A hand-book of Christian evidence ...

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CHAPTER I. Approximate Proof of the Divine Origin of the Bible

in General — Its Three-Fold Analogy to Nature

— Their Simplicity and Profundity — Their Unity

and Harmony— Their Adaptation to Man . . 23-40

[Note. — "The Sceptre shall not depart from Judah" — 30]

Chapter II

Conclusive Proof of the Divine Origin of the Old Testament — Fulfilled Prophecies — Seven Specifications — Nineveh — Ammon and Moab — Philistines AND THEIR ClTIES — BABYLON — DISPERSION OF

the Jews — Desolation of the Holy Land — Preservation and Perpetuity of the Jews .... 41-99

CHAPTER m.

Conclusive Proof of the Divine Origin of the New Testament — Fulfilled Prophecees — Three Specifications — Popery — Spiritualism — Avowed Infidelity — The Three Great Enemies of Christ's

Kingdom

(vii)

100-157

Viii CONTENTS.

Part Second. Divine Origin Op The Christian Religion

CHAPTER I.

PAGES.

Credibility of the Gospels and Acts oe the Apostles — Proved According to Well Established Principles of Evidence — Testimony of Friends — Testimony of Enemies — Circumstantial Evidence . 161-236

CHAPTER n.

The Resurrection of Jesus Proved .... 237-254

Chapter III

Circumstances Corroborating Christ's Claims — Jesus the summum bonum of the world — the centre- Stance Around which Circumstances Revolve. Events Before his Coming Point Forward to Him ; While Events Since, Point Back to Him . . . 255-289

Conclusion

God — Miracles— Objections . . . . • . 290-296

Appendix

A.

The Controverted Passage of Josephus . . . 299-302

B.

Martyrdom of Apostles 802-316

C.

Infidel Review and Reply 315-341

INTRODUCTION.

HE increase of Infidelity, and the fact that it is ^ becoming popularized, would afford sufficient F apology, if any were needed, for offering to the

^ public, at this time, a work on the evidences of our holy religion. That skepticism, in its various forms and phases, has been on the increase for the past decade, is undeniable. Even during a longer period, its prevalence has been attracting the attention of "watchmen upon the walls of Zion," both in the Old World and in the New.

As early as 1863, an English writer, Mr. Froude, said: "At this moment a general doubt is coming up, like a thunder storm against the wind, and blackening the sky."

In 1865, Prof. Hurst wrote: "There was a time when rationalism was a theme of interest to the Protestant church of Germany alone. But that day is now past. * * * It has assumed an importance which should not be overlooked by * * * American thinkers."

As early 1865, Prof. Fisher told us: " The comparative strength of the Infidel party in our times, is underrated by not a few, even of Christian teachers. * * * CM

X INTRODUCTION.

They are not awake to the subtler form which skepticism has assumed. They fail to see that * * * it is diffused like an atmosphere. They are not aware how widely the seeds of unbelief are scattered through books and journals, which find a hospitable reception even in Christian families."

About the same time, MacPherson, of Scotland, wrote: "This contest respecting the foundation of religious belief, is not confined, as it used generally to be, within certain circles of speculative men. The press, now so powerful in its influence, has involved rich and poor, learned and unlearned, in this great conflict."

" Thus from day to day," as De Pressense says, " a form of skepticism is being developed, which * * * is in the very air we breathe ; it finds its way into the lightest publication ; the novel and the journal vie with each other in its diffusion ; short review articles, skilled in giving grace and piquancy to erudition, furnish it with arguments, which appear weighty. * * * Such a condition of things is critical, and calls for grave and special consideration. If those who are convinced of the divinity of Christianity, slumber on in false and fatal security, they must be prepared to pay dearly for their slothfulness, and the church and mankind — which have need of each other — will pay for it dearly, also. The voice of skepticism will alone be heard, and the sweeping assertions of unbelief will pass for axioms."

