a theologico-political treatise [part ii]-第17部分

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motives　of　decency　or　a　desire　to　explain　obsolete　words。　（127）　（II。）　I　am



inclined　to　attribute　the　fact　that　more　than　two　readings　are　never　found



to　the　paucity　of　exemplars；　perhaps　not　more　than　two　or　three；　found　by



the　scribes。　（128）　In　the　treatise　of　the　scribes；　chap。　vi。；　mention　is



made　of　three　only；　pretended　to　have　been　found　in　the　time　of　Ezra；　in



order　that　the　marginal　versions　might　be　attributed　to　him。







（129）　However　that　may　be；　if　the　scribes　only　had　three　codices　we　may



easily　imagine　that　in　a　given　passage　two　of　them　would　be　in　accord；　for



it　would　be　extraordinary　if　each　one　of　the　three　gave　a　different　reading



of　the　same　text。







（130）　The　dearth　of　copies　after　the　time　of　Ezra　will　surprise　no　one　who



has　read　the　1st　chapter　of　Maccabees；　or　Josephus's　〃Antiquities；〃　Bk。　12；



chap。　5。　（131）　Nay；　it　appears　wonderful　considering　the　fierce　and　daily



persecution；　that　even　these　few　should　have　been　preserved。　（132）　This



will；　I　think；　be　plain　to　even　a　cursory　reader　of　the　history　of　those



times。







（133）　We　have　thus　discovered　the　reasons　why　there　are　never　more　than　two



readings　of　a　passage　in　the　Bible；　but　this　is　a　long　way　from　supposing



that　we　may　therefore　conclude　that　the　Bible　was　purposely　written



incorrectly　in　such　passages　in　order　to　signify　some　mystery。　（134）　As　to



the　second　argument；　that　some　passages　are　so　faultily　written　that　they



are　at　plain　variance　with　all　grammar；　and　should　have　been　corrected　in



the　text　and　not　in　the　margin；　I　attach　little　weight　to　it；　for　I　am　not



concerned　to　say　what　religious　motive　the　scribes　may　have　had　for　acting



as　they　did：　possibly　they　did　so　from　candour；　wishing　to　transmit　the　few



exemplars　of　the　Bible　which　they　had　found　exactly　in　their　original　state；



marking　the　differences　they　discovered　in　the　margin；　not　as　doubtful



readings；　but　as　simple　variants。　（135）　I　have　myself　called　them　doubtful



readings；　because　it　would　be　generally　impossible　to　say　which　of　the　two



versions　is　preferable。







（136）　Lastly；　besides　these　doubtful　readings　the　scribes　have　（by　leaving　a



hiatus　in　the　middle　of　a　paragraph）　marked　several　passages　as　mutilated。



（137）　The　Massoretes　have　counted　up　such　instances；　and　they　amount　to



eight…and…twenty。　（138）　I　do　not　know　whether　any　mystery　is　thought　to　lurk



in　the　number；　at　any　rate　the　Pharisees　religiously　preserve　a　certain



amount　of　empty　space。







（139）　One　of　such　hiatus　occurs　（to　give　an　instance）　in　Gen。　iv：8；　where　it



is　written；　〃And　Cain　said　to　his　brother　。　。　。　。　and　it　came　to　pass　while



they　were　in　the　field；　&c。；〃　a　space　being　left　in　which　we　should　expect



to　hear　what　it　was　that　Cain　said。







（140）　Similarly　there　are　（besides　those　points　we　have　noticed）　eight…and…



twenty　hiatus　left　by　the　scribes。　（141）　Many　of　these　would　not　be



recognized　as　mutilated　if　it　were　not　for　the　empty　space　left。　But　I　have



said　enough　on　this　subject。



















CHAPTER　X。　…　AN　EXAMINATION　OF　THE　REMAINING　BOOKS　OF



