6. I still supposed that the originals were perfect; that in them we had
the words of God just as they came from His own mind.
7. But I afterwards found that there were several originals,--or at
least several Greek and Hebrew Bibles,--and that they also differed from
each other to some extent, and that none of them could be said to be
entirely free from error.
8. I learnt from Adam Clarke and others that the printed Greek and
Hebrew Bibles had been compiled from _manuscripts_,--or from Bibles, or
portions of the Bible, written by the hand, before the art of printing
was known.
9. I also found that those manuscripts differed from each other, in a
great many places, and that in some cases they differed on points
supposed to be of considerable importance, and that it was impossible to
tell which of the manuscripts were most correct.
10. I also learnt, that all existing manuscripts were copies of other
manuscripts, and that the real original books, the books written by
Moses and the Prophets, and by the Evangelists and Apostles, were all
lost, so that it was impossible to tell, with absolute certainty,
whether any of the manuscripts were absolutely correct,--that when the
best and ablest men on earth had done their utmost, there would still be
room for doubt as to the true reading, as well as to the correct
meaning, of various portions of Scripture.
Pages:
330
331
332
333
334
335
336
337
338
339
340
341
342
343
344
345
346
347
348
349
350
351
352
353
354