INTRODUCTION. XI

We might give examples of similar declarations made in 1866, such as the statement of Mr. Liddon, that " no one who hears what is going on in daily conversation, and who is moderately conversant with the tone of some of the leading organs of public opinion, can doubt the existence of a widespread unsettlement of religious belief.' '

In 1867, President Milligan wrote: " It is painful to see the popular indifference that is everywhere manifested for the word of God." Although the goodness of his nature, and the broad charity that filled his heart, and shown so brightly in his life, caused him to dissent from the view that the Holy Scriptures were losing their influence on mankind, he sadly penned the following: "But, nevertheless, their influence is very little in comparison with what it ought to be.''

We find the Bishop of Gloucester and Bristol, C. J. Ellicott, speaking, in 1870, of " the current forms of unbelief among the educated classes ; ' ' of * * the skepticism and Unbelief, which for the last few years, have been distinctly traceable in all clases ; " and, again, * ' of those in the lower grades of society who are exposed to the thickening dangers arising from that organized diffusion of infidel principles, which is one of the saddest and most monitory signs of the present time."

Later yet, the Bishop of Winchester says: " Doubt is everywhere. Skeptical suggestions are wrapped up in narrative ; they bristle in * * * essays ; they

Xll INTRODUCTION.

color our physical philosophy ; they mingle themselves with our commonplace theology itself."

In 1871, President Hinsdale stated " the supreme religious question of the age," to be this: "What shall we do, then, with Jesus, which is called Christ?" He then adds: "How deeply Christendom is stirred by this query, is apparent even to the superficial observer. The press of the Old World teems with publications seeking to answer it ; likewise the press of the New ; while in both worlds the lecturerooms and pulpit resound with noisy debate. The voices are not harmonious ; they do not unite in a song of praise to our Lord Jesus Christ ; so far from it, they represent every shade of belief and unbelief; they are too discordant to blend."

In 1872, in a speech delivered at Liverpool College, Prime Minister Gladstone said: —

" On an occasion like this, I should not have desired, my young friends, to dwell in a marked manner on the trials you will have to encounter. But the incidents of the time are no common incidents ; and there is one among them so obtrusive, that youth cannot long enjoy its natural privilege of unacquaintance with the mischief, but at the same time so formidable that youth really requires to be forewarned agaiust the danger. I refer to the extraordinary and boastful manifestation in this age of ours, and especially in the year which is about to close, of the extremest forms of unbelief."

About the same time, Mr. Fowle, a minister in the Church of England, wrote : —

"We cannot foresee the exact influence of scientific discovery upon the religious faith of the future. * * * But it is clear that once more men will be brought face to face with the deepest questions of religious belief, and it is melancholy indeed to notice the absolute ignorance of popular religionism, and its popular leaders,

INTRODUCTION. XI 11

as to the true nature of the approaching crisis. That Mr. Darwin's last book [The Descent of Mari] should surprise the religious world in the midst of a hot fight about articles and rubrics, disestablishment and vestment, is sadly ominous of the result of the battle."

And, with a true view of the situation, the Duke of Somerset declares that "the differences of Christian sects lose their significance in comparison with far deeper questions which are attracting the notice of educated society/ *

In 1873, Augustus Blauvelt wrote: —

" Since 1865, all the more thoughtful and scholarly forms of trans-atlantic unbelief have been crossing over to our shores through a thousand different channels, — books, periodicals, living advocates, the constant intercourse of nations, and the like, — and by the arrival of almost every ship and steamer.

11 If American Christians — if American Christian lawyers and statesmen and men of letters, and other secular leaders of this public mind, as well as the American Christian clergy — do not wish ten years from now to be doing precisely what all such classes of Christians are this instant doing in Europe — that is, do not wish to be running hither and thither, wringing their hands and their hearts together at the fearful extent of the already blackened desolation, and almost wildly endeavoring to save the Christian faith and system from a still further wreck and ruin; then something must be done by all these friends of Christ among us; and something must be done by them intelligently, promptly and efficiently."

