR THEM. Colenso thinks that olTorings were very fioqueut and numerous. There were burnt, peace, meat and sin offerings. Offerings for every woman after childbirth — every leper — ceremonial cleansings — Nazarites, and the daily m')!iiing and evening offerings. For all this work Colenso s;iy3 tlioro wore only Aaron and his two sons. None other were allowed, for " the stranger that cometh nigh shall be put to doath." — Num. ill. : 10. " How was it possible that these three meu should have dis- charged all those duties for such avast multitude? Tlu; birtha among 2,()U(>,U00 people may be reckoned at 250 a day, for which, cousei^uently, 500 sacrifices would have to be offered daily. These; at five minutes each, would take forty-two hours." Tken where could they have got these two hundred and fifty turtle doves daily^ i. e., ninety tliousand annually, in the Wilder- ness ? Moreover, these pigeons were to be eaten by the priests. — Num. iviii. : 9-11, 14-18, Lev. vii. : 7-10 and 34. Each must devour eighty-eight pigeons every day, besides other flesh ! In Canaan thirteen cities were assigned to these two Bona of Aaron and their families 1 I shall not dispute about the number of sons and grand-aona of Aaron. There were more than two, certainly. Nor shall we :mmw* . Sll&will''^ 67 contest the continued error of computiu? the numher of Isi-a?! at two millions, thus increasing the number of sacrifices, but I re- mark : — Firstly,—!^ this reasoning were correct it would prove more than the Bishop designs. It would prove that no rational man ever wrote these books. If the books say that, every priest must eat in the holy place, daily, eighty-eight pigeons, besides a similar quantity of other . ish. I venture that thv. most fivbulous book in print cannot beat tnat. How did anijbodij ever write it I and how did any one believe it ! ! Secondly,— 1^\'Q\\ Colenso is forced to aJmit that many laws given to Israel in the desert were prospectioe, and c»uld not bo applied at that tinte. Directions are given concerning offerings of oil, wine, wheat, first fruits, and "whatsoever is first ripe."— Num. XviiT. : 12-13, which must have been intended to apply to the peo- ple when settled in Canaan. Colenso allows that, but insists that the other offerings must have been offered in the desert. In the order concerning them there is no distinction of that kind. If there were not beasts to offer, the priests would not be dis- tressed with the labor of offering them. They would not be under the necessity of eating eighty-eight pigeons daily in the holy place, if there were none to be had. There is an end of that ditHculty. Nevertheless it was a fit time to promulgate the laws, when tho people were collected to hear and learn them. They must learn the law before they could obey it. Hence the manner of its proc- lamation. " Speak unto the children of Israel and say unto them, when ye conic into the land of your habitations, which I give unto you, and will make an ottering by fire unto the I n-d."— Num. xv. : 2. Moreover, there was no necessity laid upoi ^ people to offer the sacrifices specified, in all circumstances. Most of them wore voluntary. " If any man of you will bring an offering unto the Lord."' — Lev. i. : 2. T/iirbly,— Let any one read Num. iii and xviii, and say if Aaron and his sous were all that were allowed to otter sacrifices. Moses is instructed to bring the tribe of Levi near, and present them to Aaron, the priest, that they may minister with him. v. 6. Then their service is defined, v. 7-8, '' to do the service of the taberna cle." Aaron and his sons are appointed over them, and " the stranger that cometh nigh shall be put to death." The Levites ould not be strawers, for they were Joined to Aaron and his sons, who had the charge. They were "to bear the iniquity of the sanctuary," and the Levites were " to do the service." Therc- simply affirms that the large numbers of the Midianitea said to be 58 fore none o^ tlieso were allowed any inheritance amon;^ the chil- dren ot laraelj and the thirteen cities would he little enough to •erve them " for to dwell iu " CHAPTER XIX. THH Pi;tEST9, AND THEIR DUTIES AT THE CELEBRATION OF THB PASSOVER. '^Vguin,'" Csays Coleiiso) " hovv did tliose throe priosts mana:^e at the celebration of the Passover? We are told, 2 C\\. xxx. : Irt, XXXV.: II, th.it the {)Ooi)!e killud t!ic Padsovor, but the priests sprinkled the blood from their hands, and the Levitiis flayed them. Hcnoe, when th(;v ke.)t the .second Passover, nnder Sinai, Mnra ix.: .0, where we must snppose that loOjOOO hunb.s wore killed ;it one time .... eat'h priest must have had to sprinkle the blood of .'»0,(H)0 lambs in about two hours, that is, at the rate of about four hundred lamb.s every minute, for t\V(» hours to.,'t?thpr. Besides which, in the linn of Hezokiah and Josiah, when it was desired to keep tlie Pa.-;.