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it is historical fact or allegory? 。。。 Once more; our Lord uses

the time before the Flood; to illustrate the carelessness of men

before His own coming。 。。。 In referring to the Flood He

certainly suggests that He is treating it as typical; for He

introduces circumstances〃eating and drinking; marrying and

giving in marriage 〃which have no counterpart in the original

narrative〃 (pp。 358…9)。





While insisting on the flow of inspiration through the whole of

the Old Testament; the essayist does not admit its universality。

Here; also; the new apologetic demands a partial flood:





But does the inspiration of the recorder guarantee the exact

historical truth of what he records? And; in matter of fact; can

the record with due regard to legitimate historical criticism;

be pronounced true? Now; to the latter of these two questions

(and they are quite distinct questions) we may reply that there

is nothing to prevent our believing; as our faith strongly

disposes us to believe; that the record from Abraham downward

is; in substance; in the strict sense historical (p。 351)。





It would appear; therefore; that there is nothing to prevent our

believing that the record; from Abraham upward; consists of

stories in the strict sense unhistorical; and that the pre…

Abrahamic narratives are mere moral and religious 〃types〃

and parables。



I confess I soon lose my way when I try to follow those who walk

delicately among 〃types〃 and allegories。 A certain passion for

clearness forces me to ask; bluntly; whether the writer means to

say that Jesus did not believe the stories in question; or that

he did? When Jesus spoke; as of a matter of fact; that 〃the

Flood came and destroyed them all;〃 did he believe that the

Deluge really took place; or not? It seems to me that; as the

narrative mentions Noah's wife; and his sons' wives; there is

good scriptural warranty for the statement that the

antediluvians married and were given in marriage; and I should

have thought that their eating and drinking might be assumed by

the firmest believer in the literal truth of the story。

Moreover; I venture to ask what sort of value; as an

illustration of God's methods of dealing with sin; has an

account of an event that never happened? If no Flood swept the

careless people away; how is the warning of more worth than the

cry of 〃Wolf〃 when there is no wolf? If Jonah's three days'

residence in the whale is not an 〃admitted reality;〃 how could

it 〃warrant belief〃 in the 〃coming resurrection?〃 If Lot's wife

was not turned into a pillar of salt; the bidding those who turn

back from the narrow path to 〃remember〃 it is; morally; about on

a level with telling a naughty child that a bogy is coming to

fetch it away。 Suppose that a Conservative orator warns his

hearers to beware of great political and social changes; lest

they end; as in France; in the domination of a Robespierre;

what becomes; not only of his argument; but of his veracity; if

he; personally; does not believe that Robespierre existed and

did the deeds attributed to him?



Like all other attempts to reconcile the results of

scientifically…conducted investigation with the demands of the

outworn creeds of ecclesiasticism; the essay on Inspiration is

just such a failure as must await mediation; when the mediator

is unable properly to appreciate the weight of the evidence for

the case of one of the two parties。 The question of

〃Inspiration〃 really possesses no interest for those who have

cast ecclesiasticism and all its works aside; and have no faith

in any source of truth save that which is reached by the patient

application of scientific methods。 Theories of inspiration are

speculations as to the means by which the authors of statements;

in the Bible or elsewhere; have been led to say what they have

saidand it assumes that natural agencies are insufficient for

the purpose。 I prefer to stop short of this problem; finding it

more profitable to undertake the inquiry which naturally

precedes itnamely; Are these statements true or false? If they

are true; it may be worth while to go into the question of their

supernatural generation; if they are false; it certainly is not

worth mine。



Now; not only do I hold it to be proven that the story of the

Deluge is a pure fiction; but I have no hesitation in affirming

the same thing of the story of the Creation。 Between these

two lies the story of the creation of man and woman and their

fall from primitive innocence; which is even more monstrously

improbable than either of the other two; though; from the nature

of the case; it is not so easily capable of direct refutation。

It can be demonstrated that the earth took longer than six days

in the making; and that the Deluge; as described; is a physical

impossibility; but there is no proving; especially to those who

are perfect in the art of closing their ears to that which they

do not wish to hear; that a snake did not speak; or that Eve was

not made out of one of Adam's ribs。



The compiler of Genesis; in its present form; evidently had a

definite plan in his mind。 His countrymen; like all other men;

were doubtless curious to know how the world began; how men; and

especially wicked men; came into being; and how existing nations

and races arose among the descendants of one stock; and;

finally; what was the history of their own particular tribe。

They; like ourselves; desired to solve the four great problems

of cosmogeny; anthropogeny; ethnogeny; and geneogeny。 The

Pentateuch furnishes the solutions which appeared satisfactory

to its author。 One of these; as we have seen; was borrowed from

a Babylonian fable; and I know of no reason to suspect any

different origin for the rest。 Now; I would ask; is the story of

the fabrication of Eve to be regarded as one of those pre…

Abrahamic narratives; the historical truth of which is an open

question; in face of the reference to it in a speech unhappily

famous for the legal oppression to which it has been wrongfully

forced to lend itself?





Have ye not read; that he which made them from the beginning

made them male and female; and said; For this cause shall a man

leave his father and mother; and cleave to his wife; and the

twain shall become one flesh?〃 (Matt。 xix。 5。)





If divine authority is not here claimed for the twenty…fourth

verse of the second chapter of Genesis; what is the value of

language? And again; I ask; if one may play fast and loose with

the story of the Fall as a 〃type〃 or 〃allegory;〃 what becomes of

the foundation of Pauline theology?



For since by man came death; by man came also the

resurrection of the dead。 For as in Adam all die; so also in

Christ shall all be made alive (1 Corinthians xv。 21; 22)。





If Adam may be held to be no more real a personage than

Prometheus; and if the story of the Fall is merely an

instructive 〃type;〃 comparable to the profound Promethean

mythus; what value has Paul's dialectic?



While; therefore; every right…minded man must sympathise with

the efforts of those theologians; who have not been able

altogether to close their ears to the still; small; voice of

reason; to escape from the fetters which ecclesiasticism has

forged; the melancholy fact remains; that the position they have

taken up is hopelessly untenable。 It is raked alike by the old…

fashioned artillery of the churches and by the fatal weapons of

precision with which the enfants perdus of the advancing

forces of science are armed。 They must surrender; or fall back

into a more sheltered position。 And it is possible that they may

long find safety in such retreat。



It is; indeed; probable that the proportional number of those

who will distinctly profess their belief in the

transubstantiation of Lot's wife; and the anticipatory

experience of submarine navigation by Jonah; in water standing

fathoms deep on the side of a declivity without anything to hold

it up; and in devils who enter swinewill not increase。

But neither is there ground for much hope that the proportion of

those who cast aside these fictions and adopt the consequence of

that repudiation; are; for some generations; likely to

constitute a majority。 Our age is a day of compromises。 The

present and the near future seem given over to those happily; if

curiously; constituted people who see as little difficulty in

throwing aside any amount of post…Abrahamic Scriptural

narrative; as the authors of 〃Lux Mundi〃 see in sacrificing the

pre…Abrahamic stories; and; having distilled away every

inconvenient matter of fact in Christian history; continue to

pay divine honours to the residue。 There really seems to be no

reason why the next generation should not listen to a Bampton

Lecture modelled upon that addressed to the last:





Time wasand that not very long agowhen all the relations of

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