been made in the places referred to, for the propagation of the saving truths of the Gospel among all orders of men; how numerous are the Churches, and increasing in num. ber, in which those truths are preached, by men duly appointed, and every way competent to their holy function; what pains are taken that the Churches should be opened, and religious service performed, at various hours, for the accommodation and convenience of the different classes; what facility of access to the knowledge of the Gospel, which is of such universal importance, is afforded by every means to all; and how freely the sources of religious education are now laid open to the children of the poor. In addition to that ample provision which is made in our established Church that the poor may have the Gospel constantly preached to them, and the care that is taken "in London and its vicinity" particularly, that by the cheapness of education they may be enabled to understand it, it is well known, that various societies are formed there, and especially the Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge, whose benevolent object it is, to offer books of the soundest religious instruction, at the cheapest rate, to the poor. When such means of religious information are known to abound, and long have been, and now are, in full efficiency, so that no man in this country need be ignorant of what the Gospel requires him to believe and to do in order to obtain everlasting salvation, it must appear strange that any society should, at this day, regard, and propose to treat even the poorest of its inhabitants as unconverted, and in a state of heathenism. For such must be the light in which they are regarded by those, who propose to evangelise the poor inhabitants of London and its vicinity." It is, indeed, greatly to be lamented that they, or any who en joy that full light of the Gospel, which shines upon this highly fa " voured land, should not be duly sensible of these their inestimable privileges, and uniformly "walk as children of the light:" that the conduct of men, in any station in this Christian country, should suggest the necessity of their being considered as a people to whom the saving truths of the Gospel are absolutely unknown, and as standing in need of yet being evangelised. Devoutly is it to be wished, that all who name the name of Christ, would depart from iniquity, and by the purity of their lives would so adorn their Christian calling, that the sincerity of it might never be called in question: but if the persons alluded to should be induced, by the suspicions thrown out by this society, to look upon themselves as altogether uuregenerate and unconverted, and absolutely in the condition of heathens, and to suppose that their regular pastors withhold from them the truths of the Gospel; what would the natural consequences be, but an increasing alienation, on their parts, from such unfaithful and incompetent teachers, the prevalence of schism and religious dissention, and the danger of the extinction of that evangelical light, which, by the divine mercy, does with full splendour shine upon our country! The intrusion of selfappointed teachers into the labours of the regular Clergy, or of those who are sent by such Missionary Societies as have no other authority to send labourers into the Lord's vineyard than such as they themselves assume, must have the effect, so far as it prevails, of unhinging our whole ecclesiastical polity, of diminishing the usefulness of lawful pastors, and detaching the people from their ministry. How ineffectual their best endeavours are often rendered, and how lightly that authority which they derive in regular succession from the Apostles is esteemed, is evident from the numbers who, almost in every place, are tempted to withdraw from their congregations by the officious inter ference of itinerant instructors: and when this spirit of sectarism is abetted by the authority of Mis. sionary Societies, composed of persons of rank and importance, who would persuade the people that they stand in need of being evangelised, though they have, or might have, the Gospel constantly preached to them, the evil must certainly be increasing. If the common people do not, as alas! it is to be regretted that they do not pay that serious attention that is due to the incomparable service of the Established Church, to its truly evangelical Liturgy, to the truths of the Gospel which are contained in, and promulged as well by it, as by the discourses which follow it; every means indeed that is consistent with sound discretion should be adopted to revive in them such attention, and to attach them to that provision which is made for their advancement in true religion but the greatest care should be taken, in all public associations especially, not to insinuate into the minds of those who are perhaps incapable of forming a right judgment in such matters, that the religious institutions of their country are inefficacious, and not adapted to convey to them the saving knowledge of the Gospel. : Missionary Societies are justly and laudably employed in selecting, and assisting to maintain, fit persons, lawfully ordained for the work of the ministry, and sending them into foreign countries, where numbers yet remain to be converted to Christianity. Yet even so, should they not act independently, or under any usurped authority; but be placed, wherever it is possible, under a regular ecclesiastical control. Experience has sufficiently shewn the mischiefs arising from those who will not submit to regular restraint, nor to the authority of their ecclesiastical superiors, where they have been lawfully constituted. The two great Societies which have been formed for the promotion of Christian knowledge, and for the propagation of the Gospel, send forth Missionaries in considerable numbers: but they are extremely careful to put them under the authority of Bishops, wherever this is practicable abroad, or to retain them in subjection to the Episcopal authority at home; and never think of interfering in places where Christianity has been established for ages, and its ordinances continue to