Can Change the World Again.
| | Can Change the World Again. | |
THE PENTATEUCH,
IN ITS
PROGRESSIVE REVELATIONS OF GOD TO MEN.
DESIGNED FOR BOTH PASTORS AND PEOPLE.
By REV. HENRY COWLES, D. D.
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"Understandest then what then readest? And he said, How can I unless some man should guide me?"
ACTS VIII: 30, 31.
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NEW YORK:
D. APPLETON & CO.,
549 AND 551 BROADWAY.
1877.
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Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1873, by
REV. HENRY COWLES, D.D.,
In the Office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington, D. C.
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PREFACE.
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MY reasons for treating the Pentateuch topically rather than textually will be obvious. Criticism on the original text is rarely needed. There is seldom the least occasion to aid the reader in following the line of thought or the course of argument. The demand here is rather for the discussion and due presentation of the great themes of the book. My plan has therefore aimed to meet this demand, discussing these themes critically so far as seemed necessary either because of their intrinsic nature or because of popular objections or misconceptions; and always practically so far forth as to show the important moral bearings of these themes as revelations of God to man. It has been, however, my purpose to explain all the difficult, doubtful, or controverted passages.
The modern objections to Genesis, more or less related to true science, have been brought under special examination because they are at present eliciting so much public attention. Let all real truth be welcomed and held in honor, whether revealed in the works of God or in his word. It is knowledge of God that we seek; some of which we learn through his works of creation or of providence; more through his revealed word. It behooves us to dismiss all apprehensions lest these diverse forms of divine revelation may come into real conflict, and equally, all fear lest the Bible should be compelled to recede as Science advances.
The points of contact between sacred and profane history and antiquities have been carefully examined, both for their own intrinsic interest and for the incidental confirmation which they bring to the sacred volume.
As will appear in the Introduction I have had an eye somewhat to the idea of progress in these successive steps of divine revelation--yet with an aim not so much to prove a point disputed as to illustrate a fact sometimes overlooked; hoping thus to heighten the reader's interest.
This wonderful grouping of those events of the earliest ages of time, given us of God through the masterly hand of Moses, is for every reason worthy of profoundest study. In the humble hope that these pages may serve to obviate old difficulties; suggest new aspects of truth; inspire fresh zeal in this study; and enhance the spiritual profit of every reader--this volume is submitted to the Christian public. HENRY COWLES.
OBERLIN, O., October, 1873.
CONTENTS.
INTRODUCTION, p. 1.
CHAPTER I.
CREATION, p. 9. Naturally the first fact revealed; Its moral lessons, 9; The origin of this record and the manner of its revelation to men, 12; Nature and the supernatural, 13; Theories on the origin of life, 14; The sense of the word "day" in Gen. 1: 16; Argued (1) From the laws of language, 17; (2) From the narrative itself, 18; Objection from the law of the Sabbath, 21; (3) From Geological facts and their bearings on the question, 22; Prominent points of harmony between Genesis and Geology, 25; Does "Create" (Gen. 1: 1) refer to the original production of matter? 26; The relation of v. I to v. 2, and to the rest of the chapter, 29; The work of the fourth day, 31; The sense of the record as to the origin of life, vegetable and animal, 32; On God's "making man in his own image," 33; The relation of Gen. 2: 4-25 to Gen. 1: 35.
CHAPTER II.
INVARIABILITY OF "KIND" IN THE VEGETABLE AND ANIMAL KINGDOM, 37; The theory of Mr. Darwin, 38; The issue between Darwin Moses, 38; Darwin's five main arguments, 39; Brief replies, 40; Objections bearing generally against Darwin's scheme, 43; (1) It requires almost infinite time back of the earliest traces or possibilities of life, 43; (2) Requires what Nature does not give-a close succession of animal races, differing but infinitesimally from each other, 43; (3) His argument is essentially materialistic and is therefore false, 45; (4) It ignores man's intellectual and moral nature, 46; (5) It ignores or overrides the law of nature by which hybrids are infertile, 40; (6) This scheme is in many points revolting to the common sense of mankind, 46; (7) It is reckless of the authority of revelation, 48.
THE ANTIQUITY OF MAN.
Two main questions: (1) Is the human family older than Adam? 49; (2) How far back was Adam? The argument for man's high antiquity, (1) From traces of his skeleton, 50; (2) From his tools and works, 52; (3) From the traditions and chronologies of the old nations, 59.
