The heroes and crises of early Hebrew history from the creation to the death of Moses

Front matter

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Preface

^ Every man consciously or unconsciously makes his own working

^ canon of the Bible. Sometimes this working canon includes every-

thing that is found in the Scriptures, irrespective of relative values; sometimes it is pitiably limited, and fails to include many exceedingly important passages. To use the Bible intelligently and profitably it is important to realize that it is a great library, containing many different books, written by a great variety of authors, who lived in periods widely remote, and who wrote with diverse aims and points of view. Over twelve centuries lie between Moses and Paul, and each century contributed its part to the gradually growing records of God's revelation of his character and will in the experiences, the hearts and the minds of men. The men of later ages, who have given us our present canons of the Old and the New Testaments, in their zeal to preserve all the existing records, included certain writings, which possess only a secondary historical and religious value. Sometimes, as in the case of the Gospels, they have also preserved three or four distinct yet parallel records of the same events; and sometimes, as in the case of the opening books of the Old Testament, they have closely blended together the older and later records into one continuous narrative.

The great service of modern, constructive biblical scholarship has been to distinguish and to restore the older records to their original form, and to make it possible again to study the heroic characters and stirring events in Israel's history as recorded by the earliest historians. In simplicity, literary beauty and historical value, the oldest history of Israel far surpasses the work of the later biblical historians. It includes practically all of the peerless narratives which have commanded the attention and moulded the faith and morals of humanity. When the later distracting parallels, the genealogical tables, the later Jewish traditions regarding the origin of institutions, and the popular legendary

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PREFACE

material have been removed, there remains the heart of the Bible— clear, consistent, the earliest and noblest record of God's revelation of himself in the life of humanity.

The aim of the Historical Bible is to make this older, vital record available for popular reading and study. It also aims to arrange and combine with the earliest historical record the more important songs, prophetic addresses, laws, psalms, proverbs and epistles, so that the biblical writers will present in their own language the literature, history and religious belief of each succeeding age. This arrangement makes it possible to study the character, work and messageof each great prophet, sage, or apostle in the full light of the events and conditions amidst which he lived and labored.

The translation is based on the oldest and best readings of the Hebrew, Greek, Syriac and Latin texts, and seeks to embody the constructive results of modern scholarship and discovery. It also aims to retain all that is best in the classic Authorized Version. It is hoped that by the means of a simple, dignified idiomatic translation the student may be directly introduced to the thought of the original writers and thus be largely relieved from the necessity of constantly referring to commentaries. The textual basis and the reasons for die different renderings adopted will be found in the corresponding sections of the author's Students Old Testament.

The earlier system of dividing the text into sections and paragraphs has been adopted. The chapter and verse references, first added in the sixteenth century a.d., have been omitted because they distract the attention of the reader, and because they often make misleading divisions of the text. Those teachers and readers who desire to verify the chapter and verse references will find them printed in connection with the text in the corresponding sections of the Students Old Testament, to which detailed reference is made in the Table of Contents.

To each general section of the biblical text have been added such brief connected historical, geographical and archaeological notes as are necessary for the intelligent understanding of the biblical records. The purpose throughout has been to fix the attention on the biblical text itself and to put the reader in possession of those facts which are essential to its full understanding and appreciation.

The Historical Bible is intended for use, (1) as a text-book for college, seminary and preparatory school classes; (2) as a manual for teachers' training classes; (3) as a basis of study for general readers who desire to gain from the modern point of view a systematic knowledge of the

PREFACE

history, literature and teachings of the Bible; (4) as a text-book for senior and adult Bible classes.

For many years the conviction has been deepening that, if the alert young men and women of to-day are to be held in the Bible schools, they must be launched at the critical age of sixteen or seventeen upon a systematic course of Bible study which will hold their interest and attention, answer their critical questions, and give them the constant inspiration of definite and progressive achievement

To give definiteness to the study a selected group of questions, with references for further study in connection with each section, are given in the Appendix. There is also being prepared for the use of Sunday-school teachers a special manual with suggestions regarding the method of presentation and application of the practical truths and principles illustrated by each general section.

To Mr. Charles Scribner I am under great obligation for many valuable suggestions in developing the plan of the series, and to Miss Ruth D. Sherrill and to Professor Irving F. Wood, of Smith College, for aid in revising the proofs.

C.F. K.

Yalm Uniybbutt.

May, 1908.