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whole difficulty admitted of a very concise and easy solution, by shewing that the word 'true' was ambiguous;-that if Bishop Hall meant what he did mean, viz., that, notwithstanding the corruptions of the Church of Rome, the great principles of Christianity were still so far recognized that a man may be-as many have been-saved within its pale, he meant what was very reasonable; but that if he meant that it was a true" church, as fairly exemplifying the character and adequately fulfilling the purposes of the Christian Church, he asserted what was notoriously false. Bishop Davenant comes to all this in time; but it is of course by a long process, and by a due observance of all the formalities of definition and syllogism. The first paragraph from this letter, we will give our readers by way of a treat.

To the Right Reverend Father in God, Joseph, Lord
Bishop of Exon, these.

"My Lord:

"You desire my opinion concerning an assertion of yours, whereat some have taken offence. The proposition was this, that the Roman Church remains yet a True Visible Church.'

"The occasion, which makes this an ill-sounding proposition in the ears of Protestants, especially such as are not thoroughly acquainted with School Distinctions, is the usual acceptation of the word 'true' in our English Tongue: for, though men skilled in metaphysics hold it for a maxim, Ens, Verum, Bonum convertuntur; yet, with us, he which shall affirm such a one is a true Christian, a true Gentleman, a true Scholar, or the like, he is conceived not only to ascribe trueness of being unto all these, but those due qualities or requisite actions whereby they are made commendable or praise-worthy in their several kinds."

"I therefore can say no more respecting your mistaken proposition, than this: If, in that Treatise wherein it was delivered, the antecedents or consequents were such as served fitly to lead the Reader into that sense, which, under the word True, comprehendeth only Truth of Being or Existence, and not the due Qualities of the thing or subject, you have been causelessly traduced. But, on the other side, if that proposition comes in ex abrupto, or stands solitary in your Discourse, you cannot marvel though, by taking the word True according to the more ordinary acceptation, your true meaning was mistaken."

Vol. I. pp. xxxv-xxxvi.

The two volumes which the Translator has here presented to the English public, contain, besides the Exposition of the Epistle to the Colossians, a short essay on the diversity of degrees in the ministers of the gospel'; (in other words, a defence of Episcopacy, and forming the XLVIth of his Determinationes';) and a valuable dissertation on the Death of Christ.' This dissertation occupies about half the second volume.

The Exposition' exhibits all the peculiar excellencies of Davenant's mind, and all the peculiar defects of his age. It displays

learning, most various and deep; a thorough and facile acquaintance with the whole race of Fathers and school divines; no ordinary powers of argument; together with that great pre-requisite for a successful interpretation of Scripture,-a sound and impartial judgement; and the whole is pervaded by a spirit of piety at once sober and ardent, the doctrinal being well illustrated by the practical.

As almost every commentary has its peculiar excellence, arising from the constitution of the writer's mind, or the character of his attainments, we should say that the principal value of this Exposition consists in the large and comprehensive excursus in which the good Bishop indulges on the papistical and Calvinistic controversies, whenever a single text, or even an incidental allusion affords him an opportunity. Indeed, in this way, almost the whole of those vast questions is brought under review, and treated in a very able manner. And if, instead of having been thrown in with the rudis indigestaque moles' of a general exposition, they had been arranged and published in a methodical form, they would have constituted an admirable treatise on the great questions with which they are occupied. It is an annoying circumstance, that much of our most valuable theological literature has been published in the form of loose commentary. Controversial matter thus distributed, labours under this two-fold disadvantage; 1st, it is often buried altogether under a mass of very diversified and by no means mutually connected observations; and 2ndly, it is furnished in such scraps and fragments as to repel, rather than invite the reader. Bishop Davenant was thoroughly master of the Romish, as well as the Calvinistic controversy. On these he is always able.

We have said that the defects of the Commentary are the defects of the age; while its excellencies are those of Davenant. Among the principal of these defects, we have specified the large infusion of scholastic logic, theology, and metaphysics which characterize it; and the unmethodical and scattered way in which the most valuable disquisitions are thrown together. The latter defect may, perhaps, be disputed, inasmuch as it may be alleged, that such a mode of writing is inseparable from commentary: our reply, is, why attempt, then, enlarged discussion, profound disquisition, in the shape of a general commentary? A few brief remarks, critical and explanatory, and a practical improvement, are all that a general commentary can admit. Lengthened and elaborate reasoning on any one subject, had better be prosecuted separately; not incidentally, still less simultaneously with a thousand other matters, each differing from every other in nature and importance. Besides these more serious defects, there are other minor ones, which obscure and depreciate most of the theological works of that age. One is, the endless subdivision, which is often

so minute, that it confounds the memory and perplexes the understanding a thousand times more than leaving the subject without any formal divisions at all. This was an almost universal defect of the age; and indeed, Davenant is not so chargeable with it as very many of his contemporaries. Nothing tends to assist the mind more effectually than broad and philosophic classification; nothing to confound it more than one too complicated and too minute.