be regularly administered, and its truths made known, for the edification of all who will attend to them. Well might the "London Missionary Society" copy the example of these useful Societies, act under their auspices, and unite its benevolent endeavours with theirs: it would then carefully abstain from any insinuations which might make "the poor inhabitants of London and its vicinity" fancy themselves destitute of evangelical truth, or instil into them dissatisfaction with their appointed teach ers. When once they are infected with this spirit, and have the countenance and authority of public meetings for undervaluing the ordinances of the Established Church, they will naturally become seceders from it: and whether, as they withdraw from the Church, they are more likely to approach to what is truly evangelical in principles, habits, and manners, let the discerning reader judge. I am, Sir, To the Editor of the Remembrancer. Sir, IN the complete absence of any commentary on the Scriptures by an English orthodox writer, at all *The work of Elsley is no exception, or though it may well answer the purpose of the College student in preparing for an examination, where Divinity is only one adapted, in point of compass, for the perusal of young divines, I believe that the work of Rosenmüller is in very general use. Its plan indeed and its size are extremely well adapted for this particular purpose; for it professes to collect the opinions of the most celebrated writers on each text, and this is a point of great importance, as it is obviously impossible for the majority of the younger Clergy to buy those important but voluminous Commentaries, with the substance of which, however, they ought to be acquainted. I do not think, indeed, that in this respect, expectation is answered by Rosenmüller's work, because, although the opinions of a great variety of minor German divines, are brought forward, we look in vain in many places for those of the greater writers even of that country, and with our standard authors, Lightfoot, Mede, and others, Rosenmüller seems almost wholly unacquainted. But that is not the point to which I wish now to direct the attention of your rea ders, but to one of much greater importance, viz. the dreadful bias to Unitarian opinions which a young mind can hardly fail to receive from his writings, unless presented to him with the strongest admonition and caution, as to the danger lurk ing in them. To set this matter in the clearest light, I have run through his Commentary on St. Matthew's Gospel, and beg briefly to present your readers with the gleanings I have made from it, that they may judge for themselves. Ch. I. At verse 18, the personality of the Holy Ghost is set aside, as in every subsequent note in this Gospel where the words μa ayor occur. At v. 20, the angel appearing in the dream, is lowered into a out of many subjects of enquiry, and only a limited time can consequently be given to it, I should be sorry to think that any Clergyman could be satisfied with the meagre and superficial information to be collected from this work. mere dream. Ch. II. v. 2. The star appearing to the Magi, is transformed into a comet, sent for no peculiar purpose, which they, from their superstitious notions, imagined to portend the birth of the promised Redeemer. Ver. 13. The miraculous warning to Joseph to fly into Egypt is explained by saying, that the Magi had certaiuly told Joseph the threats of Herod, and that he therefore resolved to fly, and dreamt that he was to go into Egypt. Verses 16 and 17 are thus admirably interpreted. "The heavens were opened," means that "it lightened;" the Spirit of God descending like a dove, was not a person of the Trinity, (for local motion cannot be attributed to an omnipresent being) but it was a bodily and fiery appearance, descending on Christ, as a sign that excellent gifts were given by Godand as to its being like a dove, that means that the lightening did not move quickly, but gently, as a dove does. See Virg. Æn. V. 217. The voice from Heaven means thunder; for the Hebrews, like the Greeks and Romans, reckoned thunder a sign from God, and judged of events by it! The word saying merely means quæ indicabat, declarabat;" so that the whole meaning of the words, "And lo! a voice from Heaven saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased," is, that there was some thunder and lightening at the baptism of Christ, from which the spectators understood that the newly baptized person was the Redeemer!! In Ch. IV. the devil is merely some bad person, probably sent by the Pharisees, under the pretence of friendship, to mislead our Saviour, who had retired to fortify his mind for his approaching ministry. Christ did not really fast for forty days, but merely made use of such food as could be found in the wilderness, and his "being hungered" at last, means that he longed for bread. The different temptations did not 66 take place at the same period, but at intervals. At one time, the false friend took Jesus as his companion into the city, and they went toge ther to the temple. What part the pinnacle is, is not easy to say; but it is quite clear that it " was not miraculously, but merely for the sake of a walk and conversation, that the false friend led Jesus to the top of one of the porticoes. All of these were so constructed, that men might eat, drink, and sleep on them, as on all oriental roofs." It is cu rious to observe how extremely Rosenmüller is discomfited by the verses in which the Tempter is related to have taken our Saviour to the top of a high mountain. His note deserves to be given entire. Ver. 9. “πpoσvvy is not here strictly to adore, or address prayer to, but “in sensu civili," to supplicate, to fall on one's knees for the sake of showing respect to! The Tempter seems to have persuaded Jesus to use royal power and dignity, and at the very outset of his office, to take possession of his empire. For which purpose perhaps he offered his assistance. I will give you,' says he, all these kingdoms,' i. e. by my advice and effectual co-operation, I will cause you to possess not only Judæa, but all other