During all this while many ominous facts have come within the purview of every one's vision. Notably prominent among these, was the hearty reception given the Infidel scientist 'Tyndall, when he visited this country. Apropos to this, the works of Darwin, Huxley, Spencer, and other anti-christian scientific leaders of trans-atlantic thought, have been, for several years past, scattered broadcast among the masses of reading and thinking Americans. Not only so, but Prof. Fiske,

XIV INTRODUCTION.

of Harvard, a disciple of Spencer and Darwin, has, for months together, had the columns of one of the principal New York dailies placed at his disposal, through which to disseminate the seeds of Atheism, under the guise of philosophy.

Nor is this all, but avowed Infidel works have been profusely scattered through Europe and America,

" Thick as autumnal leaves that strew the brooks of Vallombrosa."

Furthermore, the most insidious literature is circulated, and every available occasion made use of for the purpose of foisting upon an unsuspecting public, the most seductive and poisonous Infidelity. An infidel tract was once handed me, headed "Are You a Christian?" At the close, it had the phrase, " American Tract Society," in very large letters ; but just above, it had the words " not by," in very small letters. I sometimes see, in the homes of Christians, a large gilded and finely ornamented volume, entitled "Creator and Cosmos" which costs $5.00. This attractive volume, although purporting to be a religious work, is leavened with the rankest kind of Infidelity. In 1877, Pres. Braden, who has made Skepticism in its various forms and phases, a subject of observation and reflection, wrote as follows: —

"Lectures and publications on scientific topics are continually assaulting every religious sentiment; scientific associations and their anniversaries are used, on account of the eclat that the occasion will give the speaker, to flaunt in the face of the religious world the baldest Infidelity, and to scout the fundamental principles of religion." — Problem of Problems, page 93.

INTRODUCTION. XV

Then, be it remembered, the Infidels are organizing themselves into clubs wherever a group of them can be assembled together, and in some places, they meet regularly for the promotion of their obnoxious cause. And Infidel periodicals are published, and scattered broadcast over the land, from the Atlantic to the Pacific, and from the Lakes to the Gulf. A computation of the infidel, semi-infidel, and spiritualistic papers in the United States and the British Dominions, would startle those who have heretofore given the subject no consideration, vltis hardly too much to say "their name is legion ! "

If any further evidence is needed to show that Infidelity is becoming popularized, it is found in the fact that speakers are paid a good salary to travel from city to city, and lecture against the Bible and religion. What means the applause which greets such men as Ingersoll, wherever they deal out their blasphemous denunciations against God and the Bible ? Does it not show that Infidelity is permeating the masses? There is, in too many places, a latent skepticism that only requires the bold utterances of some reckless adventurer, who neither regards God nor man, to bring it into full activity.

The very erroneous idea prevails, in some sections, among the uninformed, that Christians cannot cope with Infidels ; that religion " is a pretty good thing,' ' but will not stand the crucible of investigation . They look upon Christianity about as they look upon homeopathy —

XVI INTRODUCTION.

think if it does no good, it can do no great harm ; but, that it possesses no virtue, no efficacious qualities. For this very fallacious view of the subject, ministers are to some extent responsible, because they have given too little attention to the subject ; because they have too often evaded discussion ; and because they have neglected to make the truth stand out in bold relief that Christianity is a religion of fact; that it rests upon incontrovertible facts — facts attested by the very best and most reliable historic testimony in existence. Our religious teachers should show a bold front, and evince that they are ready to defend the truth " against all comers and goers." They should plant themselves squarely upon the Rock of Ages, and defiantly exclaim, in the language of James Fitz-James : —

" Come one, come all ! this rock shall fly From its firm base as soon as I ! "

In view of the foregoing considerations, I have never refused to meet Infidels in the arena of public discussion, when called upon to do so. And in view of those considerations, I now come before the public with a work on " Christian Evidence." I fully indorse the sentiment of Walter Scott : —

" So long as man requires to be enlightened on the proposition of Christianity, so long will it be useful and necessary to handle its evidence and reason upon it. It has been said, that he who cannot reason upon religion is a fool, he who will not reason upon it is a bigot, and he who dare not reason is a coward. Let us, then, be neither fools, bigots, nor cowards. Books on evidence are always in order." — Great Demonstration , p. 18.

