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so far as Israel represents that instinct of communion with Deity which belongs to man as man.

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We come, then, to the Old Testament as to an historical book. The Bible,' says Ewald', 'is through and through of historical nature and spirit. Standing conspicuous amid all the efforts of antiquity, the most profound as a work of mind, the loftiest in elevation and sweep of thought, a product of noble pains, compact in itself and finished, it bears upon its face, looked at as a whole, the clearest impress of historic truth.' Ewald goes on to draw an obvious contrast in this respect between the sacred book of Islam and the Bible. In this there is no need to follow him, but I would take the above passage as a keynote of the discussion on which it is our business to enter to-day, respecting the nature and extent of the historical element in the Old Testament. For certainly the primary and most important subject of investigation in regard to the Old Testament is its claim to be a trustworthy history of redemption. The fullness and the diversity of its contents serve to fill with life and colour the outlines of a vast historical picture, in which the progress and perfection of all true religion is included 2.

The historical element in the Old Testament: how vast and how difficult a theme! It is obvious that we must begin by suggesting a few considerations essential to the inquiry.

I. In the Hexateuch and the historical books we are dealing, as will be allowed on all hands, with highly composite narratives, in which the oldest historical traditions have been revised, developed, supplemented, and to some extent remodelled in a religious spirit and from a point of view in some cases priestly, in others prophetic. In the Hexateuch, primitive traditions and later conceptions as to the course of Israel's early history have been woven together in 1 Revelation, its Nature and Record, p. 407.

2 Ibid. p. 408.

a double or threefold cord, so as to present to critical eyes the appearance of a highly ingenious and elaborate mosaic constructed out of materials of very different historical value, In the prophetic books of Judges, Samuel, and Kings, early traditions have been at different times selected or revised in such a way as to impress on the narrative a uniform stamp or quality and to infuse into it certain strongly marked religious ideas'. There are plain tokens in these writings that both the original selection of facts and the mode of estimating them are determined by particular religious preconceptions, and it would even appear that in some cases the special standpoint from which events and incidents are regarded, and the framework in which they are set, are of more importance for religious purposes than the facts recorded. The peculiar

character of the books of the Chronicles will be noticed later. It is sufficient at this point to say that owing to their late date they cannot claim to be placed on the same level of historical value as the earlier authorities on which they are manifestly based.

What has been now said amounts to the assertion that the written documents available for constructing the history of Israel are, when tested by a modern standard, of unequal value and of very divergent quality. They contain fragments of contemporary records and annals which would satisfy any modern tests; but these are intermingled with elements of quite another kind: quasi-historical narratives which clothe religious thoughts in a poetic and symbolic garb, and popular stories or traditions which owe their vivid beauty to the creative genius of a race singularly gifted with imaginative power. Embedded in them we find considerable fragments of ancient songs and of very early narratives, borrowed apparently from the archaic Book

Cp. Wellhausen, Prolegomena, pp. 293, 294.

2 This of course applies to the history of the origins. Cp. Meinhold, Jesus und das A. T. pp. 112, 118, 132.

3

Cp. Schultz, O. T. Theology, i. 21.

of Fashar, or the Wars of Jehovah, which extolled the exploits of primitive Hebrew heroes. There is also, in the Hexateuch at least, a considerable element of apparent history, which really consists of law embodied in the form of historic precedents. We have perhaps been accustomed to regard the early books of the Bible merely as historical records; but critical inquiry has reminded us that to every species of literary composition natural to the ancient Hebrews has been assigned by the overruling Spirit of God a place in the sacred volume, and we must be prepared to part boldly with exclusively modern prejudices in dealing with this wonderful literature. The trained historical sense of western minds is apt to take offence at the notion that the faculty of poetic or historic imagination should be employed as a suitable medium of instruction by the Spirit of truth. But to those who study the Old Testament in the temper of sympathy and reverence, no genuine and natural product of the human mind will appear common or unclean or incapable of consecration to lofty and divine uses. Speaking broadly, the documents now under consideration seem to have a twofold value. On the one hand, without themselves professing to give an account of the exact course of Israel's history, they supply materials with which historical investigation may successfully work. On the other hand, they furnish a valuable means of ascertaining the point of view from which Israel regarded its past career, and the religious conceptions which influenced the literary treatment of ancient traditions. An attentive student of the Old Testament cannot fail to notice how profoundly the records of Hebrew history are penetrated by religious ideas. The ideals and conditions of the age in which the books attained to their present form are projected into antiquity, and the problem of the modern historian is to disentangle from its ideal or imaginative embodiment the genuine historical nucleus which unquestionably underlies the record. As it now stands, the sacred history has been aptly com

