4 of God.* An examination of all the passages in which the phrase occurs, has led me to form the opinion, that the prophets who had received divine commands, might apply it even to those things which they derived from their own unassisted reason ;[a] for being furnished with a divine commission, they were able, and in my judgment, obliged, in the due discharge of their office, to propose even their own remarks, under the sanction of their character as ambassadors of GOD. But although the expression," the LORD said," was used even of the ordinary course of events, yet the distinction between this natural order and one supernatural, was perfectly known, as appears very clearly from II Sam. xvi. 23.-After all, since the mind of the prophet is not open to our inspection, it is impossible every where accurately to distinguish what the prophets drew from their own resources, from what they owed to revelation; and even if this distinction could always be made, it would be of no benefit to us, since even those things which the prophets uttered from their own resources, the suggestions of their own minds, partake, by virtue of their divine mission and of that assistance which we call inspiration, of the same certainty with those which were revealed. [a) See, however, Jer. xxiii. 16, 21, 25, and compare what is said on this subject in the Biblical Theology of STORR and FLAtt, (tr. Schmucker) 13. Ill. 10. Vol. I. p. 235. Tr.] § 79. The Prophecies of Scripture not general. The presages of sagacious men, formed from their observations of the course of things and of powerfully operating causes, are merely general, without any attempt to define the time and circumstances of the event foretold; just as Polybius foresaw the change of the Roman republic to a monarchy, without any foreknowledge of the time or manner of the change. And, again, a prediction which is fortuitously accomplished, can be nothing more than general, and it is only occasionally that it has a corresponding event, and this most commonly, but partially accordant with the prediction. So the prophecy of the archbishop Malachi,[a] that there should arise an apostolical pilgrim, although only general, was yet but partially fulfilled in the case of Pius VI., who, though a pilgrim, was not rendered such by apostolical labours, but by adverse political circumstances. These limits to the accomplishment of human predictions were well known to the framers of the oracles, and to the soothsayers, of the heathen; for which reason they were careful to utter their presages, in other respects ambiguous, in a few general terms, and without any specification of cir [* See Germ. Introd. pp. 354, 355. Tr.] cumstances.Among the prophecies of Scripture, on the contrary, there are scarcely any so completely general as not to add at least some circumstances, and many even name the time and place of their fulfilment. The number of circumstances predicted, moreover, appears surprisingly great, when we compare together the various prophecies relating to a single event. Thus, with the promises made to the ancestors of the Hebrews, it is clearly announced, that the blessing which all nations were to enjoy, should come, not through Ishmael's posterity or Esau's, but through that of Isaac and Jacob, who should sojourn in a foreign land 400 years, from which, after much oppression, they should be delivered and brought to Canaan, and their oppressors be punished. See Gen. xii. 2. s. xv. 4. s. xvii. 4— 8, 19. ss. xxii. 16. ss. xxvi. 3. ss. xxviii. 13, 15. and comp. Gen. xv. 13-16., with Exod. xii. 40.- -When Moses predicts the miraculous plagues which were to be sent upon the Egyptians, he frequently defines the time of their commencement and of their termination; declares that the Hebrews should be exempt from the infliction, and adds many other particulars. See Ex. viii. 5-10, 17-28, ix. 2-8, 9-11, 18–29. x. 4, 13-19, 21-23. xi. 4-8. xii. 6, 12. s. 29. s. xiii. 18—xiv. 31.—If some of his promises and threats are expressed in general terms, yet in others he specifies particular circumstances, not to transpire until a thousand years and upwards after his time. Comp. Deut. xxviii. 36, 63–68. xxix. 21—27. xxx. 1—6. But the subject does not depend for illustration upon the most ancient prophecies. There are others of a more modern date which are no less particular. Isaiah predicts to Ahaz deliverance from Pekah and Rezin, the depopulation of the kingdoms of Israel and Damascus, and the devastation of Judea within a definite time; he offers to give a miraculous attestation of the truth of his predictions; he announces also the oppressions to which the country would be subjected by the Assyrians and Egyptians.He declares to Hezekiah, at a time when everything seemed on the point of being ruined, that Sennacherib would be obliged to retire; he mentions the wind which would destroy his army, the rumour which he would hear, viz. that the king of Cush was marching against him, and adds, that he should not besiege Jerusalem.When Hezekiah was sick without any hope of recovery, he promises him an addition of fifteen years -He foretells to his life, and confirms his promise by a miracle.the carrying away of the royal treasures and family to Babylon, more than 100 years before the event took place, and while the Chaldeans were a people without much celebrity. See Isa. vii. 4—25. viii. 1— x. 34. xxxvii. xxxviii. 4-8. xxxix. 5-8. Micah describes the subjection of the kingdom of Israel, and the complete destruction of Samaria; he foretells the captivity of the Jews and the devastation of their city and temple, their return and subsequent happiness, the victories of the Maccabees, the perseverance of the Jews in the worship of the true God, and the extension of religious knowledge See Micah i. iii. 12. iv. 9—11. vii. 10—14. also iv. 1-7. 12—14. Jeremiah foretells the return of the Egyptian army into their own country without venturing a battle.He predicts, not merely the capture of Jerusalem by the Chaldeans, but its conflagration; that Zedekiah should be brought to Nebuchadnezzar and taken to Babylon, but should not die a violent death; and further, that the Jews should return from their captivity after it had lasted 70 years. See Jerem. xxxvii. 