Another unhappy defect of all our elder commentators, is, that, in the desire to leave no part of the subject untouched, they illustrate the plainest and most unimportant matters with an amplitude perfectly ludicrous; pursue every theme into its remotest bearings, and indulge in endless digressions, episodes, and wanderings. All this would be bad enough, if writing only on one subject; if, as in our time, a wise application of the principle of the division of labour had broken up the whole science of biblical illustration into several distinct provinces, and disjoined verbal criticism, for instance, from other branches. But such a discursive method appears intolerable, when we consider that the whole business of sacred criticism and exposition was carried on at once, and that the same commentary consisted of several elaborate series of disquisition, critical, exegetical, historical, geographical, doctrinal, and practical. It is indeed wonderful, considering all this, that our forefathers should have dwelt with such insufferable tediousness and prolixity on matters which required no explanation; as though the object had been to say as much as could possibly be said on any given topic, not, as much as was to the purpose. Neither do they appear to have been aware of the propriety of leaving whatever is not peculiar to the book on which they undertake to comment, to works of general reference on the subjects of biblical geography, history, &c. Each commentary is found to contain distinct, and often lengthy disquisitions, not only on what is not peculiar to the book on which the commentator is engaged, but on points which recur a thousand times in Scripture. To illustrate our meaning, is it not as needless as it is absurd, to commence a commentary on each of St. Paul's Epistles with a long excursus on the name, birth, conversion, labours, life, death, &c. of the Apostle? Would not common sense teach, that, as that name occurs so often in Scripture, all that may be said in one place, would come in with just as much propriety elsewhere, and that it would be better, therefore, to leave such matters to some general book of Scripture illustration? Now how does Davenant begin his commentary? Having cited the first two verses of the Epistle to the Colossians, comprising the 'title' or address, he says: In the title three things are to be observed: the subscription; the in'scription; and the salutation.' He then tells us, that he shall say but little concerning the name of the Apostle :-that is to

say, he confines his observations to a full octavo page; brevity itself, we admit, for those times; supporting his statements by adducing or referring to the opinions of Augustine, Origen, &c. On the life of Paul, he contents himself with referring to certain writings in which an account of the great Apostle may be found. "An Apostle," is the next word which seems to demand elaborate explanation; and the apostleship of Paul in particular is, of course, vindicated at length. These topics occupy about two pages. The rest of these two verses are anatomized and expanded in the same way. So that the first two verses of this Epistle, simple as they are, actually occupy more than fifty pages! Now what can be more obvious, than that all this, in addition to its being for the most part already known, would with equal propriety be repeated by any commentator who should undertake to expound any portion of the apostolic writings in which these names or words occur? If we once adopt such a principle of exposition, if we will persist in illustrating what is plain, and amplifying what is simple, if we will pursue any subject even to its remotest relations, making every word the subject of distinct and interminable digressions, there is no fixing a limit to such labours; since any text may be made the foundation of a biblical cyclopedia, a theme for a thousand excursus. This it is, which has rendered the commentators of our elder theologians,-very many of which contain much valuable matter-so cumbersome and so tedious, and, as they generally repel the reader, so comparatively profitless. Their authors have buried themselves beneath the pile of their own ill-applied erudition; have built themselves up in their own sepulchres.

Such are the defects of Bishop Davenant's Exposition: its excellencies are such as might be expected from a man of singular acuteness of mind, vast theological learning, sober judgement, and elevated piety. What we have said, is not intended to deter our readers (more especially those whose peculiar study is theology) from looking into this and other books of the same character, and published in the same age; but to assure them that, notwithstanding these defects of method, which lie on the surface, and are unhappily but too obvious to casual inspection, there are often treasures of learning and argument to be found in them, which will repay a diligent search, if not a continuous perusal. The redundancies are easily seen, and may be, therefore, passed over. When we say that the redundancies may be passed over, we cannot refrain from hinting at the same time, that it would perhaps be well if the modern editors of our older commentators would sometimes save their readers the trouble of selection, by omitting those parts of the originals which are confessedly mere exuberances, and egregious trifling. Let us not, however, be

misunderstood as wishing to sanction those meagre mutilations of our older writers which sometimes issue from the press in the present day; editions in which much that was worth retaining has been omitted, and all that is worthless retained; in which the language of the author, under the pretence of modernizing it, has been robbed of all its raciness and all its energy; in which, in short, the whole book has been unjustifiably tampered with. In too many instances, such abridgements have been attended with the grossest injustice to the unhappy author who has been subjected to the emendations of the critical Procrustes. Whatever is given, ought undoubtedly to be given in the author's own language, and with all his peculiarities of thought, expression, and manner. But the abridgement of commentators cannot do much mischief: the task is plain and easy. It is only to leave out those already perfectly detached passages which are irrelevant, and therefore tedious. Abridgement in a work of continuous reasoning, or upon one subject, is, indeed, no easy matter, and is to be attempted only by those in whom reverence for departed genius is united with a sound and sober judgement. But in cutting down a bulky commentary to something like genteel proportions, it must require peculiar genius for blundering, to perform the task otherwise than well.

Davenant's Exposition is valuable, not as a book for continuous perusal, but as a work of reference, in which the reader will find most of the disputed points of the Papistical, Calvinistic, and some minor controversies treated with great acuteness, learning, and judgement. All that is wanted, therefore, to enable the theological student to make easy use of this valuable work, is a copious index; and this, we are pleased to notice, Mr. Allport has supplied. It is of course difficult to select a portion sufficiently brief, and yet sufficiently characteristic of the several excellencies and defects of which we have spoken; but the following observations must suffice: if the former part edifies, the latter cannot but amuse our readers. It will be seen with what gravity and seriousness, the theologians of that age set themselves to the demolition of the most ludicrous fallacies.

Faith in Christ Jesus.] The Apostle shews the object of Christian faith; not the general, or adequate object, but the principal; and, if we regard the act of justification, the peculiar object.

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The general and adequate object of faith is, all the truth revealed by God in the Holy Scriptures. There is a sort of general faith which answers to this description, and which by a sure persuasion resolves that whatever things are made manifest in the word of God, are most true. But this general assent of faith cannot justify; because justification brings with it peace of conscience, purification of heart, free access to God, and many other privileges, of which, doubtless, any one

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