countries, if you will pay me the honour which minor kings pay to greater ones." The first observation alone makes nonsense of the whole passage; for unless the Tempter required worship to be paid to himself, what would be the meaning of Christ's reply, that God alone is to be worshipped? But besides this, how could a man of Rosenmüller's understanding ever suppose that a private Jew could persuade Jesus that he could make him master of the whole world? And where was the * Kuinoel, who (be it observed) agrees in all Rosenmüller's opinions on the points alluded to, quietly gets rid of this difficulty by observing, that we must assign to TроσKUVεw in ver. 10 a different sense from that in ver. 9. impiety, at all events, of requiring the same respect as tributary princes pay to their superiors? These are the fruits of coming to the Scrip tures with a mind pre-occupied by human systems! In Ch. VIII. the explanation of the casting out of the devils, and allowing them to go into the herd of swine, is beyond all comprehension. Of course, Rosenmüller begins with saying that the possest were mad people merely; and he adds, that he himself has seen a mad woman, who said she was a devil! Then the question of the possest to Jesus "What have we do with thee, Jesus, thou Son of God?" &c. is explained after Wetstein's notions, "that the madmen remembered the tortures they had undergone in the hands of the physicians, bleeding, living by rule, and taking nauseous and purgative medicines, and that they deprecated a repetition of the treatment." Their request that they might be allowed to go into the herd of swine, is thus lucidly interpreted. "The dæmons are said to have asked leave to go into the herd of swine; but by the dæmons are meant the lunatics, whose fixed idea was that they were devils. These are therefore the words of the luna. tics, who thought that they could not find any fitter abode after the graves, than the swine."" Then they went and rushed on the swine, not into their bodies; for who could see the devils going into the bodies of the swine? The sense is—these mad men running across the fields, drove the swine down the precipice.” Let us now look to the whole story according to Rosenmüller's version. There were some mad men who lived in the tombs, and fancied they were devils. On seeing Jesus, they were afraid of being caught and put into the physicians' hands, and begged Jesus to allow them to run after a herd of swine, and drive them into the sea. He gave them leave, they did so, and were thus healed! Another of these German divines, Eichhoru, entirely to do away judging the twelve tribes of Israel, is of course only metaphorical, and means that after the death and resurrection of Jesus, the Apostles were to be the successors of his power in the Church. The peculiar phrase is only used, because there were as many Apostles as there were tribes in Israel. What an excellent reason! with any semblance of a miracle here, says, that Jesus finding that the mad man (for only one is mentioned in St. Luke) fancied himself a legion of devils, and that he should be therefore tortured by Christ and sent to hell, humour. ed his fancy, in order to cure him, and ordered him to run after the swine, in order that when they had perished, he might fancy that the legion of devils had gone out of him into them! In Ch. XIV. With regard to the miracle of the loaves and fishes, Rosenmüller states the explanation of Paul of Jena, to the effect that many of the people had brought food with them, and that when Jesus said—" Give ye them to eat ;" (ver. 16) he addressed those who had provisions, and desired them to divide them among the people, so that no miracle was worked. Of this Rosenmüller disapproves; but in Ch. XV. where the similar miracle is recorded, he refers to this explanation with the words "Novam Paulli explicati onem aliis examinandam relinquimus," signifying, at all events, his opinion that it is worth attention. On the transfiguration, in Ch. XVII. after mentioning Paullus's opinion that the disciples had been asleep, and that on waking, as the sun happened to shine bright, and they saw Jesus walking with two persons unknown to them, they called them Moses and Elias; and Gabler's still more delectable notion, that all this was a dream of Peter's, and that (as is usually the case) on the first moment of waking, he still saw the objects of his dream dancing before his eyes; our author quietly says, "De hac (ul. tima) conjecturâ quid statuendam, alii viderint. Qui plura desiderat, adeat Kuinolii commentarium. Nos nihil definimus." In Ch. XIX. v. 28. the promise that the Apostles should sit on twelve thrones in the Resurrection, In Ch. XXI. v. 3. where Jesus sends his disciple for the ass, Rosenmüller states that it is quite clear that Jesus was known to the masters of the beasts, and that that was the only reason for their sending them. I cannot but observe on this place, that Rosenmüller was wholly ignorant of Mede's learned explanation of verses 15 and 16, from the 8th Psalm. In the history of our Lord's death, we have many examples of Rosenmüller's propensities. The darkness described in ver. 45 of Ch. XXVII. is said to have been the sort of dark vapour usually attendant on an earthquake, and remarked probably for nine or ten miles. A whole host of rational opinions is given on ver. 52, while after mentioning that most writers believe the veil of the temple to have been miraculously rent, (ver. 52.) he remarks, that if it was made of thin materials, it would be rent asunder by the earthquake without any miracle. In Ch. XXVIII. v. 2, 3. after observing that many think the angel is mentioned here only because the Jews commonly referred any events of which they did not know the cause to angels or invisible beings, he adds as his own opinion, that Matthew is here only relating what he had heard perhaps from some soldier or Jewish senator, afterwards converted. As there was an earthquake, which is frequently attended by a storm, the stone was probably split by lightning. When the guards saw on the top of the stone formam candidam et coruscam," they immediately fancied it |