Page:The New International Encyclopædia 1st ed. v. 03.djvu/35

BIBLE. seekers and teachers of the Israelitish race. Most of them were intent only upon proclaiming the truth revealed to them, content themselves to sink into oblivion, if their aim were realized: hence a great majority of the HN-ritings of the Bible are anon^nous, except as we are able to determine from the internal evidence the date, purpose, and class to which the author belonged.

(5) Periods Represented hi/ the Bible. — Some of the oldest poems of the Old Testament go back to the days of the Judges, about B.C. 1200. and certain of the Psalms and the Book of Daniel are in all probability later than B.C. 200, so that its literature represents at least one thousand years. The oldest epistle of the New cannot be dated before a.d. 50, and the latest writing is certainly not later than a.d. 150, and possibly 100, so that the Xew Testament represents at the most a brief century of literary activity. Supplemented by the later apocryphal .Jewish literature, the Bible, as a whole, reflects thirteen centuries of literary production.

(6) The Subjects Treated in the Bible are as varied as the literary forms. In the implied ex- planation, in connection with the story of man's fall, of the reason why serpents crawl in the dust, instead of being provided with legs, and in the accounts of creation, there is evident the questioning attitude toward natural phenomena which marks the beginning of scientific investi- gation ; but otherwise more important themes commanded the attention of the biblical writers. Aside from the modern department of science, almost every phase of human life and thought was treated by them. Nothing that concerned man was beneath their attention. The prophetic literature is concerned with political, social, moral, and spiritual questions. Its aim is to present the character and will of Jehovah and the principles which govern his universe, and to lead humanity intelligently and faithfullv to eon- form to them. The legal-literature was intended to provide a norm to regulate the public and private life of the people, so that in attaining their best development they might also realize the divine purpose. The maxims and wise coun- sels of the sages were calculated to guide the in- experienced in their daily duties and throw light upon individual problems. The psalmists gave expression to the spiritual experiences and atti- tude of the nation and individual toward God. The epistles of the Xew, like the prophecies of the Old, contain warnings, exhortations, and illuminating teachings intended primarily to anticipate the needs of those to whom they were addressed ; while the apocah-pses, though differ- ing widely from the preceding in form, were in- tended to convey similar messages of comfort and encouragement to those passing through great crises. The Gospels have the one dominant aim of presenting the life and teaching of the Founder of Christianity; and the Book of Acts, the influence of that life and teaching upon the Jewish and pagan world.

(7) Modern Methods of Biblical study. — Dur- ing the Dark Ages the traditions and conjecttires of Jewish rabbis and Christian monks recarding the origin, date, and authority of the different books of the Bible satisfied the majority of students, since these were hallowed by age and the continued indorsement of the Church. With the new interest in the Bible, inspired by the Protestant Reformation, came a new spirit of investigation. Careful study of the Scriptures themselves sometimes confirmed, but more often revealed data at variance with the teaching of tradition. As critical, scientific methods of his- torical and literary study were developed and jiroved trustworthy, they were adopted in deal- ing with the vital and often exceedingly com- plex problem presented by the Bible. That they should lead to conclusions at variance with those held by an unscliolarly age was inevitable. That there should also be much sincere but ignorant opposition to the new results was also assured: but their final acceptance was equally sure, for they represent simply the testimony of the Bible itself, as revealed by the only methods of in- vestigation which command universal confidence. Fortunately, the work of overturning unfounded traditions is now nearly complete, and the im- portance of the positive results of the critical study of the Bible is beginning to be popularly appreciated. With relief it is discovered that no essential truths contained in the Bible are lost, while its vital teachings are brought out into clearer relief. Reconstruction in the fields of biblical literature, history, and theology- is going on rapidly, with the practical aim of pro- viding a firm foundation for a religious faith which will meet the tests of a critical, scientific age.

(8) Contributions of Universities and Biblical Students in General. — The new methods and new results are the contributions of no one school. In Germany, a growing body of scholars, associated with the leading universities, and trained in care- ful, tireless methods of investigation, have ex- plored every department of biblical study. .mong the leaders in Old Testament criticism might be mentioned the names of Eichhorn, Graf, Wellhausen : while at the University of Tiibingen, under the leadership of Baur. there grew up a school which performed a ])ermanent service in calling attention to the critical problems of the Xew Testament, and in emphasizing the histori- cal and literary methods of investigation. In Holland, under the inspiration of Kuenen. a group of Dutch scholars have made many valua- ble contributions to biblical study. In England, Oxford University, represented by Professors Cheyne and Driver, has proved the leader. Bibli- cal scholars in all the leading universities, col- leges, and seminaries of England. Scotland, and America, have 'joined in the work of critical analysis and reconstruction. With only a few exceptions, the agreement in regard to the gen- eral questions of biblical history, literature, and religion is unanimous among students in these countries. To the details and to the interpreta- tion of the facts, attention is now being chiefly devoted.

(9) The Positive Results of Modern Biblical Research can here be presented only in barest outline. Aided by the discovery of new manu- scripts, great advances have been made in the recovery of the original texts. In the field of literary critici.sm effort has been centred upon as- certaining the authorship and approximate date of the individual sections and the structiire of the different books, with the result that it is now possible to make an approximate chronological arrangement of all the literature of the Bible. A new appreciation of the literary beauty of the Bible has also been aroused. On the basis of the oldest sources, supplemented by extra-biblical