CHAPTER III.
HEBREW CHRONOLOGY, 60; From birth of Christ back to the founding of Solomon's Tom. pee, 60; First disputed period-that of the Judges, 60; second do.; that of the sojourn in Egypt, 62; third do.; between Terah and Abraham, 64; fourth do; from the creation to the flood, 66; fifth do.; from the flood to the call of Abraham, 68.
CHAPTER IV.
ANTIQUITY OF MAN RESUMED, 72; On the Antiquity of Egypt, 72; The date of Menes, its first king, and of the pyramids, 74; Unity of the human race. Were there races of pre-Adamic men, now extinct? 75; Are the present living races descendants of the same first pair? 75;
THE SABBATH, 77; As old as Eden; made for man as a race.
THE EVENTS OF EDEN, 81; Is the description of man's fall symbolic or historic? 81; The moral trial, 84; The temptation, 87; The fall, 88. The curse; the first installment of the penalty for transgression, 89; The first promise, 90.
CHAPTER VII.
FROM THE FALL TO THE FLOOD, 92. Notes on special passages, Gen. 1: 1, "I have gotten a man--the Lord," 92; Gen. 4 : 6, 7--words of the Lord to Cain, 92; Gen. 4 : 23, 24, the song of Lamech, 92; Abel's offering and the origin of sacrifices, 93; The great moral lessons of the antediluvian age, 95.
CHAPTER VIII.
THE FLOOD, 99; Its moral causes, 99; Its physical causes, 101; Was this flood universal? 102; (a) as to the earth's surface, (b) as to its population ; Traditions of a great deluge, 105.
CHAPTER IX.
FROM THE FLOOD TO THE CALL OF ABRAHAM, 107; The law against murder and its death-penalty, 107; The prophecy of Noah, 108; The genealogy of the historic nations, 110; Babel and the confusion of tongues, 112.
CHAPTER X.
ABRAHAM, 114; His personal history; the divine purposes in the new system inaugurated with him; Concentration of moral forces; a more definite covenant between God and his people; Utilizing the family relation, 116; Developing a great example of the obedience of faith, 120; (a) In leaving his country at God's call, 120; (b) In waiting long but hopefully for his one son of promise, 120; (c) In obeying the command to offer this son a sacrifice, 121; God's revelations to Abraham progressive, 122; The missionary idea in this. system-blessings to all the nations, 125; The Messiah included in these promises, 126; Sodom and Gomorrah, 128; The angel of the Lord, 130.
CHAPTER XI.
THE PATRIARCHS, ISAAC, JACOB, JOSEPH, 132; Isaac, 132; Jacob and Bethel, 133; Jacob at Mahanaim, 137; The struggle of prayer; The points and grounds of this conflict; The law of prevailing prayer, 140; Jacob and Joseph, 143; Developments of personal character, 144; Joseph in Egypt, 146; The hand of God in this history--seen in the sufferings of the innocent, 155; The hand of God in overruling sin for good, 158; The purposes of God in locating Israel in Egypt, 160; Ancient Egyptian history and life confirms Moses, 162; Special passages considered
Going down into Sheol, Gen. 37: 35; Jacob's benedictions upon his sons, Gen. 49,168; The Scepter of Judah, Gen. 49: 10,169; The less readable portions of Genesis, 171; Close of Genesis, 172.
CHAPTER XII.
EXODUS The oppression, 173; Moses, 175; His great mission, 179; The ten plagues, 185 These plagues supernatural, 187; Several of them specially adapted to Egypt, 189; The case of the magicians, 190; The shape of the demand upon Pharaoh to let the people go, 193; The hardening of Pharaoh's heart, 194; History of the case 195; What is said of God's purpose in it, 203; Light oil this case from God's revealed character, 204.
CHAPTER XIII.
THE PASSOVER, 206; Consecration of all first-born, 208; The long route to Canaan, 210; The march and the pursuit, 211; The guiding pillar of cloud of fire, 212 The locality of the Red Sea crossing, 216.
CHAPTER XIV.
THE HISTORIC CONNECTIONS OF MOSES WITH PHARAOH AND EGYPT, 217.
CHAPTER XV.
