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have supported multitudes in the depths of grief and despondency; and they are still the well-spring from which flow many of the divine consolations that animate the drooping spirit, cheer the fainting heart, and soothe the aching head. Even the historical portions of the Old Testament are not devoid of desirable moral and spiri tual influences. It would be difficult to say what a child can read with greater benefit than the early history of Samuel; how a youth can better arm himself than by studying the examples of the youthful Joseph and David; where friendship can find a greater incentive to fidelity than in the beautiful story of Ruth and Naomi; or what faith, affection, and fortitude can be more profitably emulated by our matrons and mothers, than those of the matrons and mothers of Israel.

Convinced of the truth of these remarks, we deplore the neglect into which the Old Testament has fallen, not only in our literary institutions, but among the people at large. The cause of this, in the latter case, we believe to be, the obscurity which hangs over a considerable portion of the authorised version. Divided into chapters and verses in the most arbitrary manner, and, in many instances, anything but clearly translated, it has become, to the masses, unintelligible. They have had helps, indeed, of a certain character, for the purpose of unravelling the difficulties which meet the eye on almost every page; but it may reasonably be questioned whether those helps have not increased, instead of diminished, those difficulties. Nearly all the commentators, whose works have been accessible to the people, have taken different views of each really difficult passage. This has arisen from the expositors having paid too little attention to the translation of the original. Indeed, such works have been, but too frequently, undertaken by men who knew comparatively little of the Hebrew language, and who were guided, more by their theological opinions, in the explanations they offered, than by sound criticism. The results of their conflicting opinions have been, that many truly devout men have despaired of arriving at any satisfactory conclusions, while infidelity has triumphed over their vain attempts to dispel the difficulties on which it had taken its stand. There has been another class of commentators, however, who have pursued their work, with profound learning and judgment, and whose chief object has been to show what the received translation ought to be. But the results of their labours have benefitted. only a few they have been considered luxuries for the studious, who could give their time to reading folios and quartos, instead of being embodied in a revised translation of the Scriptures. which would have done more to make the Sacred Writings understood and respected by the community, than all the cheap commentaries combined. This will be evident, we think, to all who have read the beautiful translations of the New Testament, by Mr. S. Sharpe, and the late Mr. Edgar Taylor. The English reader finds the majority of his difficulties removed in such translations, and is spared the annoyance, when he goes to the Scriptures in order to find nourishment for his piety, and strength for his virtuous resolutions, of having to search through pages of comment in order to find the light and help which he requires.

It has been the object of Dr. Noyes, the title of one of whose works we havs placed at the head of this article, to do for the Poetical Books of the Old Testament, what the two above named gentlemen have done for all those of the New, viz., to give a faithful representation of the literal sense of the original. He commenced with the book of Job, which was first published in 1827, and again, in 1838, in an improved form, with corrections and addititions to the notes. In 1831 he issued from the press his "New Translation of the Book of Psalms," which has for some time been out of print, but which, on account of its intrinsic excellence, we rejoice to hear, will soon appear in a new edition. His larger work, "A New Translation of the Hebrew Prophets, arranged in Chronological order," was published in three volumes, the first in 1833 and again in 1843, the other two in 1837. The last of the series of six volumes is now before us, and contains "A New Translation of the Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and the Canticles."

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We have, at various times, examined the first five volumes of Dr. Noyes' works, and can say that we have never found in our language, translations of the various books they contain, which have pleased us nearly so well. His translation of Job appears a different poem to that we meet with in the authorized version, where it is worse translated than any other book. Not that he has altered its beautiful forms of expression unnecessarily, but by avoiding the abominable custom of cutting it up into verses and chapters, by giving it a poetic form, by distinctly marking the speeches of the dramatis persona, and by a new translation of the most obscure passages, he has thrown a light upon the whole which adds greater lustre to its universally acknowledged excellence. The same may be said of his translation of the Psalms. Those invaluable treasuries of religious experiences, of devotional expressions, and of sublime doctrines, are made richer than ever to the English reader, by being made more faithful to the original. His larger work on the Prophets, must ever be prized by the lover of genuine poetry; and the theological inquirer will be grateful for so valuable a help. The arrangement of the writings in their probable chronological order will afford him much facility for the study of them, and the division of each book into distinct prophecies, instead of into chapters, will disperse much of the darkness which has so long overshadowed those beautiful portions of the Old Testament. If there is one thing we regret the absence of in this work, it is an introduction to each of the books, similar in character to those which precede the translations of Job, the Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and the Canticles. From Dr. Noyes' pen such an addition would have been invaluable; and, although he has distinctly stated that, it is his object to limit his labours to the business of translation, we trust in future editions he will be induced to overstep the boundary he has assigned for himself, in the direction we have indicated.

When we received the last volume, we feared it would be far less interesting than the former ones. The amatory verses of the Canteles have never had many charms for us, even when considered in their true character. The Book of Ecclesiastes contains doctrines

which we have not cared to recur to, after studying the more cheering ones of the Psalms and Prophets. And the Proverbs, excellent as they are, have always appeared tame after the impassioned strains of David and Isaiah. But upon a careful examination, we are led to the conclusion that we should have been deprived of a great treasure had not this volume appeared. It contains indications of the same diligence and ability having been bestowed upon it, which have characterized its predecessors. The notes are even more copious than those in the other volumes, with the exception of the first; and the meaning of many passages which were before unintelligible, has been made distinct and clear.

