THE HOLY SCRIPTURES.

BY H. C. THWEATT, D. D.,

PRESIDENT OF MANSFIELD FEMALE COLLEGE-LOUISIANA CONFERENCE.

"Search the Scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me."-John v, 39.

If there be often much difficulty in saying enough, and no more, on any one verse or single passage of Scripture, how much more is that difficulty increased when we undertake to say all that might be desired on the Book itself, which contains near fifty thousand verses. The mind is, in a measure, bewildered in the attempt rightly to embody, and thereby forcibly to exhibit the vast, varied, and almost endless materiel of such a subject; and especially so, when it is required to develop all that is important to be introduced in the brief space usually allotted to the services of the pulpit. Indeed, on a theme like this, it is no easy task judiciously to select, from the innumerable points of interest and of argument, all the proper elements wherewith to construct the frame-work of a discourse which may prove at once pertinent and impressive, profitable and edifying, to an intelligent worshipping assembly.

It may be said, that the subject is old, trite, common. True, but not yet exhausted, nor ever will be. A man may live in a house without being an architect; so may we perpetually talk or write about the Bible without understanding to the full extent any one of the wonders of its construction, the secret sources of its power and beauty. Though for centuries past the most gifted intellects have been engaged in this worthiest subject of study and investigation, still the true value of this blessed volume remains untold. Yes this book, with which the careless infant plays, in which bright childhood cons its task, and the dim eye of age meets a cheering light; this book, by which the learned become more wise, and withered hearts find hope; this book, whose glorious "author, God himself-the subject, God and man-the end, salvation and eternal life," fully to comprehend and appreciate, in all its breadth, and length,

and depth, and height, has never been vouchsafed to any human, or (as hinted, 1st Peter i, 12,) even angelic mind. And yet every serious, earnest inquirer, however humble, may contribute something, if but a mite, to the common treasury of thought, and thus, to some extent, help forward the grand approximation towards the truth, which is constantly going on while the ages roll away. The bare thought that the best and brightest of mankind, the highest educated of every age and realm, the appointed leaders of mind, the kingly spirits of earth, have here labored and toiled to faintness and weariness, is enough to inspire fear and much trembling while I, in weakness, the mighty task essay, to speak of a book which "has stood, time's treasure, and the wonder of the wise." Aye, too, a book which reveals its secrets, imparts its power, and bestows its blessings only on those who, with a reverent, loving, humble, believing heart, receive it as the pure words of God, the exact transcript of infinite perfection, and especially that which brings to view the light of the knowledge of the glory of God, as it shines in the face of Jesus Christ, by whom alone we have eternal life, and of whom mainly to testify this sure and blessed Word was given.

Impressed with this great truth, and at the same time deeply conscious of the immense difficulty of condensing and shaping our thoughts on a theme so grand, so profound, so immeasurable, well may the preacher feel himself as much perplexed as was the man who, when he first discovered that the rays of light which fell on the convex surface of his sun-glass had been gathered to a burning focal point, inquired" if a lens could not be made that might gather all the sun's rays?"

The rays of light, my brethren, emanating from this holy book, to enlighten, cheer, and vivify the world, are more numerous, if possible, than those which come from yonder sun, rejoicing in his beams; and should I presume to gather them all into one, a hundred, or a thousand sermons, I would act as wildly in the attempt as the man in the case of the sun-glass. Let us then content ourselves, at least on the present occasion, with such leading facts, principles, and truths, as stand in somewise connected with the text; and that we may observe some form or method, the better to impress the mind, and thereby aid your recollections, we will begin with that part of our subject, and so continue and end as general order and just propriety may seem to us most naturally and plainly to demand.

Let us then consider :

I. THE TERM "SCRIPTURES."

Scripture, in its original sense, is of the same import with writing, and as such signifies "anything written." By way of eminence, however, and as used in the plural, the term denotes the entire volume of divine revelation, containing, as it does, the most important of all writings. In the place before us, the Saviour refers to the writings of the Old Testament, as those of the New were not then, or during any period of his abode on earth, (at least, in an embodied form,) in existence; and it was only by reference to these, (if not indeed direct quotation therefrom,) that he could have in any way vindicated his conduct, and convinced the Jews that the Father had sent him, since these alone were by them received and accredited as divine, and in which alone they thought they had eternal life. On no other ground could he have so forcibly upbraided them, when he said, "Ye do greatly err, not knowing the Scriptures ;" and again, "If they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded though one rose from the dead." Yet, according to St. Peter, (2d Epistle, 3d chapter, 16th verse,) the writings of the evangelists and apostles, together with those of the Old Testament, are all included, and thus constitute one volume or collection of sacred writings. And as the Saviour now speaks to us, not only by what Moses and the prophets but by what he himself declared, as recorded by the evangelists, and also by what his apostles wrote, as moved by the Holy Ghost who proceedeth from the Father and the Son, we must of course embrace in the term " scriptures," as expressed in the text, all the canonical books, both of the Old and New Testaments: since together they must either stand or fall, the one being incomplete without the other and can only, when conjoined, form a full, sufficient, and perfect revelation of the will of God to man; for like the overshadowing cherubim, they look to the same propitiatory, and, as the lips of an oracle, give utterance to the same blessed truths. Whatever, therefore, may be said on this point, in this discourse, must be understood of all the Scriptures, which, though called by different names, mean but one thing-the Word of God, given by his authority, and under his direction; written, not left to uncertain oral tradition, but in the shape of an indestructible stereotype-an immutable fixture-proof alike against the attacks of open foes and the

corruptions of pretended friends. "I heard a voice from heaven, saying, write "thus and so. "It is written: To the law and to the testimony "—the final appeal, the perfect standard. Indeed, Jesus so honored his written words that he preferred to quote from its pages solutions of intricate questions, to emitting replies from the depths of his own infinite mind; and yet this written word is to be spoken, enunciated, preached.*

The scriptures are sometimes called "oracles," because they are the answers which God has given, from his holy place, to the inquiries of his people. And again, with some enlargement, they are denominated "lively oracles," in contradistinction to old, dead histories, myths, and fables about persons and things long since passed away-if indeed they (all of them) ever existed-and which, even if true, could never have been of any practical use or spiritual benefit to the world.

The apostle Paul mentions it as a chief advantage to the Jewish people that unto them were committed the oracles of God. And "what nation," says Moses, "is there that hath statutes and judgments so righteous as all these laws?" How different these judg ments, statutes, oracles, from those idle, ambiguous, equivocal, illusory responses of juggling, lying priests, palming their impious devices upon the credulity of the wretched votaries of some imaginary god or demon. Indeed, how widely different such revelations from those so beautifully and forcibly set forth in the nineteenth and one hundred and twenty-ninth psalms. And if such (as therein expressed) was the esteem and veneration which the pious entertained for the living oracles under the former dispensation, when they had only Moses and the prophets, how then ought they to be prized by us, who have also Christ and his apostles!

The word "holy" is often connected with other titles, to express the pure quality and sublime tendency of the Scriptures. Also, the word "testament" is of frequent occurrence in the sacred writings, and which, in its original import, is equivalent to "covenant"-perhaps a more appropriate term. Either, however, conveys the idea of an instrument-the most solemn and authentic ever presented to the world-subscribed, witnessed, and published in such a manner as stamps in undeniable characters, on the minds of all who view it

*Rom. x, 14, 19; Matt. iv. 17: x, 27; 1st Cor. i, 23: xv, 11; 2d Tim. iv, 2; Mark vi, 12: xvi, 20; Ps. xi, 9; Acts ix, 20: xfii, 38; Col. i, 23; Eph. ii, 17; &c