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GENERAL PREFACE.

IBLES are cyclopædias of the best religious literature of the world. Cyclopædias are valuable for purposes of reference and occasional use; but for general use they are cumbersome and inconvenient.

The Christian Bible is made up of "The Old Testament," which comprises the best ancient literature of the Jews; and of "The New Testament," which comprises the best Christian literature of the first centuries. It represents what we may call the survival of the fittest out of the mass of devout literature of the Jews and of the early Christians. In this sense it is all valuable, and not a scrap of it should be lost. But being a cyclopædia, it is not well adapted to common use.

For the student, as a book of reference it is invaluable; but for practical purposes-that is, as a book of devotion, of devout instruction, or of ethi cal guidance and suggestion—it is unquestionably confusing as well as cumbersome and inconvenient. So much irrelevant matter, of mere history, genealogy, incident, explanation, repetition, etc., is (quite naturally) included, that it becomes like the metamorphic rocks or the alluvial soils, from which much rubbish must be cleared away before one can get at the embedded gold. For practical purposes the gold should be ready at hand and in a convenient form. So for practical purposes the practical instructions and suggestions of the Bible should be separated from its mass of history, genealogy, and detail, so that eye and mind may at once apprehend their meaning and be quickened by their timely inspirations. The want of such a selection is now widely felt by ministers in their Pulpits, by teachers in Sunday-schools and in Day-schools, by parents in their Homes, and by individuals in their hours of Devotion.

To answer this "want," in some measure at least, this volume has been prepared. Both from the Old Testament and from the New, all has been selected that seems of practical value, for purposes either of moral instruction or of devout inspiration. A few kindred selections have also been added from the other bibles or sacred scriptures of the world, simply that they might stand as confirmations of the truth and beauty of the Divine Revelations as found in our Bible; and at the same time bear living testimony to the fact, that In times past God has not left himself without a witness in any nation; but hath from time to time raised up proph ets among them all such as they were able to hear.

As to the selections made and parts omitted, it is inevitable that a compiler of any sort can never hope to satisfy the taste and judgment of all. What one would retain another would reject; what one would reject, another would retain. Some would retain all; and some would reject all. So, on his own taste and judgment must every compiler rely; and, especially in such a serious matter as attempting" to tamper with Sacred Scriptures," must he be prepared for criticism, and for finding that personal satisfaction and benefit are the only compensation to be received from even his most studious and devout labors.

EXPLANATION OF METHODS.

The compiler of this volume may here be permitted to make some personal explanations with reference to his fitness to undertake so great a work as that which he has ventured to assume, and the general methods he has adopted. From childhood he has been unusually familiar with the Bible. Very early in life he committed to memory large portions of it. In college, in theological schools, and during the many studious as well as busy years of a clergyman's life which have followed, the Bible has unceasingly been his "book of books." He has also during these years, from opportunities as pastor and preacher in country as well as in city parishes; from opportunities also of wide and various associations, both in America and in Europe, with people of all grades of intellectual and theological appreciations, sought to arrive at just and wise conclusions as to the relative worth of the various parts of the Bible with reference to the views and needs, not only of people in general, but of the more intelligent and critical classes in particular.

With so much of early and of continued preparation to recommend him to the task, or at least to recommend the task to him, he began about six years ago to devote his leisure hours to gathering and arranging the materials for this volume-chiefly that he might have it for his own use in his own home, pulpit, and congregation.

The general methods which he adopted and has followed out, are:

(1) To carefully select from the entire Bible all the parts, whether chapters, paragraphs, or isolated sentences, which seemed to be of especial importance for purposes of ethical instruction, or, as aids to either public or private devotion.'

(2) To bring these Selections together, part to part, in a way that would render them most effective, and at the same time do no violence to the critical and historical sense of the various books, chapters, or paragraphs from which they were taken.

'As has already been hinted in this preface, our Bible, like all the other bibles of the world, and like all masses of literature-especially ancient literature,-may be fittingly compared to a great mine, rich in deposits of precious ore. To delve for these "precious deposits," and to bring them forth-whether found in the form of veins, or of nuggets, or of scattered grains,-this is wisdom; it is benevolence also; and, moreover, is, in its highest form, reverence for the original sources of revelation and of truth.

(3) To faithfully translate-with standard lexicons and with all scholarly versions in hand-the Selections thus made and brought together, carefully studying the context and noting the various meanings of all disputed parts, with the resolution of leaving unchanged every sentence, phrase, or word in the Authorized Version that represents even approximately the meaning of the original writings, as the present translator might be able to understand them; but with the resolution also, of rendering all parts which have important ethical or devotional bearings into whatever new or changed words, phrases, or sentences would most truthfully and clearly represent the meaning of the original writings, as the present translator might be able to understand them.

(4) To change or to retain the common punctuation according to the above rule of translation.

(5) To omit all unnecessary particles and meaningless repetitions of words, in cases where the sense of a passage would be obscured or burdened by their retention.

(6) To gather into paragraphs or verses such portions of each Selection as seemed to be kindred; i. e., as seemed to have been originally spoken or written as a continuous sentiment or thought.

(7) To place at the head of each Selection an outline of its sentiment or thought, whenever there should be sufficient definiteness and continuity to warrant it.'

(8) To transform the four Gospels into one, by omitting from each all plainly contradictory parts; all parts that-while recording incredible claims or events-are not clearly authenticated by at least two of the four biographies; and all parts that are either acknowledged or probable interpolations.