^ovor sti'ictly, ' in such sort as it was writt(Mi,' 2 ('hron. xxx. : 5, the himbs were manifestly killed in the court of the Tem- ple, we must sup[)0se, tlien, that tlie paschal lambs in the Wilder- ness were killed in the Ct»urt of the Tabernacle . . . • in accord- ance with the L'jvitical law, that all bur:it-(>lferin;4S, poace-offer- in,i,'s, sin-olFerinis, and trespass■olferin^^s shimid itc killed ''before Jcdiovah," at the door of the 'J'abornacle of the (,'cn^re^ation. . . Hut the area of that court contained, as we have seen, only 1,(!0J1 .sipiare yards, and could only have held, when thronjcd. alioat 6,000 [)eop!e. How, then, are we to conceive of 150,000 lambs being killed within it by, at least, 150,000 i)eo[»le, in tlu; space of two houis, that is, at the uate of 1,250 lam!)s a minute?" These very formidable like dithcultie.'^ belong to Colenso, whoso fertile ima-inatio!i has conceived vi.d brought them forth. They are in the Holy Bible nowhere. Firstly, — There is not a word about these great numbers at all, neither of people nor lambs. Stcondfy, — There is not a word about the lambs being killed in the Court of the Tabernnde, nor in that of the Temple. And ev( n if thi'v had been killed in the Court of the Temple^ in Ca- naan, in the days of Hezelciah, it do-js not follow that tht'y wera killed 'n the Court of the Tabernacle, in the Wilderness, in the day.'; of Moses. '* Thej kept the Passover in such sort U8 it wim writte: ," but there is nothing written about killing the lambs in the court. Aaron. There were more thaa two, certainly. Nor ehall we 59 Ho says that a penalty of death was laid upon any who killed an ox, &c., in the camp, and did not bring it to the dooi- of the Tali- ernacle.— Lev. xvn. : 2-6. They might be killed, but not offtrtd, without bringing them to the door of the Tabernacle. The order was against idolatry. — See v. 7. In regard to the buvut-offerings, siu-otferings, &c., they must kill the bullock hcjort the Lord. Co. lensij thinks iliat must mean in the Court of the Tabernacle. He has not imderstooil it, Nimrod was a mighty hunter '•^before, tlie Lord.^^ — Gen. x. : D. Did he hunt in the Court of the Taber- nacle ? The men of Sodom wore '' sinners before the Lord exceed- ingly."— Gen. xni. : 13. They did not dwell in the Court of the Tabernacle ! Nor does the phrase before the door ot Jie Tabernacle mean in the court. Neither was the Passover a sacrifice similar to any of the others named, and was not regulated by laws that governed them. Thirdly, — There is not a word about the pri-^sts sprinkling the blood of the passover lambs in the Tabernacle, nor anything that implies it. When the Passover was Jirst celebrated, there were uo priests at all about it, and they might, therefore, colebrat'i it again in " such sort as it was written," without them. In another case, when a few data in the Chronicles militated against the so called difficulties raised by the bishop, he refused the testimony ; saying, -'we are not concerned with the Chroniclei. We must abide by the data of the Pentateuch itself." Now ho takes that very book to raise his difficulty, by assuming that what was done in Hezekiah's days, must have been so done in the days of Moses, eight hundred years before ! But we care not how many books of the Bible are brought forward, we have shown that the alleged difficulties have not a shadow of existence, and we stand to oar motto, " The Scriptures cannot be broken." I CHAPTER XX. THE WAR ON M I D I A X . It is quite unnecessary to take any account of the proposed diffi. culties handled under this caption. Colenso takes a sort of retro* spective view of what he had advanced, and delights in affirming and reaffirming that, " in its own essential statements of matters of fact, the narrative of the Exodus is full of contradictions." Hf- simply affirms that the largo numbers cf the Midianitea said to be m ^rL\n and taken captive by Israel are incredible. As there l« no- thing in tlie form of argument, it needs no refutation. Even if there were an error about the number of the Midianite* in Num. XXXI., it would not affect, seriously, the fidelity of the hir tory. Numbers were written in letters, many of which, in Hebrew, are very similar, and might very likely bo mistaken by a scribe. A'uc/i errors would only prove that scribes are not infallible. But there is no evidence even of such an error. It is alle"ed that the events recorded in Num. xxxin. : coold not have happened in the time stated, r. c, from the death of Aaroa to the first day of the eleventh month.