INTRODUCTION. XV11

Many contributions to the various divisions of apologetics have been written, by such men as Lardner, Paley, Watson, Newton, Keith, Alexander, Baxter, Bolton, Walker, Doddridge, Newcomb, Gaussen, Grotius, Buchanan, Butler, Blount, Leslie, Jenyns, West, Clark, Lyttleton, Greenleaf, Home, Chalmers, Rogers, Sharpe, Simpson, Taylor, Mcllvane, McCosh, Campbell, Scott, Milligan, Wickens, Schaff, Haldane, Channing, Christlieb, De Pressense, Smith, Challen, Hinsdale, Braden and Dungan.* But notwithstanding the world has been favored with those, and other able and invaluable works, bearing directly and indirectly upon the subject of Christian evidence, my experience in debating with Infidels has impressed the conviction that another and somewhat different work was needed — a work which might appropriately be called, "A Hand-book of Christian Evidence." Such a book I aim to furnish in the following pages.

When a minister of Christ is called upon to defend his religion, either in the arena or from the pulpit, he finds that he has to rummage through all the libraries accessible, in order to secure such facts and authorities as may be necessary for such an important task. Even then, some of the most needed works are inaccessible,

* Since our first edition was issued the " Encyclopedia on the Evidences," has appeared ; an extensive compilation by J. W. Monser, published by John Burns, St. Louis. A good work of reference for ministers and others. Also, the " Problem of Human Life," by A. W. Hall, published by Hall & Co., New York. A very weighty production, in which the author crushes the evolution theory, as the heel of a giant might crush an egg-shell.

XV111 INTRODUCTION.

and he is pressed for time to select and arrange such facts and statements as may be furnished by the works at hand. The first object of this book, therefore, is to furnish aid to ministers of the gospel ; to present them, in a cheap and convenient form, with many of the most important facts and documents relating to the great controversy which is now agitating the leading minds of both the Old World and the New. I have also found, in debates with Infidels, that it is easy to wound them with their own weapons ; I, therefore, quote many admissions of Infidels which may effectively be turned against them. I am persuaded that a perusal of the following pages will show that an Infidel dare not admit anything, nor affirm anything; that the best that he can offer is — nothing!

The second object of this work is to inform the general reader, and strengthen the faith of the Christian. The apostle Peter says, "be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you." And the time has come when it is necessary, not only to believe, but to believe intelligently and upon evidence ; not only to accept the gospel, but also to tell why you accept it. The apostle Paul requires every elder to be able, not only to exhort, but to convince the gainsayers; and if the masses of Christians do not possess the ability to silence all the cavils of Infidels, they should, at least, be able to present such reasons as will satisfy the honest doubter that our religion is all that it claims to be.

INTRODUCTION. XIX

All believers are therefore requested to read these pages with great care and diligence, and with a proper realization of the responsibility that rests upon them.

The last, but by no means the least, object of the production now before you, is to reason with skeptics and Infidels, so that those who are open to conviction may be convinced, and others may be left without excuse. I therefore request all doubters and unbelievers to read with fairness and candor, and with the seriousness that the importance of the subject demands. Remember that you hazard nothing by believing, but everything by disbelieving ; for if the religion of the Bible proves false you lose nothing by accepting it, but if it proves true, you lose everything by rejecting it.

Entering a field that has often been traversed, I set up no claims to entire originality ; on the other hand, I am at no pains to follow in the wake of others. Consequently, I appropriate for the good of the cause, such fruits and flowers as lie in my pathway, as well as the herbs of my own planting, trusting that God may bless alike the planting of Paul and the watering of Apollos, causing the increase to abound to the honor and glory of His great name, and the best interests of humanity.