THE EVENTS NEAR AND AT SINAI, 223; The manna, 223; Rephidim; water by miracle, 220; The battle with Amalek, 229; Jethro, 230; The Scenes at Sinai, 232; The national covenant; The giving of the law, 234; The moral law, given from Sinai, 236; To be distinguished from " the statutes and judgments," 237; The commandments considered severally; (1) 238; (2) 2'39; (3) 241; (4) 241; (5) 243; (6-9) 243; (10) 245; Progress in the revelations of God to man, 246.
CHAPTER XVI.
THE HEBREW THEOCRACY: The supreme power, 251; The powers of Jehovah's Vicegerent, 253; The General Assembly and their Elders, 254; The scope afforded for self-government; democracy, 255; The fundamental principles of this system, 258; Its union of Church and State, 259'; Its principles and usages in regard to war, with notice of the war-commission against the doomed Canaanites, 261; The grant of Canaan, and the command to extirpate the Canaanites, 262.
CHAPTER XVII.
THE LIE CIVIL INSTITUTES OF MOSES, OR THE HEBREW CODE OF CIVIL LAW: General view of it, 270; Analysis of the crimes condemned, 273; Crimes against God: Idolatry, 273; Perjury, 274; Presumptuous sills, 275; Violations of the Sabbath, 276; Magic arts, 276; Crimes against parents and rulers, 279; Crimes against person and life, i. e. crimes of blood, 280; Cities of refuge, 282; Murder by unknown hands, 284; Crimes against chastity, 285; Statutes to protect rights of property, 286 ; Statutes against usury, 288; Statutes for the relief of the poor, 289; Cringes against reputation, 292.
CHAPTER XVIII.
CIVIL INSTITUTES OF MOSES CONCLUDED: Hebrew servitude, 294 Man-stealing, 294; No rendition of fugitives, 295; Severe personal injuries entitled to freedom, 295; Periodical emancipation, 293; Religious privileges of servants, 298; The slavery that existed before Moses, 299; The condition of Israel in bondage in Egypt, 299; The Jubilee, 300; Its bearing upon foreign servants, 301; Meaning, of "bond-servant," 302; Servants of foreign birth, 302; Judicial Procedure, 304; Judges; The seat of justice, 305; The processes of prosecution, 305; Advocates; of witnesses, 305; Punishments, 306; Fines, 306; Sin and trespass offerings, 307; Stripes, 307; Excommunication, 308; Modes of capital punishment, 308; Disgrace after death, 308; Judicial procedure and punishment summary, 308; Statutes Without penalties, 309; Two Historic Questions: (a) How far is this system indebted to Egypt? 311; (b) How far have the best civil codes of the most civilized nations been indebted to this Hebrew code? 314; Progressive revelations of God in this code, 319.
CHAPTER XIX.
THE 'RELIGIOUS SYSTEM OF THE HEBREWS, 321; Classification of sacrifices, 322; Choice of animals for sacrifice, 323; The scenes of sacrifice, 324; The significance of sacrifices, 325; Of the portion taken as food, 326; Special sacrifices, 327; Sacred times and seasons, 327; The three great festivals, 328; The Feast of Pentecost, 328; The Feast of Tabernacles, 329; The great day of Atonement, 331; Sacred Edifices and Apparatus, 334; The Sacred Orders, 335; Present value of the Mosaic ritual, 336; Its lessons on the blood of atonement, 338; That these lessons are steps of progress in the revelation of God to men, 340.
CHAPTER XX.
HISTORIC EVENTS OF HEBREW HISTORY FROM SINAI TO THE JORDAN, 342; The golden calf, 342; The intercession of Moses, 344; The Lord reveals his name and glory, 346; Incidents connected With this idolworship, 350; Lessons from Moses oil prayer, 353; Taberah and Kibroth-hataavah, 354; Miriam and Aaron envious of Moses, 355; Kadesh-barnea and the unbelieving spies, 356; Rebellion of Korah and his company, 360; The fiery serpent and the brazen one, 363; Balak and Balsam, 361; Balaam's prophecies, 367; His prayer, 308.
CHAPTER XXI.
ON THE LAST FOUR BOOKS of THE PENTATEUCH: Their method and subject-matter, 375; Leviticus, 376; Numbers, 376; Deuteronomy, 377; Deut. 26, 378; The prophet like Moses, Deut. 18, 380; The blessings and the curses, 383; The last words of Moses, 384; Dent. 32, 385; Moses blesses the tribes, Deut. 33, 394; Death and character of Moses, 401; The Mosaic system and the future life, 403; Progressive developments of truth and of God, 412.