pared to an epic poem1, and there is no reason for denying that a certain epic character belongs to Israel's historical documents in common with other ancient literature. The Semitic mind seems in fact to have been distinctly wanting in the purely scientific interest which loves historical precision and accuracy of detail. Its interest was confined to the discernment of religious principles; it was inclined rather to interpret the spiritual significance of events than to lay special stress upon exactness of detail. To certain great facts of past history the Hebrew mind clung with unwavering tenacity. These were cherished as constant objects of devout contemplation; they were the support and joy of faith; they were the favourite theme of sacred poetry; they were the commonplaces, so to speak, of prophetic preaching. And we cannot wonder that the mighty acts of Jehovah on behalf of His people were idealized and invested with a sacred halo of glory or even of romance. In admitting the action of impassioned imagination, we neither question the occurrence of the historical facts themselves nor detract from their religious significance. The present point, however, is that the historical writings of the Old Testament reflect the characteristics of the race that produced them. Their historical quality is modified and coloured by the peculiar genius of the writers, and it is accordingly undesirable and imprudent to attach overmuch weight to historical details for which corroborative evidence is not forthcoming. We must be content to possess a narrative which in its main outlines is demonstrably authentic, but we must

1 See Renan, Histoire du peuple d'Israël, bk. ii, ch. 4 s. fin. and Kittel, A History of the Hebrews, vol. i. p. 40 (Eng. Tr.). So Hofmann ap. Köhler, Über Berechtigung der Kritik des A. T. p. 41. Cp. J. Darmesteter, Les Prophètes d'Israël, p. 240: 'Ainsi se forma cette merveilleuse épopée publique, exemple unique d'une histoire refaite à coup d'idéal.'

2 Mr. Schechter, Studies in Judaism, p. xviii, refers to the interesting fact that some Jewish scholars have substantially accepted the above view of the historical portions of Scripture. Zunz, for instance, holds that the early history is presented in an ideal light,' in accordance with a 'traditional interpretation adapted to the religious needs' of a particular age.

not allow ourselves to reason as if all the sources available for ascertaining the true course of Israel's history were of equal value. And in endeavouring to arrive at a general estimate of the historical trustworthiness of the records, we must distinguish between the various strata of the ancient tradition, which are either left in juxtaposition or have been fused together into a single narrative. It is here that we shall in the long run be bound to submit to the guidance of experts in criticism, accepting their verdict where they agree, and suspending judgment where they differ. Thus a cautious student will recollect that the early history of the Hebrews, as of other races, is involved in great obscurity; he will therefore be on his guard against the idola tribus which occasionally influence the critical mind-the passion for positive results, for finality, for systematization even in spheres where these are, from the nature of the case, unattainable. He will not be unduly impatient of necessary distinctions, and of a certain complexity and obscurity in problems which he might antecedently have expected to find simple and straightforward.

2. A second consideration relating to our present subject is the fact that a mass of evidence, which bears upon the primitive history of the Hebrews, is being gradually accumulated in other fields of inquiry, and it is accordingly a plain duty to make allowance for actual or probable results of archaeological research as a modifying factor in our estimate of the Old Testament narratives, corroborating or correcting the conclusions that might be drawn from the internal evidence of the written documents'. The Hebrew Scriptures after all form only one fragment of a vast literature, of which other portions are gradually coming to light in different parts of the East. These discoveries prove

1 In the Bampton Lectures of 1859 by the Rev. G. Rawlinson, an attempt was made to state anew 'the historical evidences of the truth of the Scripture records, with special reference to the doubts and discoveries of modern times.' Clearly the attempt must be repeated from time to time in the history of the Church.

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