Besides, each of the books contained in it has its value. Dr. Noyes justly remarks, "the Book of Proverbs is, in a moral and religious point of view, one of the most valuable portions of the Old Testament. It gives a view of the Jewish religion and morality, as pervading the common life of the Jews, much more favourable than that which we receive from the accounts of the ceremonies and forms which are elsewhere enjoined." To have this view rendered clearer by one whose researches have qualified him for the task, is a benefit, for which those who are interested in the history of Israel, cannot be too grateful. The book opens, moreover, with some of the most beautiful "moral discourses in praise of wisdom, and urging to the practice of virtue, especially the virtue of chastity;" while its doctrines, compared with those which were prevalent in the heathen world, appear to the greatest advantage.

Of Ecclesiastes our author says, "that while it may be conceded that the writer has given a more melancholy view of human life than is consistent with the spirit of Christianity or of a comprehensive philosophy, it may be inferred that he was a man of wisdom, virtue, and religion, according to the light which he had. He was not a fatalist, nor a sceptic, or epicurean, in any offensive sense of those terms. If he had doubts, they related to subjects upon which he had no light from the religion of his fathers and his country. If he recommended the enjoyment of life, it was such an enjoyment as was consistent with virtue and religion. A deep sense of religion was evidently habitual to him, notwithstanding the difficulties which perplexed his understanding. He has a living faith in a wise and a benevolent God, and a righteous government of the world, though the principles of this government are regarded by him as being beyond the comprehension of man." If such be a correct view of the author, and that it is we have no doubt, his work cannot be too highly prized as an evidence of our utter inability to solve the mysterious problems of our being without the aid of Christianity. As such, it may be read with profit by all classes of persons, especially with the aid which Dr. Noyes has afforded for its full comprehension.

We shall not say much of the last book in the volume. The translator remarks upon it "that it will bear a very favourable comparison with the selections from the Idyls of Theocritus, and the songs of Anacreon, which are read in our most approved literary institutions." If it is considered as belonging to this class of productions, let it be read as such, by all who have a taste for it.

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They will find a great amount of useful information in Dr. Noyes' notes to aid them in their pursuit. For our own part, we are willing to dispe se with it, a though we feel deeply indebted to the translator for having given it a place in his volume, because we believe the cause of religion demands that it should be understood to be what it is," and, because to make it so understood, has been the chief reason for its admission into this collection of the Hebrew poems.

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Before we take leave of these translations, we would offer a few remarks upon their general excellence. One feature in them which has pleased 'us particularly is their freedom from many of the Hebrew idioms, which, we think, have hi herto obscured the meaning of the Sacred writings to a great extent. For example, in Isaiah xvi, 2, we have a description of the daughters of Moab, and in verses 3-5, an address from them to the Jews. But there is nothing to indicate the commencement of the address in the authorized version, because it was a common idiom among the Hebrews to omit the word "saying," which an English writer would have placed at the end of the second verse, and our translators saw fit to bind themselves down to that idiom. Dr. Noyes has avoided it, and the consequence is that the commencement of the address is distinctly marked, and the whole passage rendered clear. In some places the absence of these Hebraisms may be regretted. For instance, in Ecclesiastes i. 2, the authorized version reads: "Vanity of vanities, saith the preacher, vanity of vanities, all is vanity ;" and we doubt whether the emendation of our, author will be readily approved. "Mere vanity, says the preacher, mere vanity, all is vanity.' But we think the alteration a good one. It is not so poetical, indeed, but it conveys a more distinct idea to the English reader; in fact it conveys precisely the idea of the writer; and since it ought to be the first object of a translator to express the meaning of the original, and not to please the fancy, we are glad that Dr. Noyes has uniformly adhered to this object. This freedom from idioms now little understood by the community, is, however, only one of the recommendations of these translations. They are characterized throughout by a nice discernment of the meaning of words, by a uniformity of style, by an adherence to the rules of a just criticism, and by a respect for the forms of speech which our associations with the common version have hallowed, whenever they conveyed the meaning of the writers, that lead us to assign the very first rank to Dr. Noyes as a biblical translator. Sincerely do we thank him for his labours, guided as they have been by accurate learning, a sober judgment, and a pure taste. Our hope is that he may find them so well appreciated by the public, as, to be induced to apply himself to the translation of the other books of the Old Testament, and to issue the whole, in one volume, at a price which will place it within the reach of all.

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MERCIFUL TREATMENT OF OFFENDERS.

BENIGNANT Saviour! 'twas not thine
To spurn the erring from Thy sight,
Nor did Thy smile of love divine

Turn from the penitent its light.

O then, shall we, who own Thy name,
A brother's fault too sternly view,
Or think Thy Holy Law can blame,
The tear to sin's deep suffering due.

May we, while human guilt awakes

Upon our cheek the indignant glow,
Yet spare the offender's heart that breaks
Beneath its load of shame and woe.

Conscious of frailty, may we bend,
In pity to affliction's prayer,
And strive the suppliant to defend

From further sin, or dark despair.

And when our own offences weigh
Upon our hearts with anguish sore,
Lord! let thy sparing mercy say,

Like Jesus, "Go and sin no more."

BULLFINCH.

SELECTIONS.

I DOUBT Whether he will find the way to Heaven who desires to go there alone; all heavenly hearts are charitable: enlightened souls cannot but diffuse their rays. I will, if I can, do something for others and for heaven, not to merit by it, but to express my gratitude. Though I cannot do what I would, I will labour to do what I can.-Feltham.

Resignation! Oh, who can fully embrace thy full and strengthening life? Resignation-that is the perfect submission of oneself, to the will of God. Is it not, as it were, to put aside all men ; to deny ourselves somewhat, if we would gain anything. (But for some to forsake their portion is hard). Renunciation is the Law; devotion to God's will the Gospel; the latter makes the former easy-sometimes delightful. Pure Resignation elevates and illu

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