7, 17. xxxiv. 1-7. xxxviii. 1-24. xxv. 11. s. xxix. 10. 1. li. The same particularity appears in the prophecies of Ezekiel, xxxvi. xxxvii., of Zechariah, vi. 9-16. ix. 1—8, 11—17. xi. xii. 1—3, and of Malachi. The last predicts, with circumstances of extraordinary minuteness, the advent of the long promised descendant of David, who would punish, not the heathen, as the Jews erroneously supposed, but themselves, and particularly the Levites, who were chiefly. distressed by the destruction of the temple. He announces the previous advent of a zealous messenger, a prophet like Elias, who should make the last effort to improve the moral character of the Jews; that afterwards the land should be smitten with the irrevocable curse, the cherem, in the execution of which the true worshippers of God should be spared. Is it possible for prophecy to be more circumstantial in relation to John the Baptist, to Jesus, to the final devastation of the country, and to the destruction of Jerusalem by Titus? See Mal. ii. 17—iii. 24. (ii. 17-iv. 6.) If we add to this what Zechariah (ix. 9.), Daniel (ix. 25-27.), Ezekiel (xxxiv. 23, 24. xxxvii. 24.), Jeremiah (xxiii. xxx. 8-10), Isaiah (xi. xlix-lxvi.), Micah (v. 1-3.), Amos (ix. 11, 12.), and Nathan (in II Sam. vii. I Chron. xvii. comp. Psal. lxxxix. and ex.) have predicted respecting the great descendant of David, we shall find many very circumstantial prophecies which have been completely verified. [a) Malachi, or Malmedouk O'Morgan, canonized by the Romish Church, was Archbishop of Armagh in 1134; appointed Pope's Legate in 1137; and died at Rome in 1148. See FLEURY Hist. Eccles. XIV. 534. ss. "Prophetia de futuris Pontificibus Romanis cum expositione Ciacconii extat apud ARNOLDUM WION, in Ligno Vitæ, L. II. c. xl.” CAVE, Hist. Lit. p. 663. ed. Lond. 1688. Tr.] § 80. The Prophecies are clear. Although the prophecies of scripture are not in every respect clear, yet their obscurity is by no means so great as that which meets us in the heathen oracles, where it was studiously aimed at, lest a clear prediction should be frustrated by the want of a corresponding result. It is acknowledged that the obscurity of prophecies is very considera · ble before the darkness is dispelled by the event; whence it happens that occasionally even the prophets confess that their predictions are not plain to themselves, or, which is equivalent, refer to some future period when their predictions shall be illustrated by history. See Isa. vi. 9-13. xxix. 11-18. Jer. xxiii. 20, 28. xxx. 24. Ezek. xxxiii. 33. Dan. vii. 28. viii. 27. xii. 8. s. Zech. ii. 13. (9.), 15. (11.), iv. 9. vi. 15. There is nevertheless a degree of perspicuity pervading all the prophecies sufficient to enable us to discern the event which they unfold in history, if it has been transmitted to us complete, and to acknowledge that he who sent the prophets must have been the omniscient ruler of the universe. Some are perfectly clear, as the predictions contained in Ex. vii-xiv; also, the prophecies concerning the overthrow of the kingdoms of Israel and Judah, the destruction of Samaria and Jerusalem, the captivity and return of Israel and Judah, the re conciliation of the ten tribes with the tribe of Judah after the return from captivity, the pacific period subsequent to the captivity, the victories of the Maccabees, the promised illustrious son of David, and especially those concerning the propagation of the true religion to other nations. Not less clear are many of the symbolical prophecies, such as Ezek. iv. 1-v. 4. xii. 1–20. I Ki. xi. 30. Hos. i. 2-11 If some prophecies are rather obscure, the cause is partly the want of historical records, partly the imperfect knowledge which we have of the Hebrew language, which has led interpreters into a variety of opinions.—To demand as great a degree of clearness as that which history requires, is unreasonable. A prophecy of this sort would sometimes be subjected to an impossibility of fulfilment; as, for example, if the prediction involved a calamity or something exceedingly offensive, which the nation, to whom the prophecy is announced, was to bring upon itself by some particular act. If such a prophecy were to define with historical accuracy the place, the time, the persons, and the manner of performance, without doubt all the persons by whose agency its accomplishment was to be effected, would carefully avoid doing any thing to give occasion to promote it, and thus the prediction would be without a corresponding event, and consequently false, which cannot be the case with any thing coming from God. This may be exemplified by the instances of Jesus and John the Baptist, who would not have been put to death, if the prophecies concerning them had been delivered with historical perspicuity. Those which relate to the destruction of Jerusalem by Titus may serve as another example.But although the scriptural prophecies do not represent the subjects to which they relate with the precision of history, it is not true that they afforded no previous knowledge of the events for as an artist's rough sketches of some intended painting exhibit many lines from which when the work is finished it is easy to perceive that the sketch is a delineation of the picture; so also the prophecies, although they are not clear, yet they contain indications of the future events which they have in view, sufficient to enable us after their accomplishment, to ascertain by the aid of history that they actually predicted these events.Those interpreters who have not noticed this characteristic of the prophecies have frequently involved them in additional obscurity, by adopting principles which were not derived from the nature and conformation of those productions, but taken up at random. Some have looked for perfect clearness, and consequently have wrested to a meaning of their own many passages, and even some that were merely intended to fill up the picture. Others have imagined that they could every where discern Christ and the Christian church. Others have contended that the prophe : |