(9) To observe the above rules in general with reference to making Selections from all the other sacred scriptures of the world, so far as the compiler might be able to apply them, by getting at the bulk of these writings, and by some knowledge of the languages in which they were originally written or in which they have been preserved.'

Two or three anticipated criticisms may here be noticed also by way of general explanation.

First, that the translator has ventured to adopt what are known as free renderings in place of the common (professedly) literal renderings; and that in doing this he has very often filled in or pieced out his translations with such connecting or explanatory words as would serve the better to bring out his view of the author's full or evident meaning. In reply he would say that literal or word-for-word translations of the Bible are

'The Psalms, Proverbs, and similar portions being made up, for the most part, of fragmentary exclamations and instructions, no attempt to outline the contents of the various Selections drawn from them could wisely be made.

But few and very fragmentary Selections, however, have been gathered from these sources, for the reason that this volume was from the first designed to be chiefly a volume of Selections from the Hebrew and Christian Scriptures.

based only upon the old, but now widely rejected, idea of verbal inspiration. Those who have come to believe that the Bible is simply a book among books, will insist upon the privilege of translating it as they would translate Homer, Virgil, the Vedas, the Koran, or any other book. Moreover, the literal method of translation on the part of the old school of theologians is only a professed one; as a matter of fact, it has never been followed. All translators from the earliest times have woven into the original text words and phrases of their own, the better to express their sense of its meanings. Certainly a translator from the modern and liberal stand-point may enjoy the privilege of doing the same.

Everybody knows that the original text of nearly all the New Testa ment, but particularly the "Epistles," was exceedingly ungrammatical, disconnected, confused, and uncertain-necessarily so because their authors and first transcribers were all unlearned men; even Paul being obliged to write or dictate in a language of whose grammatical and perspicuous use he knew little or nothing. So that, from the beginning, all translations have been largely a matter of guess as to the author's real meaning. From the first translations down to the recent Revised Edition, there have been no really literal renderings, but "filling in and piecing out" with such words and phrases as seemed to the translators to assist in best bringing out the meaning of the text. The same privilege, from a different stand-point of interpretation only, is all that the present translator has claimed.

Another anticipated criticism which it may be well here to forestall, is that so much has been omitted. But a sufficient reply to this is a reference to the fact, that the compiler of this volume has made it his main object to leave out (1) all improper, (2) all irrelevant, (3) all theologically or ethically unnecessary, and (4) all parenthetical and inadequately testified to or confirmed, parts, in order to produce a "Selection" not at all for critical, but entirely for moral and devout purposes. For instance, the four Gospels have been woven into one, with every purely ethical and devoutly theistic verse and sentence included; and with nothing excluded but (1) unnecessary historic details, and (2) such interpolated opinions of the authors and accounts of miracles or marvels as are conflicting in the sense of not being stated or even referred to by more than one or two of the four Gospels. The same general method, with different applications, has been followed in all the selections made from the Old Testament, and the other portions of the New. The essence or essential parts have been included, and all else omitted.

A word of explanation may also here be added with reference to the form in which the pages and selections have been arranged. The form of paragraphs or verses gathered into selections has been adopted as best for two reasons: (1) All "Bibles" are made up of fragments of history and of thought, which have loosely drifted together without much if any

discernible order or connection, and hence the fragmentary form of preserving them is most natural and suggestive. (2) Ethical teachings and devout sentiments have always been found most effective, both for the memory and for purposes of meditation, when presented in brief paragraphs or in isolated sentences. This is shown in the growing tendency in our times of all authors whose main object is suggestion or instruction, to break up their pages into headings, sections, paragraphs, and short sentences. Of all writings the ancient scriptures of the world, which, for the most part, originally were only sentences or fragments of thought and of devout utterances written upon stones, bark, parchment, any thing most convenient, and at length gradually gathered in volumes, of all writings these are most suggestive and impressive when presented as nearly as possible in their original fragmentary form. In this as in some other particulars the old King James' Bible was more wisely arranged than is the recent Revised Edition.

The question also will, doubtless, be asked: Why are not authorities for changes in the translations given? The answer is, that the translator, being a classical scholar and reasonably familiar with the Hebrew and Greek as well as with some other ancient languages, has thought it best to be his own authority for changes in the common translations; at the same time he would acknowledge his indebtedness to every well-known version of the Bible, and to every well-known volume of Translations or of Selections from the other ancient scriptures of the world.

It may also here be added that no references to exact chapter and verse, or to probable or possible authors have been made, first, because this is not designed as a volume for critical study; and, second, because by the use of the ordinary Concordances every selection may be easily traced and verified.

PREFACE TO SELECTIONS FROM THE GOSPELS.

It is to be remembered that the biographies of Jesus, or the Gospels as they are called, were none of them written until long after the death of Jesus; none of his words were written down when spoken, or written in any form until many years after they were spoken. They seem to have made a profound impression upon the minds and memories of those who heard them, especially of his disciples; so that after his tragic death they were vividly recalled and, in fragmentary forms, passed from mouth to mouth, and circulated from place to place, wherever his persecuted followers were scattered abroad or went preaching the new religion.

So, for many years, the words as well as deeds of Jesus were preserved only as traditions. Repeated over and over, thousands of times, by thousands of different persons and among unlearned and superstitious people, it was impossible that they should be preserved, even for a brief period, in their exact original form; much less could they be so preserved and

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