I1W5SES&-

Part I. The Divine Origin Of The Bible

Mgyom

" The heavens declare the glory of God ; and the firmament sheweth his handywork.

Day unto day uttereth speech, and night unto night sheweth knowledge.

There is no speech nor language, where their voice is not heard.

Their line is gone out through all the earth, and their words to the end of the world. In them hath he set a tabernacle for the sun.

Which is as a bridegroom coming out of his chamber, and rejoiceth as a strong man to run a race.

His going forth is from the end of the heaven, and his circuit unto the ends of it: and there is nothing hid from the heat thereof.

The law of the Lord is perfect, converting the soul: the testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple.

The statutes of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart: the commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes.

The fear of the Lord is clean, enduring forever: the judgments of the Lord are true and righteous altogether.

More to be desired are they than gold, yea, than much fine gold: sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb.

Moreover by them is thy servant warned: and in keeping of them there is great reward."— David.

"We have also a more sure word of prophecy; whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day star arise in your hearts:

Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the Scripture is of any private interpretation.

For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man; but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost."— Peter.

Chapter I

Approximate Proof that the Bible in General is of Divine Origin.

.T the Bible in general is of divine origin, maybe proved approximately by its analogy to nature. The book is similar to nature in three

^ grand particulars —

I. It is like nature in its combined simplicity and abstruseness.

When the student of nature first begins his investigations, the whole truth seems to lie right upon the surface; but the more he learns, the more he finds that there is to learn, so that it requires profound thought and close application, even to approximate toward understanding some of the simplest things in the great store-house of nature. The study of the atmosphere affords a striking illustration of this thought. The first thing we have use for when we come into this world is air. We breathe it every day that we live, and it is the last thing we use before leaving the world. We ought to understand it, if we understand anything in the universe ; and yet the human family breathed it for centuries before they knew what it was, or had any just conception of it. Thales, a great philosopher, who flourished in the year 640 before Christ, promulgated the theory that air and everything else was made of water, and that all life resided in it. About a century afterward, Anaximenes said Thales was wrong, that everything was composed of air, and that it was the essence of life. Diogenes, a few years later, thought the air t<* be an intelligent spirit, who was generally in a kind and pleasant humor, but would occasionally become angry, and produce storms and hurricanes. 348 B. C, Aristotle divided all substances into four elements — earth, air, fire and water. But little more was known about the subject till A. D., 1100, when Olshausen, a Saracen, discovered that air possessed weight, and that it merely encircled our globe, instead of extending through all space, as had formerly been supposed.

In 1630, Galileo investigated the water pump, and found that water would not rise in a tube over thirty-three feet, when the air was drawn off. Torricello applied the same principle to mercury, which led to the construction of barometers, and laid the foundation for further discoveries. It was found that air weighed about fifteen pounds to the square inch, and that its weight varied with the weather. In 1650, Otto Von Gruericke invented the air pump. Boyle, the next investigator, endeavored to ascertain the chemical constituents of the atmosphere. He concluded that there were different kinds of air. Hales pursued the investigation still further; but Black was the first to use the plural for the word air, and to use a balance for weighing airs. A. D., 1772, Kutherford discovered nitrogen. In 1774, Priestly discovered oxygen. Lavoisier, a Frenchman, generalized the observations of others, and invented the caliometer. He classified the elements of the air, as oxygen, nitrogen and carbon. Liebig has since discovered that the atmosphere possesses a small portion of ammonia. Dr. Playfair, who has examined the subject with ability and precision, says: " Fresh observations are still being made which tend to show how little is yet known about the air.' ' I have just taken this subject as an example of the many illustrations that might be given to show what attention and profound research is required in order to have even a moderate idea of the simplest things in the natural world. It has required the study of philosophers for centuries to learn what is now known about as simple and commonplace element as air, and they confess now that they do not thoroughly understand it.