THE　OLD　TESTAMENT　ACCORDING　TO　THE　PRECEDING　METHOD。







（1）　I　now　pass　on　to　the　remaining　books　of　the　Old　Testament。　（2）



Concerning　the　two　books　of　Chronicles　I　have　nothing　particular　or



important　to　remark；　except　that　they　were　certainly　written　after　the　time



of　Ezra；　and　possibly　after　the　restoration　of　the　Temple　by　Judas



Maccabaeus　＇Endnote　19＇。　（2）　For　in　chap。　ix。　of　the　first　book　we　find　a



reckoning　of　the　families　who　were　the　first　to　live　in　Jerusalem；　and　in



verse　17　the　names　of　the　porters；　of　which　two　recur　in　Nehemiah。　（3）　This



shows　that　the　books　were　certainly　compiled　after　the　rebuilding　of　the



city。　（4）　As　to　their　actual　writer；　their　authority；　utility；　and　doctrine；



I　come　to　no　conclusion。　（5）　I　have　always　been　astonished　that　they　have



been　included　in　the　Bible　by　men　who　shut　out　from　the　canon　the　books　of



Wisdom；　Tobit；　and　the　others　styled　apocryphal。　（6）　I　do　not　aim　at



disparaging　their　authority；　but　as　they　are　universally　received　I　will



leave　them　as　they　are。







（7）　The　Psalms　were　collected　and　divided　into　five　books　in　the　time　of　the



second　temple；　for　Ps。　lxxxviii。　was　published；　according　to　Philo…Judaeus；



while　king　Jehoiachin　was　still　a　prisoner　in　Babylon；　and　Ps。　lxxxix。　when



the　same　king　obtained　his　liberty：　I　do　not　think　Philo　would　have　made　the



statement　unless　either　it　had　been　the　received　opinion　in　his　time；　or



else　had　been　told　him　by　trustworthy　persons。







（8）　The　Proverbs　of　Solomon　were；　I　believe；　collected　at　the　same　time；　or



at　least　in　the　time　of　King　Josiah；　for　in　chap。　xxv：1；　it　is　written；



〃These　are　also　proverbs　of　Solomon　which　the　men　of　Hezekiah；　king　of



Judah；　copied　out。〃　（9）　I　cannot　here　pass　over　in　silence　the　audacity



of　the　Rabbis　who　wished　to　exclude　from　the　sacred　canon　both　the　Proverbs



and　Ecclesiastes；　and　to　put　them　both　in　the　Apocrypha。　（10）　In　fact；　they



would　actually　have　done　so；　if　they　had　not　lighted　on　certain　passages　in



which　the　law　of　Moses　is　extolled。　（11）　It　is；　indeed；　grievous　to　think



that　the　settling　of　the　sacred　canon　lay　in　the　hands　of　such　men；　however；



I　congratulate　them；　in　this　instance；　on　their　suffering　us　to　see　these



books　in　question；　though　I　cannot　refrain　from　doubting　whether　they　have



transmitted　them　in　absolute　good　faith；　but　I　will　not　now　linger　on　this



point。







（10）　I　pass　on；　then；　to　the　prophetic　books。　（11）　An　examination　of　these



assures　me　that　the　prophecies　therein　contained　have　been　compiled　from



other　books；　and　are　not　always　set　down　in　the　exact　order　in　which　they



were　spoken　or　written　by　the　prophets；　but　are　only　such　as　were　collected



here　and　there；　so　that　they　are　but　fragmentary。







（12）　Isaiah　began　to　prophecy　in　the　reign　of　Uzziah；　as　the　writer　himself



testifies　in　the　first　verse。　（13）　He　not　only　prophesied　at　that　time；　but



furthermore　wrote　the　history　of　that　king　（see　2　Chron。　xxvi：22）　in　a



volume　now　lost。　（13）　That　which　we　possess；　we　have　shown　to　have　been



taken　from　the　chronicles　of　the　kings　of　Judah　and　Israel。







（14）　We　may　add　that　the　Rabbis　assert　that　this　prophet　prophesied　in　the