— Deu. i. : 3. It is taken for granted that these events were a'l successive, and none of them simultaneous, which may be incorrect. Colenso says the war with King Arad must have occupied at least a month. I shou'd think a few days might be sufficient. H« allows another month for marching, in which they made nine en- campments. When we look at the distance, we would judge nina days, t. C, one for each encampment, quite enough, and so on. We might show the whole of this chapter in like manner, a crea- ture of a disoi-dered imagination, but enough. I dure say th« reader is tired of the subject, and I hasten to the conclusion. CONCLUSION. •« I cannot but feel," says the Bishop, " that, having thus been impellod to take an active part in showing the groundlessness of that notion of Scripture inspiration, which so many have long re- carded as the very foundation of their faith and hope, a demand may be made upon me for something to supply tl^\l««s --f«7^°^®: thincr to fill up the aching void, which will undoubtedly be felt at «r8t° here thai faith, which has been built only, or mainly, upon the basis of the historical truth of the Pentateuch, must be m dan- ger of collapsing, together with its support." This is reasonable. The man who tries to tear from us the fonn- dation of all our hopes for time and for eternity, ought to be ready l:» show us a " more excellent way "—to furnish a foundation moi* Bolid and secure, which some other sceptic will not, in turn, be abk to demolish. What, then, are we to have instead of our God-given Bible T l^t the reader pause and consider, what would fill that "aching told ?■' What does this Christian Bishop offer ? Hear him. H» «aT8: — , , ''« I would, however, venture to refer the reader tor some wor initut know and cannot lie. In the days of his flesh the books of t!ic Old Testament were all collected in one sviia-'O'^ue roll. What is our Ln-tl's verdict couc purest morulity, uor a sylUblo hut touches whut ia pure mid lovely, and of h'ood report. If thi.« hook w not divine th.^ro are none 80, and man is ulto;,'ether without a revelation from God,— U^ft in diirknesi, and, aVm, how 'zjtat would h.> that durknesH. Let one raise \m eyes and say what th>; world would have huen without the Uihlc, yea, what it would yet 1).' if this book wen; taken away 1 l.»oar reader, suller a wortl of exhortation from a brother mor- l;il. I Irru.st you ni it is loaded with eurscs rt^'uuwt us. That sum." r.MitutMiich. by divine authority, levels aa:ith<;mas a'.'auisl the inip.Miitcnt and u^believil);,^ '• H' thou wilt not heftrken unto the voic' of the Lord thy God, to observe to do :vll hw commandments and his statutes, . . . '• Cu'sed shalt thou bo in the cilv, and eursed shalt thou b(> in the fiold, cursed shall b,^ thy baskJt aud thy store. Curst,-d shall be thr> fruit of thy body. ;ir.d the fruit of thy land, the increase of thy kine and the flocks of thy sheep. Curs(.d shalt tkou be when thou eomest in, and rarse-i slialt thou bo when thou .ijoest out."~l)eu. xxvui. : 16, l\K ];ut that same book directs us to Ilim that takes away the curse— a aeed in which all tlie families of th(> earth shall be biassed— n smitten rock from which Hows a ^' river of iiviii!^ water:' Oh, hallow sinner, come to this J.amb of God, who tuketh away the ain of the world, feed on Him, walk in Him, live to Him, and you may r(>ad hi that infallible book, your title to a heavenly hiheritance of blessings. '' Blessed shalt thou be in the city, and blessed shalt tliou be in" the field, blessed shall be the fruit of thv body aud Ww fruit of thy ground, and the fruit of thy cattL, the increase of thy kine, .^nd the flocks of thy sIkmh^j. Blessed shall be thy basket and iliY store. Blessed shalt thou be when thou coiaest in, and liledsu^i shalt thou be when thou goest out. The Lord shall command the blcaaing upon thee in thy atore-hoase, and iu all that thou aette^t thine hand onto, aud ho shall bless thee in the laud which the Lord thy Qod giveth thee." AMBN. i / \ 1 ,\ t / I \ I CONTENTS. COM'A'i^O'S PUKKACK: HIS INSINLATION'.S • ^ llHlUr A'SLAVHUV "< THi'. \Mii.vorjri).\5i i- THK >, '^^HKU OF TllK I'EOl'LK UF ISltAKL AT Till-: r.xoDi's ^'' rUH XCMIlKll OK FlllST P>OilNS (:oMl\VUFl) WITH THK NUMI'-Kll OK MALK ADCLT.S 24 rUK SojoFIlNlNu OK THF. CHII.UllHN' OF ISHAFL IN KCYl'T. -^ rilF KXODL'S OFISUA'.i:L IX THE FOURTH UENKIIA- _ THF NrMUEUoVl^UAEE ATTHIC TIME OF THE F" rHEUANITES ANDLEYITES AT THE TIME OF THE ^ EXODFS •'•* THE SIZE OF THE COLMIT OF THE TAliEllNACLE, (-UMFAUE;. WITH THE NUMliEll OF THE CON- (UiEOATIOX •"'•* MOSES \NI) .TOSHl'A ADDUESSINO AEL ISRAEL UT THF EXTENT OF THE CAMl' COMPARED WITH THE PRIESl-S' DUTIES, AND TI'E DAILY NECESSI- TIES OF THE ri:OPLE :>'•' THENUMP>EROFTHE PEOPL;^] AT THE FIRST MUS- TER, COMPARED WITH IHE POLL-TAX LEVn^:D SIX 'm. Ill' iii;i">vnk.v' >hiii]|il ho ilif iirili.T .'t' i:ii.''.:iiti't' : •/. A. J ti,:l. Kniiaih, Ki.iKiiU, Unhuilv. I|r/|M11. •-!. (i..'ii. Aiiiiitli'. AlllRdll. V/./Av\. I tifli ;) lien. AitriM. Aiiiiiriiliiti. \i)>liHii. > ticu u\. 4!:i'^e •-'!». liiiL- III. lor /iiliiiU r<'iii| /;il<:i.l. .'!'). !iiiL' IJ. li'i' liie-i; I'l'ihl tlni>i'. .57. nil. ■>i'vv;clil. :>iM •>i(,< ii. i'),i \i.. .jT .'iicli ■iKiliIiT • -J ?^y:/'-^'iS5Sil#l;'ii;;::i-