1. It is well known that the translation of the LXX., if it have the original pretended, and which alone makes it considerable, was made and finished three hundred years, or near thereabout, before the incarnation of our Saviour. It was in that time and season wherein the oracles of God were committed to the Jews, whilst that church and people were the only people of God, accepted with him, designed by him keepers of his word for the use of the whole church of Christ to come, as the great and blessed foundation of truth, — a time when there was an authentic copy of the whole Scripture, as the rule of all others, kept in the temple. Now, can it be once ima- gined that there should be at that time such notorious varieties in the copies of the Scripture, through the negligence of that church, and yet afterward neither our Saviour nor his apostles take the least notice of it? Yea, doth not our Saviour himself affirm of the word that then was among the Jews, that not lura h or /m'u xepdia, of it
OF LECTIONS GATHERED OUT OF TRANSLATIONS. 409
should pass away or perish? where, let not the points, but the con- sonants themselves with their apices, be intended or alluded unto in that expression : yet of that word, which was translated by the LXX., according to this hypothesis, and which assuredly they then had, if ever, not only tittles and letters, but words, and that many, are concluded to be lost. But that no Jew believes the figment we are in the consideration of, I could say, " Credat Apella/'
2. Waiving the consideration of our refuge in these cases, namely, the good providence and care of God in the preservation of his word, let the authors of this insinuation prove the assertion, namely, that there was ever in the world any other copy of the Bible, differing in any one word from those that we now enjoy; let them produce one testimony, one author of credit, Jew or Christian, that can, or doth, or ever did, speak one word to this purpose; let them direct us to any relic, any monument, any kind of remembrancer of them, — and not put us off with weak conjectures upon the signification of one or two words, and it shall be of weight with us. Is it meet that a matter of so huge importance, called into question by none but themselves, should be cast and determined by their conjectures? Do they think that men will part with the possession of truth upon so easy terms? that they will be cast from their inheritance by divination? But they will say, " Is it not evident that the old translators did make use of other copies, in that we see how they have translated many words and places, so as it was not possible they should have done had they rendered our copy according to what we now read ? '' But will this indeed be pleaded? May it not be extended to all places as well as to any? and may not men plead so for every variation made by the LXX. from the original, that they had other copies than any that now are extant? Better all old translations should be consumed out of the earth than that such a figment should be admitted. That there are innumerable other reasons to be assigned of the variations from the original, — as the translators' own inadvertency, negligence, igno- rance (for the wisest see not all), desire to expound and clear the sense, and, as it was likely, of altering and varying many things from the original, with the innumerable corruptions and interpolations that have befallen that translation, indifferently well witnessed unto by the various lections exhibited in the Appendix, — it were easy to manifest. Seeing, then, that neither the care of God over his truth, nor the fidelity of the Judaical church whilst the oracles of God were committed thereunto, will permit us to entertain the least sus- picion that there was ever in the world any copy of the Bible differ- ing in the least from that which we enjoy, or that those we have are corrupted, as is pretended ; and seeing that the authors of that in- sinuation cannot produce the least testimony to make it good, fji,hcu/Msv
410 INTEGRITY AND PURITY OF THE HEBREW AND GREEK TEXT.
wGitif IdlMiv, through the mercy and goodness of God, in the entire, un- questionable possession of his oracles once committed to the Jews, and the faith therein once committed to the saints.
But now, to suppose that such indeed hath been the condition of the holy Bible in its originals as is pretended, let us consider whether any relief in this case be to be expected from the translations exhi- bited unto us, with much pains, care, and diligence, in these Biblia Polyglotta, and so at once determine that question, whether this be any part of the use of translations, be they ever so ancient, namely, to correct the originals by, leaving further discussion of sundry things in and about them to other exercitations.
That all or any translation may be esteemed useful for this pur- pose, I suppose without any contention it will be granted, — 1. That we be certain concerning them that they are translated out of the originals themselves, and not out of the interpretations of them that went before them ; for if that appear, all their authority as to the business inquired after falls to the ground, or is at best resolved into that former whence they are taken, if they are at agreement therewith ; otherwise they are a thing of naught. And this one con- sideration will be found to lay hold of one moiety of these transla- tions. 2. That they be of venerable antiquity, so as to be made when there were other copies of the original in the world besides that which we now enjoy. 8. That they be known to be made by men of ability and integrity, sound in the faith, and conscientiously careful not to add or detract from the originals they made the translation out of. If all these things at least concur not in a translation, it is most undeniably evident that it can be of no use to assist in the finding out what corrtiptions have befallen our copies, and what is the true lection of any place about which any differences do arise. Let us, then, as without any prejudice in ourselves, so without, I hope, any offence to others, very briefly consider the state and condition of the translations given us in the Biblia Polyglotta as to the qualifi- cations here laid down.