Page:The ancient interpretation of Leviticus XVIII. 18 - Marriage with a deceased wife's sister is lawful.djvu/49

 these things to inference, but specified the persons prohibited in both cases.

A second objection against the ancient interpretation of Lev. xviii. 18 is, that the inference from the words, "In her life-time," is only an inference, and therefore unsafe. Thus it is said, "It seems strange that the only indication of the lawfulness of marrying two sisters at all (which is contrary to what we should otherwise have inferred from analogy), should be found in a prohibition against marrying a second sister during the life-time of the first." We might answer in the same words: "It seems strange that the only indication of the unlawfulness of marrying two sisters should be found in a prohibition against marrying a brother's wife, and that so important a matter should be left to mere inference, especially as the prohibition against marrying a man's own sister is three times repeated." But such arguments are never worth much. We must take the Bible as we find it; and with regard to inferences, we must either lay down the general principle, that all inferences are to be rejected, on the ground that "they are not in the bond,"—or prove that the particular inference to which we object lacks vis consequentœ. The former is the ground taken by St. Basil. He says: "I was asked, 'Is it written (or is it not written in Scripture) that a man may take a woman to (or after) her sister?' I—replied and this is both a true and safe answer—that it is not so written. And to infer and conclude from the clause added after (the prohibition), something else about which nothing is said, is to legislate, not to take the law as it stands." In accordance with this principle, perhaps, St. Basil says nothing about the inference from brother's wife in verse 16, to wife's sister. According to his own words, this would be "to legislate, and not to take the law as it stands." But his admirers here abandon his authority and disregard his reasoning. Inference is