reign　of　Manasseh；　by　whom　he　was　eventually　put　to　death；　and；　although



this　seems　to　be　a　myth；　it　yet　shows　that　they　did　not　think　that　all



Isaiah's　prophecies　are　extant。







（15）　The　prophecies　of　Jeremiah；　which　are　related　historically　are　also



taken　from　various　chronicles；　for　not　only　are　they　heaped　together



confusedly；　without　any　account　being　taken　of　dates；　but　also　the　same



story　is　told　in　them　differently　in　different　passages。　（16）　For　instance；



in　chap。　xxi。　we　are　told　that　the　cause　of　Jeremiah's　arrest　was　that　he



had　prophesied　the　destruction　of　the　city　to　Zedekiah　who　consulted　him。



（17）　This　narrative　suddenly　passes；　in　chap　xxii。；　to　the　prophet's



remonstrances　to　Jehoiakim　（Zedekiah's　predecessor）；　and　the　prediction　he



made　of　that　king's　captivity；　then；　in　chap。　xxv。；　come　the　revelations



granted　to　the　prophet　previously；　that　is　in　the　fourth　year　of　Jehoiakim；



and；　further　on　still；　the　revelations　received　in　the　first　year　of　the



same　reign。　（18）　The　continuator　of　Jeremiah　goes　on　heaping　prophecy



upon　prophecy　without　any　regard　to　dates；　until　at　last；　in　chap。　xxxviii。



（as　if　the　intervening　chapters　had　been　a　parenthesis）；　he　takes　up　the



thread　dropped　in。　chap。　xxi。







（19）　In　fact；　the　conjunction　with　which　chap。　xxxviii。　begins；　refers　to



the　8th；　9th；　and　10th　verses　of　chap。　xxi。　Jeremiah's　last　arrest　is　then



very　differently　described；　and　a　totally　separate　cause　is　given　for　his



daily　retention　in　the　court　of　the　prison。







（20）　We　may　thus　clearly　see　that　these　portions　of　the　book　have　been



compiled　from　various　sources；　and　are　only　from　this　point　of　view



comprehensible。　（21）　The　prophecies　contained　in　the　remaining　chapters；



where　Jeremiah　speaks　in　the　first　person；　seem　to　be　taken　from　a



book　written　by　Baruch；　at　Jeremiah's　dictation。　（22）　These；　however；　only



comprise　（as　appears　from　chap。　xxxvi：2）　the　prophecies　revealed　to　the



prophet　from　the　time　of　Josiah　to　the　fourth　year　of　Jehoiakim；　at　which



period　the　book　begins。　（23）　The　contents　of　chap。　xlv：2；　on　to　chap。



li：59；　seem　taken　from　the　same　volume。







（24）　That　the　book　of　Ezekiel　is　only　a　fragment；　is　clearly　indicated　by



the　first　verse。　（25）　For　anyone　may　see　that　the　conjunction　with　which　it



begins；　refers　to　something　already　said；　and　connects　what　follows



therewith。　（26）　However；　not　only　this　conjunction；　but　the　whole　text



of　the　discourse　implies　other　writings。　（27）　The　fact　of　the　present　work



beginning　the　thirtieth　year　shows　that　the　prophet　is　continuing；　not



commencing　a　discourse；　and　this　is　confirmed　by　the　writer；　who



parenthetically　states　in　verse　3；　〃The　word　of　the　Lord　came　often　unto



Ezekiel　the　priest；　the　son　of　Buzi；　in　the　land　of　the　Chaldeans；〃　as　if　to



say　that　the　prophecies　which　he　is　about　to　relate　are　the　sequel　to



revelations　formerly　received　by　Ezekiel　from　God。　（28）　Furthermore；



Josephus；　11　Antiq。〃　x：9；　says　that　Ezekiel　prophesied　that　Zedekiah　should



not　see　Babylon；　whereas　the　book　we　now　have　not　only　contains　no　such



statement；　but　contrariwise　asserts　in　chap。　xvii。　that　he　should　b