The same principle will apply to the study of nature as a whole, and in all its various departments. The farmer who turns and reads the furrows of the field, as the leaves of a book, seems to understand all that is necessary to be known about nature. He knows when to sow and when to plant, and how to make nature contribute to all his wants. Even the child can understand whatever is most pleasing and beneficial in nature, but the greatest philosopher has never yet sounded its depths ; and when he has to give up this life, after long years of arduous toil, and patient investigation, he confesses that he has just begun to learn. Sir Isaac Newton, when upon his death-bed, was complimented upon the wonderful discoveries which he had made in science. He replied : "I have been but as a child, playing on the seashore ; now finding some pebble rather more polished, and now some shell rather more agreeably variegated than another, while the immense ocean of truth extended itself unexplored before me."

So it is in regard to the Bible. When we open the volume which believers regard as precious, everything appears to be plain, and easy to be understood. The whole truth seems at first glance to lie right upon the surface of its pages. But the more we learn about it, the more are we impressed that there is still much to be learned, so that we are ever learning, and never able to come to a full and complete knowledge of the truth. We can never exhaust all its treasures ! Every golden boulder that we find but discovers a new "lead," which, if followed, will lead to the excavation of pearls and diamonds, richer than any that abound in the great store-house of nature. Some things in the Bible are so plain that " he who runs may read." Some things are adapted to the comprehension of a child. This is particularly true with reference to matters of duty. Where is the intellect too weak to learn the great items of duty from the Bible. Isaiah, looking down through coming ages with prophetic eye, saw the ransomed of the Lord returning and coming to Zion, and he declared the way to be so plain that "the wayfaring men, though fools, should not err therein."* And when we turn to the actual requirements of the gospel, such as faith, repentance, obedience, and the addition of virtue, knowledge, temperance, patience, love, etc., we find them to be very plain and simple. f Even a general outline of the Bible, upon all subjects, historical and otherwise, is very plain and intelligible to any reader ; but there is beyond all this a depth of profundity and abstruseness that the greatest genius cannot fathom.

Now, nature and the Bible being alike simple and yet uniting with this simplicity, a depth that renders them incomprehensible, both must have originated from the same divine mind.

LI. The Bible is like nature in its harmonious unity.

That nature is a unit is shown : —

1st. By chemistry, from which we learn that there are about sixty-four original elements or different kinds of matter, called atoms ; and those combined in various proportions make all the varieties of material substances, which we see around us, wood, hay, iron, stone, steel, brass, copper, silver, zinc, cloth, cotton, silk, and so on ad infinitum. Now this shows that the

• Isaiah, xxxv : 8.

f It is true believers sometimes dispute, even about matters of duty; but the difference is not so much as to what is taught, but as to whether something may be practised that is not taught, or something omitted that is taught creator of one substance is alike the creator of every other substance in the material universe.

2d. The unity of nature is shown by natural history, from which we learn that vegetation is closely connected with and based upon the mineral ; and that as the mineral is the basis and support of the vegetable kingdom, the vegetable is the basis and support of the animal, and the animal, again, of the mental ; showing that the maker of minerals is also the maker of vegetables, animals, and souls.

3d. Astronomy proves and illustrates the unity of nature. All the planets of our solar system revolve around the sun ; and the solar system, with ten thousand other systems revolve around other suns, and so on throughout the vast immensity of illimitable space, all the planets in the universe revolving around one central sun, showing that the same Almighty power that formed our world also made the sun and moon, and all the suns and moons, and stars that light up the boundless universe.

Thus, whether we take a microscopic view of the least particles of matter, or a broad comprehensive view of the whole vast machinery of the universe ; or if we could, as the poet says,

" Trace by steps, each planet's heavenly way, Or fill at once the realms of space, a thing of eyes that all survey! "

We find unity and harmony pervading the whole.

The Bible, like nature, is also a unit, and shows evident marks that it, like the universe, is the production of one infinite mind. This may be shown in many ways: