If
therefore
the light that is in thee be darkness, how great is
the darkness!
the darkness!
Warner - World's Best Literature - v18 - Mom to Old
It occupies less than a
page; it may be read aloud in four minutes: yet can we adduce from
all the literature of all the world any passage so brief- or indeed
any passage at all-which has exercised one fraction of the eter-
nal influence of this? Dante and John Bunyan have touched thou-
sands of human souls; but this parable has been precious to millions
of every age and every tongue, who never so much as heard of the
* Baron Humboldt in his Cosmos shows at length that the "romantic"
love of the beauties of nature is quite a modern phenomenon in the world's
literature.
## p. 10571 (#443) ##########################################
THE NEW TESTAMENT
10571
'Divina Commedia' or the 'Pilgrim's Progress. ' The works of fiction
in the world can be counted by tens of thousands: which of them all
has ever produced the minim of an impression so intense and so
world-wide as this brief parable? On this subject it is worth while
to adduce the opinions of three of the most popular and eminent
writers of fiction in our own generation.
Charles Reade was an earnest and constant student of Scripture.
Accustomed to study and exhibit character in his novels, he gave it
as his deliberate judgment that no ordinary, no uninspired human
skill or genius could rival the marvelous brevity, the "swift fresco
strokes" with which again and again Scripture, as it were undesign-
edly and unconsciously, with only a word or two, makes the char-
acters of men stand out vividly before us, and live in our memory
so that we might almost seem to have seen and known them.
Not
even in Shakespeare do we find so marvelous a power. And yet in
other writers this graphic skill-this endeavor рò oµµáτwv nociv—is a
main object, whereas in Scripture it is entirely secondary, and so to
speak, accidental.
Similarly Robert Louis Stevenson, speaking of the matchless
verve and insight displayed in the delineation of characters in the
Bible, a point respecting which a novelist can give an instructed
judgment,
says:
"Written in the East, these characters live for ever in the West; written
in one province, they pervade the world; penned in rude times, they are
prized more and more as civilization advances; a product of antiquity, they
come home to the business and bosoms of men, women, and children in
modern days. Then is it any exaggeration to say that the characters of
Scripture are a marvel of the mind? ? »
-
Once more, Mr. Hall Caine says, in McClure's Magazine:
"I think that I know my Bible as few literary men know it. There is
no book in the world like it; and the finest novels ever written fall far short
in interest of any one of the stories it tells. Whatever strong situations
I have in my books are not of my creation, but are taken from the Bible.
The Deemster is the story of the Prodigal Son. The Bondman' is the
story of Esau and Jacob. 'The Scapegoat' is the story of Eli and his sons,
but with Samuel as a little girl; and The Manxman' is the story of David
and Uriah. "
:-
I should like to give some further instances of the power of words
as illustrated in the Bible.
If there be one lesson on which all our great poets and think-
ers most insist in modern days, it is, that upon "self-mastery, self-
knowledge, self-control" depends all the dignity of life. It is in
effect Plato's old lesson of the tripartite nature of man, as consisting
of a Man, a Lion, and a Many-headed Monster: in which synthesis the
## p. 10572 (#444) ##########################################
THE NEW TESTAMENT
10572
Man, who represents the Reason and the Conscience, must sit supreme
in tranquil empire over the subjugated Lion, who represents the pas-
sions of Wrath and Pride, - passions to be controlled and made to
subserve noble uses, but not to be destroyed; the Monster, which
represents the concupiscence of the flesh, must be crushed into con
pletest subjection. Is not the essence of this world-famous allegory
compressed into the single verse of the Psalmist, as it is represented.
in glorious sculpture on the west front of the Cathedral of Amiens,
-"Thou shalt tread upon the lion and the adder; the young lion
and the dragon shalt thou trample under thy feet"? Now take all
the high instruction upon this subject contained in Ovid's -
and in Dante's—
«Video meliora proboque,
Deteriora sequor;"
(I see the better way, and I approve it,
Yet I pursue the worse;)
"I crown and mitre thee over thyself;"
and in Milton's-
and in Shakespeare's-
"I have lost the immortal part of myself, and what remains is bestial;"
and in Fletcher's-
"Man is his own star; and the soul that can
Render an honest and a perfect man
Commands all life, all influence, all fate; "
"Converse with heavenly habitants
Begins to cast a beam on the outward shape,
The unpolluted temple of the mind,
And turns it by degrees to the soul's essence,
Till all be made immortal;"
and in Sir Henry Wotton's-
and in Wordsworth's -
"This man is free from servile bonds
Of hope to rise or fear to fall;
Lord of himself, though not of lands,
And having nothing, yet hath all;"
"This is the happy warrior; this is he
Whom every man in arms would wish to be; >
and in Matthew Arnold's
"Resolve to be thyself, and know that he
Who finds himself loses his misery;"
## p. 10573 (#445) ##########################################
THE NEW TESTAMENT
10573
and in Clough's-
"Seek, seeker, in thyself, and thou shalt find
In the stones bread, and life in the blank mind;»
and in Christina Rossetti's -
"God, harden me against myself,-
This traitor with pathetic voice
That craves for ease, and rest, and joys;»
and in many more which might be quoted: and I venture to assert
that the inmost quintessence of all this Divine philosophy is
pressed-and is even expressed with a new and deeper element of
thought absolutely and unapproachably original-in a single word of
Christ our Lord,-"In your endurance ye shall acquire your souls. "*
In our version the word is rendered "possess "; but it connotes some-
thing more than "self-possession, "-namely, self-acquisition. It teaches
us that to be we must become; and we cannot become "lords of our-
selves"- except indeed as "a heritage of woe"-without our own
strenuous endeavors. Here, in one word, lies the secret of all noble
life. That which is essentially eternal within us- the inmost reality
of our beings-is not given to us with our being, but has to be
attained and achieved by us. And here it is worth while to observe
how very often even the early copyists and translators of the New
Testament miss its essential point. If ever they venture to interfere
between the sacred writer and his readers they invariably deface and
vulgarize; because, without adequate understanding, they endeavor to
interpret or to amend. Take but one specimen. In Hebrews x. 34
we read in our Authorized Version, "Ye took joyfully the spoiling
of your goods, knowing in yourselves that ye have in heaven a better
and enduring substance. " Now, if that was the correct reading of
the original, it would convey the very true but very ordinary topic of
consolation that heaven would redress the uneven balances of earth.
But it is almost certain that "in yourselves" is the correction of an
unapprehensive scribe for "yourselves" (avroiç); and that "in heaven"
is an explanatory gloss added by those who were unable to under-
stand that the real consolation offered to the Hebrews is not a distant
expectation, but the fact that here and now they possessed something
-even "themselves"—which far outweighed any treasure of which
they had been despoiled, and that they were
"Richer possessing such a jewel
Than twenty seas, though all their sands were pearl,
Their waters crystal, and their rocks pure gold. »
* Ἐν τῇ ὑπομονῇ ὑμῶν κτήσεσθε (or κτήσασθε) τὰς ψυχὰς ὑμῶν. —Luke xxi. 19.
## p. 10574 (#446) ##########################################
THE NEW TESTAMENT
10574
When Dean Stanley visited Heinrich von Ewald, a little Greek
Testament lay on the table, and it accidentally fell on the ground.
Ewald picked it up, and as he laid it on the table, exclaimed with
indescribable enthusiasm, "In this little book is contained all the
best wisdom of the world. " Was he not right? Take the five classics
of Confucius, the 'Vedas,' the Tripitaka,' the whole collection of the
'Sacred Books of the East,' the 'Dialogues' of Plato, the 'Ethics' of
Aristotle, the moral treatises of Cicero, the 'Enchiridion' of Epictetus,
the letters of Seneca to Lucilius, the Thoughts' of Marcus Aurelius,
the Qu'ran of Mahommed-all that represents the very crown and
flower of Pagan morality; then turn to Christian literature, and cull
every noble thought you can find in the Fathers, in the Schoolmen, in
the Mystics, in the 'Imitatio Christi,' in the Puritan divines, in Tauler
and John Bunyan, in Hooker, Jeremy Taylor, Sanderson, or Butler,
in the Whole Duty of Man,' and the writings of the early Evan-
gelicals and while in all pagan and some Christian books you may
find imperfect and even pernicious elements, you will not find, either
before or after Christ, one single fruitful rule or principle of morals
(to say nothing of the deepest truths of religion), for which we could
not quote deeper reasons and a more powerful enforcement from the
brief pages of the New Testament alone. Does not this undoubted
fact, as well as the universal adaptability of the Book to all classes
and conditions of men in every age, in every clime, of every nation-
ality, at every period of life, in every stage of culture or ignorance,-
does it not show, apart from all else that might be said about it, the
supreme and unapproachable literary force and grandeur of the New
Testament? No one has expressed this truth more strikingly than
the American poet J. G. Whittier:-
―――
"We search the world for truth: we cull
The good, the pure, the beautiful,
From graven stone and written scroll,
From all old flower-fields of the soul;
And, weary seekers of the best,
We come back laden from our quest,
To find that all the sages said
Is in the Book our mothers read. "
And indeed it is a most memorable proof of that Indwelling Pres-
ence of the Spirit of the Almighty in human souls which we call
Inspiration, that, owing to the supreme literary force and beauty of
the New Testament, we find direct traces of its influence on the
pages of all the best poets, - who are the loveliest as well as the
deepest teachers of moral wisdom. Read them whether, like
Dante, Milton, George Herbert, Cowper, Tennyson, Browning, they
speak no word that does not make for righteousness; or whether,
-
## p. 10575 (#447) ##########################################
THE NEW TESTAMENT
10575
like Chaucer, Shakespeare, Goethe, Burns, Byron, they had learnt
by bitter experience of evil that good is best, and that unfaithful-
ness
"Hardens all within
And petrifies the feeling":
and you will find, alike from the poems of the sinners in their shame
and penitence, and of the saints whose singing robes were white and
their garlands of heaven's own amaranth, that, apart from what they
learnt from the Apostles and Evangelists, they would have but little
of what is supremely good and noble left. Bring me the book,"
said Sir Walter Scott, as he lay upon his death-bed. "What book? "
asked his son-in-law, Lockhart. "The book-the Bible," answered
Sir Walter: "there is but one. "
«<
Let us put this assertion of the supreme sufficiency of Scripture
to a partial test. In this age, which shows so many symptoms of
greed, of struggle, of unbelief, of retrograde religious teaching, there
are three lofty souls to whom we turn most often, and to whom we
specially look up as to "moral light-houses in a dark and stormy sea,"
- Dante, Shakespeare, Milton. How deep is the influence of the
New Testament on each of them! How impossible it would have
been that its books should have exercised this influence without the
perfectness of their literary form!
Dante himself practically explains to us that the true meaning
of his 'Divina Commedia is "Man as liable to the Reward or Pun-
ishment of Eternal Law;- Man according as, by the freedom of his
will, he is of good or ill desert. " Like the parable of the Prodigal
Son, the 'Divine Comedy' is nothing more nor less than the life
history of a human soul, redeemed from sin and error, from lust and
worldliness, and restored to the right path by the reason and the
grace which enable it to see the things that are, and to see them as
they are. The three great divisions of the poem might be called,—
not 'Hell,' 'Purgatory,' 'Paradise,' but Guilt,' 'Repentance,' 'Regen-
erate Beatitude. ' Hell is simply self without God; Penitence is the
soul's return to God; Heaven is self lost in God: and the three can-
tos do but expand and enforce these three texts:-
-
"The end of those things is Death. "
"Work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. "
"This is life eternal,- to know thee, the only God, and Jesus Christ
whom thou hast sent. "
Let us next take Milton. He has left us in no doubt as to the
sources of his own inspiration. His 'Paradise Lost' and 'Paradise
Regained' are of course avowedly his comments on the Fall and
the Redemption; but in his 'Comus' he teaches the lesson, which he
## p. 10576 (#448) ##########################################
10576
THE NEW TESTAMENT
has also expressed in such matchless prose, that "if the love of God,
as a fire to be kept alive upon the altar of our hearts, be the first
principle of all Godly and virtuous actions in men, the pious and just
honoring of ourselves is the second, and the fountain-head whence
every laudable and worthy enterprise issues forth. " The inmost
meaning of 'Comus' lies in the lines.
"He that hath light within his own clear breast
May sit in the centre and enjoy bright day;
But he that hides a dark soul and foul thoughts
Benighted walks under the midday sun:
Himself is his own dungeon. "
What is this high teaching but "If the light that is in thee be
darkness, how great is that darkness"? and "I am tied and bound
with the chain of my sins"? Or take Milton's last and most in-
tensely characteristic poem, the 'Samson Agonistes. ' Its meaning is
summed up in the last lines:-
"All is best; though we oft doubt
What the unsearchable dispose
Or highest wisdom brings about,
And ever best found in the close. »
Could Milton have arrived at this lofty and all-consoling truth if
he had never read the words "What I do thou knowest not now, but
thou shalt know hereafter"?
And now turn to Shakespeare. One commentator says of him,
"It has been remarked that Shakespeare was habitually conversant
with the Bible. " And another that "he had deeply imbibed the
Scriptures. " The late Bishop Wordsworth of St. Andrews showed in
an interesting volume that Shakespeare was not uninfluenced by the
grammar, by noticeable words and noticeable forms of speech, with
which the English Bible had made him familiar; that he is full of
allusions to the historical facts and characters of the Bible; and that
his religious principles and sentiments on almost all the chief sub-
jects of human concern, moral no less than spiritual,—and indeed
the dominant spirit of his poetry,- were derived from the volume of
Holy Writ, against the abuse and the wrong use of which he has
yet uttered such strong and wholesome warnings. Shakespeare was
one of the few who "saw life steadily and saw it whole. " Goethe
rightly said of him that "his plays are much more than poems. The
reader seems to have before him the books of fate, against which
is beating the tempest of eager life so as to drive the leaves back-
ward and forward with violence. " Yet what did Shakespeare know
which he had not learnt from the New Testament? Take but two
instances. Does not 'King Lear,' that tragedy of tragedies, set forth
## p. 10577 (#449) ##########################################
THE NEW TESTAMENT
10577
the absolute triumph of a faith and love which burns bright even
amid apparently irremediable failure; and is not this the lesson set
forth already, even more supremely, in the Epistles, in the Apoca-
lypse, above all in the Gospel narratives? Is it not the lesson of the
cross of Christ himself? Can even Shakespeare's genius do more than
set in new light the truth that all must be well with those who are
obedient to, and are supported by, the Eternal Laws? Or take the
tragedy of Macbeth,' which sets before us in such lurid illumination
the horror of an avenging conscience. What is it but the concrete
presentment of the eternal tragedy of the guilty soul? It is like
the stories of Adam and Eve, of Balaam, of Achan, of David, of
Judas- the picture of crime through all its stages: temptation; glam-
our; the spasm of guilty act, the agony of awakenment; the haunt-
ing of shame; the permanence of sorrow; last of all, retributive
catastrophe and unutterable despair. And yet may we not say, with
simplest truthfulness, that in the New Testament alone do we find
the ultimate solution, the sovereign and revealing utterance respect-
ing those fundamental convictions which Dante and Shakespeare and
Milton can but illustrate by throwing upon them the illuminating
splendor of their heaven-bestowed genius and insight? Is it not
proved, therefore, that we find the New Testament still inestimably
precious when we consider it only in its literary aspect?
I will conclude with one swift glance at the natural order of the
books of the New Covenant.
In St. Matthew we have the Gospel of the Jew and of the Past,-
the setting forth of the Messiah of olden prophecy, in St. Mark the
Gospel for the Roman, the Gospel of the Present; in St. Luke the Gos-
pel for the Greek, the Gospel of the Future; in St. John the Gospel
in its most spiritual aspect, the Gospel for Eternity;-and the Past,
the Present, the Future, the Eternal, are all summed up in Christ.
In the Acts we have the book of beginnings, the story of the
foundation of the Church; the earliest and best of all ecclesiastical
histories. Then follow twenty-one most precious Epistles of great
Apostles, each marked by its special topic. The two to the Thessa-
lonians turn mainly on the near Second Advent of Christ. The first
to the Corinthians is on Christian Unity in faith, and worship, and
life; the second is mainly the Apostle's Apologia pro vita sua. The
Epistles to the Galatians promulgate the indefeasible rights of Lib-
erty; that to the Romans sets forth, among other topics, the true
meaning of justification by faith; that to the Philippians shows us
the glory of love and exultations, burning bright amid apparently
overwhelming defeat and calamity; that to the Colossians turns
chiefly on the subject of Christ as all in all; that to the Ephesians
is the Epistle of the Ascension, the Epistle of "the Heavenlies »—the
XVIII-662
## p. 10578 (#450) ##########################################
10578
THE NEW TESTAMENT
Epistle of Christ in the midst of the ideal, eternal, universal Church;
that to Philemon is the earliest charter of emancipation to the
slave; the first Epistle to Timothy, and that to Titus, constitute the
best Pastor's Manual; the second to Timothy, amid its affectionate
counsels, exhibits the completeness of the Christian's victory in the
apparent defeat of lonely death. The powerful and interesting, but
anonymous, Epistle to the Hebrews sets forth Christ as the end and
fulfillment of the law, the Eternal and all-sufficient Savior. St.
James writes the sternly passionate letter of Christian morality; St.
Peter's is the Epistle of Hope, St. John's of Love. Finally the radiant
and impassioned imagery and visions of the Apocalypse, though they
come among the earliest in time, form the fitting literary conclusion
of this Book of Books - the last gem of this Urim and Thummim
upon that Ephod of Humanity "whereon should be inscribed the one
word God. " Could we possess a more priceless treasure? “What
problem do these books leave unexamined? what depth unfathomed?
what height unscaled? what consolation unadministered? what heart
untouched? what conscience unreproved? " May we not say with our
Translators of 1611: "If we be ignorant, the Scriptures will instruct
us; if out of the way, they will bring us home; if out of order, they
will reform us; if in heaviness, comfort us; if dull, quicken us; if
cold, inflame us. Tolle, lege; tolle, lege-Take and read! take and
read! "
-
"For many books I care not; and my store
Might now suffice me though I had no more
Than God's Two Testaments, and then withal
That mighty volume which 'the world' we call. »
-давала
THE SERMON ON THE MOUNT
From the Gospel according to St. Matthew
A
ND Jesus went about in all Galilee, teaching in their syn-
agogues, and preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and
healing all manner of disease and all manner of sickness
among the people. And the report of him went forth into all
Syria: and they brought unto him all that were sick, holden with
divers diseases and torments, possessed with devils, and epileptic,
## p. 10579 (#451) ##########################################
THE NEW TESTAMENT
10579
and palsied; and he healed them. And there followed him great
multitudes from Galilee and Decapolis and Jerusalem and Judæa
and from beyond Jordan.
And seeing the multitudes, he went up into the mountain:
and when he had sat down, his disciples came unto him: and
he opened his mouth and taught them, saying,
Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of
heaven.
Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted.
Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth.
Blessed are they that hunger and thirst after righteousness:
for they shall be filled.
Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy.
Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God.
Blessed are the peace-makers: for they shall be called sons of
God.
Blessed are they that have been persecuted for righteousness'
sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are ye when
men shall reproach you, and persecute you, and say all manner
of evil against you falsely, for my sake. Rejoice, and be exceed-
ing glad for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted
they the prophets which were before you.
Ye are the salt of the earth. but if the salt have lost its
savor, wherewith shall it be salted? it is thenceforth good for
nothing, but to be cast out and trodden under foot of men. Ye
are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hid.
Neither do men light a lamp, and put it under the bushel, but
on the stand; and it shineth unto all that are in the house. Even
so let your light shine before men, that they may see your good
works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.
Think not that I came to destroy the law or the prophets:
I came not to destroy, but to fulfill. For verily I say unto you,
Till heaven and earth pass away, one jot or one tittle shall in
no wise pass away from the law, till all things be accomplished.
Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least command-
ments, and shall teach men so, shall be called least in the king-
dom of heaven but whosoever shall do and teach them, he shall
be called great in the kingdom of heaven. For I say unto you,
that except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of
the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no wise enter into the
kingdom of heaven.
## p. 10580 (#452) ##########################################
10580
THE NEW TESTAMENT
Ye have heard that it was said to them of old time, Thou
shalt not kill; and whosoever shall kill shall be in danger of the
judgment: but I say unto you, that every one who is angry with
his brother shall be in danger of the judgment; and whosoever
shall say to his brother, Raca, shall be in danger of the council;
and whosoever shall say, Thou fool, shall be in danger of the
hell of fire. If therefore thou art offering thy gift at the altar,
and there rememberest that thy brother hath aught against thee,
leave there thy gift before the altar, and go thy way, first be
reconciled to thy brother, and then come and offer thy gift.
Agree with thine adversary quickly, whiles thou art with him
in the way; lest haply the adversary deliver thee to the judge,
and the judge deliver thee to the officer, and thou be cast into
prison. Verily I say unto thee, Thou shalt by no means come
out thence, till thou have paid the last farthing.
Ye have heard that it was said, Thou shalt not commit
adultery: but I say unto you, that every one that looketh on a
woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her al-
ready in his heart. And if thy right eye causeth thee to stum-
ble, pluck it out, and cast it from thee: for it is profitable for
thee that one of thy members should perish, and not thy whole
body be cast into hell. And if thy right hand causeth thee to
stumble, cut it off, and cast it from thee: for it is profitable
for thee that one of thy members should perish, and not thy
whole body go into hell. It was said also, Whosoever shall
put away his wife, let him give her a writing of divorcement:
but I say unto you, that every one that putteth away his wife,
saving for the cause of fornication, maketh her an adulteress: and
whosoever shall marry her when she is put away committeth
adultery.
Again, ye have heard that it was said to them of old time,
Thou shalt not forswear thyself, but shalt perform unto the Lord
thine oaths: but I say unto you, Swear not at all; neither by the
heaven, for it is the throne of God; nor by the earth, for it is
the footstool of his feet; nor by Jerusalem, for it is the city of
the great King. Neither shalt thou swear by thy head, for thou
canst not make one hair white or black. But let your speech be,
Yea, yea; Nay, nay: and whatsoever is more than these is of the
evil one.
Ye have heard that it was said, An eye for an eye, and a
tooth for a tooth: but I say unto you, Resist not him that is
## p. 10581 (#453) ##########################################
THE NEW TESTAMENT
10581
evil: but whosoever smiteth thee on thy right cheek, turn to
him the other also. And if any man would go to law with
thee, and take away thy coat, let him have thy cloak also. And
whosoever shall compel thee to go one mile, go with him twain.
Give to him that asketh thee, and from him that would borrow
of thee turn not thou away.
Ye have heard that it was said, Thou shalt love thy neighbor,
and hate thine enemy: but I say unto you, Love your enemies,
and pray for them that persecute you; that ye may be sons of
your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise
on the evil and the good, and sendeth rain on the just and the
unjust. For if ye love them that love you, what reward have
ye? do not even the publicans the same? And if ye salute your
brethren only, what do ye more than others? do not even the
Gentiles the same? Ye therefore shall be perfect, as your heav-
enly Father is perfect.
Take heed that ye do not your righteousness before men, to
be seen of them: else ye have no reward with your Father which
is in heaven.
When therefore thou doest alms, sound not a trumpet before
thee, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets,
that they may have glory of men. Verily I say unto you, They
have received their reward. But when thou doest alms, let not
thy left hand know what thy right hand doeth: that thine alms
may be in secret: and thy Father which seeth in secret shall
recompense thee.
And when ye pray, ye shall not be as the hypocrites: for they
love to stand and pray in the synagogues and in the corners of
the streets, that they may be seen of men. Verily I say unto
you, They have received their reward. But thou, when thou
prayest, enter into thine inner chamber, and having shut thy
door, pray to thy Father which is in secret, and thy Father which
seeth in secret shall recompense thee. And in praying use not
vain repetitions, as the Gentiles do: for they think that they
shall be heard for their much speaking. Be not therefore like
unto them: for your Father knoweth what things ye have need
of, before ye ask him. After this manner therefore pray ye: Our
Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy king-
dom come. Thy will be done, as in heaven, so on earth. Give
us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we
also have forgiven our debtors. And bring us not into tempta-
## p. 10582 (#454) ##########################################
10582
THE NEW TESTAMENT
tion, but deliver us from the evil one. For if ye forgive men
their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But
if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father
forgive your trespasses.
Moreover when ye fast, be not, as the hypocrites, of a sad
countenance: for they disfigure their faces, that they may be
seen of men to fast. Verily I say unto you, They have received
their reward. But thou, when thou fastest, anoint thy head, and
wash thy face; that thou be not seen of men to fast, but of thy
Father which is in secret: and thy Father, which seeth in secret,
shall recompense thee.
Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon the earth, where
moth and rust doth consume, and where thieves break through
and steal: but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where
neither moth nor rust doth consume, and where thieves do not
break through nor steal: for where thy treasure is, there will thy
heart be also. The lamp of the body is the eye: if therefore
thine eye be single, thy whole body shall be full of light. But
if thine eye be evil, thy whole body shall be full of darkness.
If therefore the light that is in thee be darkness, how great is
the darkness! No man can serve two masters: for either he
will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to
one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.
Therefore I say unto you, Be not anxious for your life, what
ye shall eat, or. what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body,
what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than the food, and
the body than the raiment? Behold the birds of the heaven, that
they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; and
your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are not ye of much more
value than they? And which of you by being anxious can add
one cubit unto his stature ? And why are ye anxious concern-
ing raiment ? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow;
they toil not, neither do they spin: yet I say unto you, that
even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.
But if God doth so clothe the grass of the field, which to-day
is, and to-morrow is cast into the oven, shall he not much more
clothe you, O ye of little faith? Be not therefore anxious, say-
ing, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Where-
withal shall we be clothed? For after all these things do the
Gentiles seek; for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have
need of all these things. But seek ye first his kingdom, and his
## p. 10583 (#455) ##########################################
THE NEW TESTAMENT
10583
righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.
Be not therefore anxious for the morrow: for the morrow will
be anxious for itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.
Judge not, that ye be not judged. For with what judgment
ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete,
it shall be measured unto you. And why beholdest thou the
mote that is in thy brother's eye, but considerest not the beam
that is in thine own eye? Or how wilt thou say to thy brother,
Let me cast out the mote out of thine eye; and lo, the beam is
in thine own eye? Thou hypocrite, cast out first the beam out
of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the
mote out of thy brother's eye.
Give not that which is holy unto the dogs, neither cast your
pearls before the swine, lest haply they trample them under their
feet, and turn and rend you.
Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock,
and it shall be opened unto you: for every one that asketh
receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh
it shall be opened. Or what man is there of you, who, if his
son shall ask him for a loaf, will give him a stone; or if he
shall ask for a fish, will give him a serpent? If ye then, being
evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much
more shall your Father which is in heaven give good things to
them that ask him? All things therefore whatsoever ye would
that men should do unto you, even so do ye also unto them: for
this is the law and the prophets.
Enter ye in by the narrow gate: for wide is the gate, and
broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many be they
that enter in thereby. For narrow is the gate, and straitened
the way, that leadeth unto life, and few be they that find it.
Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep's cloth-
ing, but inwardly are ravening wolves. By their fruits ye shall
know them. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles?
Even so every good tree bringeth forth good fruit; but the cor-
rupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit. A good tree cannot bring
forth evil fruit, neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit.
Every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and
cast into the fire. Therefore by their fruits ye shall know them.
Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into
the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father
which is in heaven. Many will say to me in that day, Lord,
## p. 10584 (#456) ##########################################
10584
THE NEW TESTAMENT
Lord, did we not prophesy by thy name, and by thy name cast
out devils, and by thy name do many mighty works? And then
will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me,
ye that work iniquity. Every one therefore which heareth these
words of mine, and doeth them, shall be likened unto a wise man,
which built his house upon the rock: and the rain descended,
and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that
house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon the rock. And
every one that heareth these words of mine, and doeth them not,
shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon
the sand and the rain descended, and the floods came, and the
winds blew, and smote upon that house; and it fell: and great
Iwas the fall thereof.
And it came to pass, when Jesus ended these words, the mul-
titudes were astonished at his teaching: for he taught them as
one having authority, and not as their scribes.
FROM THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO ST. MARK
ANT
ND they brought unto him little children, that he should
touch them; and the disciples rebuked them. But when
Jesus saw it, he was moved with indignation, and said unto
them, Suffer the little children to come unto me; forbid them
not: for of such is the kingdom of God. Verily I say unto you,
Whosoever shall not receive the kingdom of God as a little child,
he shall in no wise enter therein. And he took them in his
arms, and blessed them, laying his hands upon them.
And as he was going forth into the way, there ran one to
him, and kneeled to him, and asked him, Good Master, what
shall I do that I may inherit eternal life? And Jesus said unto
him, Why callest thou me good? none is good save one, even
God. Thou knowest the commandments, Do not kill, Do not
commit adultery, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Do not
defraud, Honor thy father and mother. And he said unto him,
Master, all these things have I observed from my youth. And
Jesus looking upon him loved him, and said unto him, One thing
thou lackest: go, sell whatsoever thou hast, and give to the poor,
and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come, follow me.
But his countenance fell at the saying, and he went away sor-
rowful: for he was one that had great possessions.
## p. 10585 (#457) ##########################################
THE NEW TESTAMENT
10585
THE PARABLE OF THE GOOD SAMARITAN
From the Gospel according to St. Luke
ND behold, a certain lawyer stood up and tempted him, say-
Master, what shall I do to inherit eternal life? And
he said unto him, What is written in the law? how readest
thou? And he answering said, Thou shalt love the Lord thy
God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy
strength, and with all thy mind; and thy neighbor as thyself.
And he said unto him, Thou hast answered right: this do, and
thou shalt live. But he, desiring to justify himself, said unto
Jesus, And who is my neighbor? Jesus made answer and said,
A certain man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho; and
he fell among robbers, which both stripped him and beat him,
and departed, leaving him half dead. And by chance a certain
priest was going down that way: and when he saw him, he
passed by on the other side. And in like manner a Levite also,
when he came to the place, and saw him, passed by on the other
side. But a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he
was: and when he saw him, he was moved with compassion, and
came to him, and bound up his wounds, pouring on them oil
and wine; and he set him on his own beast, and brought him
to an inn, and took care of him. And on the morrow he took
out two pence, and gave them to the host, and said, Take care
of him; and whatsoever thou spendest more, I, when I come
back again, will repay thee. Which of these three, thinkest thou,
proved neighbor unto him that fell among the robbers? And
he said, He that shewed mercy on him. And Jesus said unto
him, Go, and do thou likewise.
THE PARABLE OF THE PRODIGAL SON
From the Gospel according to St. Luke
Α
ND he said, A certain man had two sons: and the younger of
them said to his father, Father, give me the portion of thy
substance that falleth to me. And he divided unto them
his living. And not many days after, the younger son gathered
all together, and took his journey into a far country; and there
he wasted his substance with riotous living. And when he had
spent all, there arose a mighty famine in that country; and he
began to be in want. And he went and joined himself to one
of the citizens of that country; and he sent him into his fields to
## p. 10586 (#458) ##########################################
10586
THE NEW TESTAMENT
feed swine. And he would fain have been filled with the husks
that the swine did eat: and no man gave unto him. But when
he came to himself he said, How many hired servants of my
father's have bread enough and to spare, and I perish here with
hunger! I will arise and go to my father, and will say unto
him, Father, I have sinned against heaven and in thy sight: I am
no more worthy to be called thy son: make me as one of thy
hired servants. And he arose, and came to his father. But
while he was yet afar off, his father saw him, and was moved
with compassion, and ran, and fell on his neck, and kissed him.
And the son said unto him, Father, I have sinned against heaven
and in thy sight: I am no more worthy to be called thy son.
But the father said to his servants, Bring forth quickly the best
robe, and put it on him; and put a ring on his hand, and shoes
on his feet: and bring the fatted calf and kill it, and let us eat,
and make merry: for this my son was dead, and is alive again;
he was lost, and is found. And they began to be merry. Now
his elder son was in the field: and as he came and drew nigh to
the house, he heard music and dancing. And he called to him
one of the servants, and inquired what these things might be.
And he said unto him, Thy brother is come; and thy father hath
killed the fatted calf, because he hath received him safe and
sound. But he was angry, and would not go in: and his father
came out and intreated him. But he answered and said to his
father, Lo, these many years do I serve thee, and I never trans-
gressed a commandment of thine: and yet thou never gavest me
a kid, that I might make merry with my friends: but when this
thy son came, which hath devoured thy living with harlots, thou
killedst for him the fatted calf. And he said unto him, Son, thou
art ever with me, and all that is mine is thine. But it was meet
to make merry and be glad: for this thy brother was dead, and
is alive again; and was lost, and is found.
ON THE SABBATH
I
From the Gospel according to St. Mark
ND it came to pass, that he was going on the Sabbath day
A through the cornfields; and his disciples began, as they
went, to pluck the ears of corn. And the Pharisees said
unto him, Behold, why do they on the Sabbath day that which is
## p. 10587 (#459) ##########################################
THE NEW TESTAMENT
10587
not lawful? And he said unto them, Did ye never read what
David did, when he had need, and was an hungred, he, and they
that were with him? How he entered into the house of God
when Abiathar was high priest, and did eat the shewbread, which
it is not lawful to eat save for the priests, and gave also to them
that were with him? And he said unto them, The Sabbath was
made for man, and not man for the Sabbath: so that the Son of
man is lord even of the Sabbath.
And he entered again into the synagogue; and there was a
man there which had his hand withered. And they watched him,
whether he would heal him on the Sabbath day; that they might
accuse him. And he saith unto the man that had his hand with-
ered, Stand forth. And he saith unto them, Is it lawful on the
Sabbath day to do good, or to do harm? to save a life, or to kill?
But they held their peace. And when he had looked round about
on them with anger, being grieved at the hardening of their
heart, he saith unto the man, Stretch forth thy hand. And he
stretched it forth: and his hand was restored.
II
From the Gospel according to St. Luke
AND he was teaching in one of the synagogues on the Sab-
bath day. And behold, a woman which had a spirit of infirmity
eighteen years; and she was bowed together, and could in no
wise lift herself up. And when Jesus saw her, he called her,
and said to her, Woman, thou art loosed from thine infirmity.
And he laid his hands upon her: and immediately she was made.
straight, and glorified God. And the ruler of the synagogue,
being moved with indignation because Jesus had healed on the
Sabbath, answered and said to the multitude, There are six days
in which men ought to work: in them therefore come and be
healed, and not on the day of the Sabbath. But the Lord an-
swered him, and said, Ye hypocrites, doth not each one of you
on the Sabbath loose his ox or his ass from the stall, and lead
him away to watering? And ought not this woman, being at
daughter of Abraham, whom Satan had bound, lo, these eighteen
years, to have been loosed from this bond on the day of the
Sabbath?
## p. 10588 (#460) ##########################################
10588
THE NEW TESTAMENT
DISCIPLESHIP
From the Gospel according to St. John
I
AM the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman. Every
branch in me that beareth not fruit, he taketh it away: and
every branch that beareth fruit, he cleanseth it, that it may
bear more fruit. Already ye are clean because of the word
which I have spoken unto you. Abide in me, and I in you. As
the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the
vine, so neither can ye, except ye abide in me. I am the vine,
ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the
same beareth much fruit: for apart from me ye can do nothing.
If a man abide not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is
withered; and they gather them, and cast them into the fire, and
they are burned. If ye abide in me, and my words abide in
you, ask whatsoever ye will, and it shall be done unto you.
Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit; and so
shall ye be my disciples. Even as the Father hath loved me, I
also have loved you: abide ye in my love. If ye keep my com-
mandments, ye shall abide in my love; even as I have kept my
Father's commandments, and abide in his love. These things
have I spoken unto you, that my joy may be in you, and that
your joy may be fulfilled. This is my commandment, that ye
love one another, even as I have loved you. Greater love hath
no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.
Ye are my friends, if ye do the things which I command you.
No longer do I call you servants; for the servant knoweth not
what his lord doeth: but I have called you friends; for all things
that I heard from my Father I have made known unto you. Ye
did not choose me, but I chose you, and appointed you, that ye
should go and bear fruit, and that your fruit should abide: that
whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in my name, he may give it
you. These things I command you, that ye may love one another.
If the world hateth you, ye know that it hath hated me before
it hated you.
If ye were of the world, the world would love its
own: but because ye are not of the world, but I chose you out
of the world, therefore the world hateth you. Remember the
word that I said unto you. A servant is not greater than his
lord. If they persecuted me, they will also persecute you; if
they kept my word, they will keep yours also. But all these
## p. 10589 (#461) ##########################################
THE NEW TESTAMENT
10589
things will they do unto you for my name's sake, because they
know not him that sent me. If I had not come and spoken unto
them, they had not had sin: but now they have no excuse for
their sin. He that hateth me hateth my Father also. If I had
not done among them the works which none other did, they
had not had sin: but now have they both seen and hated both
me and my Father. But this cometh to pass, that the word may
be fulfilled that is written in their law, They hated me without
a cause. But when the Comforter is come, whom I will send
unto you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth, which pro-
ceedeth from the Father, he shall bear witness of me; and ye also
bear witness, because ye have been with me from the beginning.
THE CONVERSION OF PAUL
From the Acts of the Apostles
B
UT Saul, yet breathing threatening and slaughter against the
disciples of the Lord, went unto the high priest, and asked
of him letters to Damascus unto the synagogues, that if
he found any that were of the Way, whether men or women, he
might bring them bound to Jerusalem. And as he journeyed,
it came to pass that he drew nigh unto Damascus: and suddenly
there shone round about him a light out of heaven: and he fell
upon the earth, and heard a voice saying unto him, Saul, Saul,
why persecutest thou me? And he said, Who art thou, Lord?
And he said, I am Jesus whom thou persecutest, but rise, and
enter into the city, and it shall be told thee what thou must
do. And the men that journeyed with him stood speechless,
hearing the voice, but beholding no man. And Saul arose from
the earth; and when his eyes were opened, he saw nothing;
and they led him by the hand, and brought him into Damascus.
And he was three days without sight, and did neither eat nor
drink.
Now there was a certain disciple at Damascus, named Ana-
nias; and the Lord said unto him in a vision, Ananias. And he
said, Behold, I am here, Lord. And the Lord said unto him,
Arise, and go to the street which is called Straight, and inquire
in the house of Judas for one named Saul, a man of Tarsus: for
behold, he prayeth; and he hath seen a man named Ananias
coming in, and laying his hands on him, that he might receive
## p. 10590 (#462) ##########################################
THE NEW TESTAMENT
10590
his sight. But Ananias answered, Lord, I have heard from many
of this man, how much evil he did to thy saints at Jerusalem:
and here he hath authority from the chief priests to bind all that
call upon thy name. But the Lord said unto him, Go thy way:
for he is a chosen vessel unto me, to bear my name before the
Gentiles and kings, and the children of Israel: for I will shew
him how many things he must suffer for my name's sake. And
Ananias departed, and entered into the house; and laying his
hands on him said, Brother Saul, the Lord, even Jesus, who ap-
peared unto thee in the way which thou camest, hath sent me,
that thou mayest receive thy sight, and be filled with the Holy
Ghost. And straightway there fell from his eyes as it were
scales, and he received his sight; and he arose and was baptized;
and he took food and was strengthened.
And he was certain days with the disciples which were at
Damascus. And straightway in the synagogues he proclaimed
Jesus, that he is the Son of God. And all that heard him were
amazed, and said, Is not this he that in Jerusalem made havoc
of them which called on this name? and he had come hither for
this intent, that he might bring them bound before the chief
priests. But Saul increased the more in strength, and con-
founded the Jews which dwelt at Damascus, proving that this is
the Christ.
And when many days were fulfilled, the Jews took counsel
together to kill him: but their plot became known to Saul. And
they watched the gates also day and night that they might kill
him: but his disciples took him by night, and let him down
through the wall, lowering him in a basket.
And when he was come to Jerusalem, he assayed to join
himself to the disciples: and they were all afraid of him, not
believing that he was a disciple. But Barnabas took him, and
brought him to the apostles, and declared unto them how he
had seen the Lord in the way, and that he had spoken to him,
and how at Damascus he had preached boldly in the name of
Jesus. And he was with them going in and going out at Jeru-
salem, preaching boldly in the name of the Lord: and he spake
and disputed against the Grecian Jews; but they went about to
kill him. And when the brethren knew it, they brought him
down to Cæsarea, and sent him forth to Tarsus.
## p. 10591 (#463) ##########################################
THE NEW TESTAMENT
THE NATURE OF LOVE
From the First Epistle to the Corinthians
10591
IF
I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but have not
love, I am become sounding brass, or a clanging cymbal.
And if I have the gift of prophecy, and know all mysteries
and all knowledge; and if I have all faith, so as to remove
mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. And if I bestow
all my goods to feed the poor, and if I give my body to be
burned, but have not love, it profiteth me nothing. Love suf-
fereth long, and is kind; love envieth not; love vaunteth not
itself, is not puffed up, doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh
not its own, is not provoked, taketh not account of evil; rejoiceth
not in unrighteousness, but rejoiceth with the truth; beareth all
things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things.
Love never faileth: but whether there be prophecies, they shall
be done away; whether there be tongues, they shall cease;
whether there be knowledge, it shall be done away.
For we
know in part, and we prophesy in part: but when that which is
perfect is come, that which is in part shall be done away. When
I was a child, I spake as a child, I felt as a child, I thought as
a child: now that I am become a man, I have put away childish
things. For now we see in a mirror, darkly; but then face to
face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also
I have been known. But now abideth faith, hope, love, these
three; and the greatest of these is love.
IMMORTALITY
From the First Epistle to the Corinthians
BE
NOT deceived: Evil company doth corrupt good manners.
Awake up righteously, and sin not; for some have no
knowledge of God: I speak this to move you to shame.
But some one will say, How are the dead raised? and with
what manner of body do they come? Thou foolish one, that
which thou thyself sowest is not quickened, except it die: and
that which thou sowest, thou sowest not the body that shall be,
but a bare grain, it may chance of wheat, or of some other kind:
but God giveth it a body even as it pleased him, and to each
## p. 10592 (#464) ##########################################
THE NEW TESTAMENT
10592
seed a body of its own. All flesh is not the same flesh: but
there is one flesh of men, and another flesh of beasts, and another
flesh of birds, and another of fishes. There are also celestial
bodies, and bodies terrestrial: but the glory of the celestial is
one, and the glory of the terrestrial is another. There is one
glory of the sun, and another glory of the moon, and another
glory of the stars; for one star differeth from another star
in glory. So also is the resurrection of the dead. It is sown in
corruption; it is raised in incorruption: it is sown in dishonor; it
is raised in glory: it is sown in weakness; it is raised in power:
it is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body. If
there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body. So also
it is written, The first man Adam became a living soul.
page; it may be read aloud in four minutes: yet can we adduce from
all the literature of all the world any passage so brief- or indeed
any passage at all-which has exercised one fraction of the eter-
nal influence of this? Dante and John Bunyan have touched thou-
sands of human souls; but this parable has been precious to millions
of every age and every tongue, who never so much as heard of the
* Baron Humboldt in his Cosmos shows at length that the "romantic"
love of the beauties of nature is quite a modern phenomenon in the world's
literature.
## p. 10571 (#443) ##########################################
THE NEW TESTAMENT
10571
'Divina Commedia' or the 'Pilgrim's Progress. ' The works of fiction
in the world can be counted by tens of thousands: which of them all
has ever produced the minim of an impression so intense and so
world-wide as this brief parable? On this subject it is worth while
to adduce the opinions of three of the most popular and eminent
writers of fiction in our own generation.
Charles Reade was an earnest and constant student of Scripture.
Accustomed to study and exhibit character in his novels, he gave it
as his deliberate judgment that no ordinary, no uninspired human
skill or genius could rival the marvelous brevity, the "swift fresco
strokes" with which again and again Scripture, as it were undesign-
edly and unconsciously, with only a word or two, makes the char-
acters of men stand out vividly before us, and live in our memory
so that we might almost seem to have seen and known them.
Not
even in Shakespeare do we find so marvelous a power. And yet in
other writers this graphic skill-this endeavor рò oµµáτwv nociv—is a
main object, whereas in Scripture it is entirely secondary, and so to
speak, accidental.
Similarly Robert Louis Stevenson, speaking of the matchless
verve and insight displayed in the delineation of characters in the
Bible, a point respecting which a novelist can give an instructed
judgment,
says:
"Written in the East, these characters live for ever in the West; written
in one province, they pervade the world; penned in rude times, they are
prized more and more as civilization advances; a product of antiquity, they
come home to the business and bosoms of men, women, and children in
modern days. Then is it any exaggeration to say that the characters of
Scripture are a marvel of the mind? ? »
-
Once more, Mr. Hall Caine says, in McClure's Magazine:
"I think that I know my Bible as few literary men know it. There is
no book in the world like it; and the finest novels ever written fall far short
in interest of any one of the stories it tells. Whatever strong situations
I have in my books are not of my creation, but are taken from the Bible.
The Deemster is the story of the Prodigal Son. The Bondman' is the
story of Esau and Jacob. 'The Scapegoat' is the story of Eli and his sons,
but with Samuel as a little girl; and The Manxman' is the story of David
and Uriah. "
:-
I should like to give some further instances of the power of words
as illustrated in the Bible.
If there be one lesson on which all our great poets and think-
ers most insist in modern days, it is, that upon "self-mastery, self-
knowledge, self-control" depends all the dignity of life. It is in
effect Plato's old lesson of the tripartite nature of man, as consisting
of a Man, a Lion, and a Many-headed Monster: in which synthesis the
## p. 10572 (#444) ##########################################
THE NEW TESTAMENT
10572
Man, who represents the Reason and the Conscience, must sit supreme
in tranquil empire over the subjugated Lion, who represents the pas-
sions of Wrath and Pride, - passions to be controlled and made to
subserve noble uses, but not to be destroyed; the Monster, which
represents the concupiscence of the flesh, must be crushed into con
pletest subjection. Is not the essence of this world-famous allegory
compressed into the single verse of the Psalmist, as it is represented.
in glorious sculpture on the west front of the Cathedral of Amiens,
-"Thou shalt tread upon the lion and the adder; the young lion
and the dragon shalt thou trample under thy feet"? Now take all
the high instruction upon this subject contained in Ovid's -
and in Dante's—
«Video meliora proboque,
Deteriora sequor;"
(I see the better way, and I approve it,
Yet I pursue the worse;)
"I crown and mitre thee over thyself;"
and in Milton's-
and in Shakespeare's-
"I have lost the immortal part of myself, and what remains is bestial;"
and in Fletcher's-
"Man is his own star; and the soul that can
Render an honest and a perfect man
Commands all life, all influence, all fate; "
"Converse with heavenly habitants
Begins to cast a beam on the outward shape,
The unpolluted temple of the mind,
And turns it by degrees to the soul's essence,
Till all be made immortal;"
and in Sir Henry Wotton's-
and in Wordsworth's -
"This man is free from servile bonds
Of hope to rise or fear to fall;
Lord of himself, though not of lands,
And having nothing, yet hath all;"
"This is the happy warrior; this is he
Whom every man in arms would wish to be; >
and in Matthew Arnold's
"Resolve to be thyself, and know that he
Who finds himself loses his misery;"
## p. 10573 (#445) ##########################################
THE NEW TESTAMENT
10573
and in Clough's-
"Seek, seeker, in thyself, and thou shalt find
In the stones bread, and life in the blank mind;»
and in Christina Rossetti's -
"God, harden me against myself,-
This traitor with pathetic voice
That craves for ease, and rest, and joys;»
and in many more which might be quoted: and I venture to assert
that the inmost quintessence of all this Divine philosophy is
pressed-and is even expressed with a new and deeper element of
thought absolutely and unapproachably original-in a single word of
Christ our Lord,-"In your endurance ye shall acquire your souls. "*
In our version the word is rendered "possess "; but it connotes some-
thing more than "self-possession, "-namely, self-acquisition. It teaches
us that to be we must become; and we cannot become "lords of our-
selves"- except indeed as "a heritage of woe"-without our own
strenuous endeavors. Here, in one word, lies the secret of all noble
life. That which is essentially eternal within us- the inmost reality
of our beings-is not given to us with our being, but has to be
attained and achieved by us. And here it is worth while to observe
how very often even the early copyists and translators of the New
Testament miss its essential point. If ever they venture to interfere
between the sacred writer and his readers they invariably deface and
vulgarize; because, without adequate understanding, they endeavor to
interpret or to amend. Take but one specimen. In Hebrews x. 34
we read in our Authorized Version, "Ye took joyfully the spoiling
of your goods, knowing in yourselves that ye have in heaven a better
and enduring substance. " Now, if that was the correct reading of
the original, it would convey the very true but very ordinary topic of
consolation that heaven would redress the uneven balances of earth.
But it is almost certain that "in yourselves" is the correction of an
unapprehensive scribe for "yourselves" (avroiç); and that "in heaven"
is an explanatory gloss added by those who were unable to under-
stand that the real consolation offered to the Hebrews is not a distant
expectation, but the fact that here and now they possessed something
-even "themselves"—which far outweighed any treasure of which
they had been despoiled, and that they were
"Richer possessing such a jewel
Than twenty seas, though all their sands were pearl,
Their waters crystal, and their rocks pure gold. »
* Ἐν τῇ ὑπομονῇ ὑμῶν κτήσεσθε (or κτήσασθε) τὰς ψυχὰς ὑμῶν. —Luke xxi. 19.
## p. 10574 (#446) ##########################################
THE NEW TESTAMENT
10574
When Dean Stanley visited Heinrich von Ewald, a little Greek
Testament lay on the table, and it accidentally fell on the ground.
Ewald picked it up, and as he laid it on the table, exclaimed with
indescribable enthusiasm, "In this little book is contained all the
best wisdom of the world. " Was he not right? Take the five classics
of Confucius, the 'Vedas,' the Tripitaka,' the whole collection of the
'Sacred Books of the East,' the 'Dialogues' of Plato, the 'Ethics' of
Aristotle, the moral treatises of Cicero, the 'Enchiridion' of Epictetus,
the letters of Seneca to Lucilius, the Thoughts' of Marcus Aurelius,
the Qu'ran of Mahommed-all that represents the very crown and
flower of Pagan morality; then turn to Christian literature, and cull
every noble thought you can find in the Fathers, in the Schoolmen, in
the Mystics, in the 'Imitatio Christi,' in the Puritan divines, in Tauler
and John Bunyan, in Hooker, Jeremy Taylor, Sanderson, or Butler,
in the Whole Duty of Man,' and the writings of the early Evan-
gelicals and while in all pagan and some Christian books you may
find imperfect and even pernicious elements, you will not find, either
before or after Christ, one single fruitful rule or principle of morals
(to say nothing of the deepest truths of religion), for which we could
not quote deeper reasons and a more powerful enforcement from the
brief pages of the New Testament alone. Does not this undoubted
fact, as well as the universal adaptability of the Book to all classes
and conditions of men in every age, in every clime, of every nation-
ality, at every period of life, in every stage of culture or ignorance,-
does it not show, apart from all else that might be said about it, the
supreme and unapproachable literary force and grandeur of the New
Testament? No one has expressed this truth more strikingly than
the American poet J. G. Whittier:-
―――
"We search the world for truth: we cull
The good, the pure, the beautiful,
From graven stone and written scroll,
From all old flower-fields of the soul;
And, weary seekers of the best,
We come back laden from our quest,
To find that all the sages said
Is in the Book our mothers read. "
And indeed it is a most memorable proof of that Indwelling Pres-
ence of the Spirit of the Almighty in human souls which we call
Inspiration, that, owing to the supreme literary force and beauty of
the New Testament, we find direct traces of its influence on the
pages of all the best poets, - who are the loveliest as well as the
deepest teachers of moral wisdom. Read them whether, like
Dante, Milton, George Herbert, Cowper, Tennyson, Browning, they
speak no word that does not make for righteousness; or whether,
-
## p. 10575 (#447) ##########################################
THE NEW TESTAMENT
10575
like Chaucer, Shakespeare, Goethe, Burns, Byron, they had learnt
by bitter experience of evil that good is best, and that unfaithful-
ness
"Hardens all within
And petrifies the feeling":
and you will find, alike from the poems of the sinners in their shame
and penitence, and of the saints whose singing robes were white and
their garlands of heaven's own amaranth, that, apart from what they
learnt from the Apostles and Evangelists, they would have but little
of what is supremely good and noble left. Bring me the book,"
said Sir Walter Scott, as he lay upon his death-bed. "What book? "
asked his son-in-law, Lockhart. "The book-the Bible," answered
Sir Walter: "there is but one. "
«<
Let us put this assertion of the supreme sufficiency of Scripture
to a partial test. In this age, which shows so many symptoms of
greed, of struggle, of unbelief, of retrograde religious teaching, there
are three lofty souls to whom we turn most often, and to whom we
specially look up as to "moral light-houses in a dark and stormy sea,"
- Dante, Shakespeare, Milton. How deep is the influence of the
New Testament on each of them! How impossible it would have
been that its books should have exercised this influence without the
perfectness of their literary form!
Dante himself practically explains to us that the true meaning
of his 'Divina Commedia is "Man as liable to the Reward or Pun-
ishment of Eternal Law;- Man according as, by the freedom of his
will, he is of good or ill desert. " Like the parable of the Prodigal
Son, the 'Divine Comedy' is nothing more nor less than the life
history of a human soul, redeemed from sin and error, from lust and
worldliness, and restored to the right path by the reason and the
grace which enable it to see the things that are, and to see them as
they are. The three great divisions of the poem might be called,—
not 'Hell,' 'Purgatory,' 'Paradise,' but Guilt,' 'Repentance,' 'Regen-
erate Beatitude. ' Hell is simply self without God; Penitence is the
soul's return to God; Heaven is self lost in God: and the three can-
tos do but expand and enforce these three texts:-
-
"The end of those things is Death. "
"Work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. "
"This is life eternal,- to know thee, the only God, and Jesus Christ
whom thou hast sent. "
Let us next take Milton. He has left us in no doubt as to the
sources of his own inspiration. His 'Paradise Lost' and 'Paradise
Regained' are of course avowedly his comments on the Fall and
the Redemption; but in his 'Comus' he teaches the lesson, which he
## p. 10576 (#448) ##########################################
10576
THE NEW TESTAMENT
has also expressed in such matchless prose, that "if the love of God,
as a fire to be kept alive upon the altar of our hearts, be the first
principle of all Godly and virtuous actions in men, the pious and just
honoring of ourselves is the second, and the fountain-head whence
every laudable and worthy enterprise issues forth. " The inmost
meaning of 'Comus' lies in the lines.
"He that hath light within his own clear breast
May sit in the centre and enjoy bright day;
But he that hides a dark soul and foul thoughts
Benighted walks under the midday sun:
Himself is his own dungeon. "
What is this high teaching but "If the light that is in thee be
darkness, how great is that darkness"? and "I am tied and bound
with the chain of my sins"? Or take Milton's last and most in-
tensely characteristic poem, the 'Samson Agonistes. ' Its meaning is
summed up in the last lines:-
"All is best; though we oft doubt
What the unsearchable dispose
Or highest wisdom brings about,
And ever best found in the close. »
Could Milton have arrived at this lofty and all-consoling truth if
he had never read the words "What I do thou knowest not now, but
thou shalt know hereafter"?
And now turn to Shakespeare. One commentator says of him,
"It has been remarked that Shakespeare was habitually conversant
with the Bible. " And another that "he had deeply imbibed the
Scriptures. " The late Bishop Wordsworth of St. Andrews showed in
an interesting volume that Shakespeare was not uninfluenced by the
grammar, by noticeable words and noticeable forms of speech, with
which the English Bible had made him familiar; that he is full of
allusions to the historical facts and characters of the Bible; and that
his religious principles and sentiments on almost all the chief sub-
jects of human concern, moral no less than spiritual,—and indeed
the dominant spirit of his poetry,- were derived from the volume of
Holy Writ, against the abuse and the wrong use of which he has
yet uttered such strong and wholesome warnings. Shakespeare was
one of the few who "saw life steadily and saw it whole. " Goethe
rightly said of him that "his plays are much more than poems. The
reader seems to have before him the books of fate, against which
is beating the tempest of eager life so as to drive the leaves back-
ward and forward with violence. " Yet what did Shakespeare know
which he had not learnt from the New Testament? Take but two
instances. Does not 'King Lear,' that tragedy of tragedies, set forth
## p. 10577 (#449) ##########################################
THE NEW TESTAMENT
10577
the absolute triumph of a faith and love which burns bright even
amid apparently irremediable failure; and is not this the lesson set
forth already, even more supremely, in the Epistles, in the Apoca-
lypse, above all in the Gospel narratives? Is it not the lesson of the
cross of Christ himself? Can even Shakespeare's genius do more than
set in new light the truth that all must be well with those who are
obedient to, and are supported by, the Eternal Laws? Or take the
tragedy of Macbeth,' which sets before us in such lurid illumination
the horror of an avenging conscience. What is it but the concrete
presentment of the eternal tragedy of the guilty soul? It is like
the stories of Adam and Eve, of Balaam, of Achan, of David, of
Judas- the picture of crime through all its stages: temptation; glam-
our; the spasm of guilty act, the agony of awakenment; the haunt-
ing of shame; the permanence of sorrow; last of all, retributive
catastrophe and unutterable despair. And yet may we not say, with
simplest truthfulness, that in the New Testament alone do we find
the ultimate solution, the sovereign and revealing utterance respect-
ing those fundamental convictions which Dante and Shakespeare and
Milton can but illustrate by throwing upon them the illuminating
splendor of their heaven-bestowed genius and insight? Is it not
proved, therefore, that we find the New Testament still inestimably
precious when we consider it only in its literary aspect?
I will conclude with one swift glance at the natural order of the
books of the New Covenant.
In St. Matthew we have the Gospel of the Jew and of the Past,-
the setting forth of the Messiah of olden prophecy, in St. Mark the
Gospel for the Roman, the Gospel of the Present; in St. Luke the Gos-
pel for the Greek, the Gospel of the Future; in St. John the Gospel
in its most spiritual aspect, the Gospel for Eternity;-and the Past,
the Present, the Future, the Eternal, are all summed up in Christ.
In the Acts we have the book of beginnings, the story of the
foundation of the Church; the earliest and best of all ecclesiastical
histories. Then follow twenty-one most precious Epistles of great
Apostles, each marked by its special topic. The two to the Thessa-
lonians turn mainly on the near Second Advent of Christ. The first
to the Corinthians is on Christian Unity in faith, and worship, and
life; the second is mainly the Apostle's Apologia pro vita sua. The
Epistles to the Galatians promulgate the indefeasible rights of Lib-
erty; that to the Romans sets forth, among other topics, the true
meaning of justification by faith; that to the Philippians shows us
the glory of love and exultations, burning bright amid apparently
overwhelming defeat and calamity; that to the Colossians turns
chiefly on the subject of Christ as all in all; that to the Ephesians
is the Epistle of the Ascension, the Epistle of "the Heavenlies »—the
XVIII-662
## p. 10578 (#450) ##########################################
10578
THE NEW TESTAMENT
Epistle of Christ in the midst of the ideal, eternal, universal Church;
that to Philemon is the earliest charter of emancipation to the
slave; the first Epistle to Timothy, and that to Titus, constitute the
best Pastor's Manual; the second to Timothy, amid its affectionate
counsels, exhibits the completeness of the Christian's victory in the
apparent defeat of lonely death. The powerful and interesting, but
anonymous, Epistle to the Hebrews sets forth Christ as the end and
fulfillment of the law, the Eternal and all-sufficient Savior. St.
James writes the sternly passionate letter of Christian morality; St.
Peter's is the Epistle of Hope, St. John's of Love. Finally the radiant
and impassioned imagery and visions of the Apocalypse, though they
come among the earliest in time, form the fitting literary conclusion
of this Book of Books - the last gem of this Urim and Thummim
upon that Ephod of Humanity "whereon should be inscribed the one
word God. " Could we possess a more priceless treasure? “What
problem do these books leave unexamined? what depth unfathomed?
what height unscaled? what consolation unadministered? what heart
untouched? what conscience unreproved? " May we not say with our
Translators of 1611: "If we be ignorant, the Scriptures will instruct
us; if out of the way, they will bring us home; if out of order, they
will reform us; if in heaviness, comfort us; if dull, quicken us; if
cold, inflame us. Tolle, lege; tolle, lege-Take and read! take and
read! "
-
"For many books I care not; and my store
Might now suffice me though I had no more
Than God's Two Testaments, and then withal
That mighty volume which 'the world' we call. »
-давала
THE SERMON ON THE MOUNT
From the Gospel according to St. Matthew
A
ND Jesus went about in all Galilee, teaching in their syn-
agogues, and preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and
healing all manner of disease and all manner of sickness
among the people. And the report of him went forth into all
Syria: and they brought unto him all that were sick, holden with
divers diseases and torments, possessed with devils, and epileptic,
## p. 10579 (#451) ##########################################
THE NEW TESTAMENT
10579
and palsied; and he healed them. And there followed him great
multitudes from Galilee and Decapolis and Jerusalem and Judæa
and from beyond Jordan.
And seeing the multitudes, he went up into the mountain:
and when he had sat down, his disciples came unto him: and
he opened his mouth and taught them, saying,
Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of
heaven.
Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted.
Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth.
Blessed are they that hunger and thirst after righteousness:
for they shall be filled.
Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy.
Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God.
Blessed are the peace-makers: for they shall be called sons of
God.
Blessed are they that have been persecuted for righteousness'
sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are ye when
men shall reproach you, and persecute you, and say all manner
of evil against you falsely, for my sake. Rejoice, and be exceed-
ing glad for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted
they the prophets which were before you.
Ye are the salt of the earth. but if the salt have lost its
savor, wherewith shall it be salted? it is thenceforth good for
nothing, but to be cast out and trodden under foot of men. Ye
are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hid.
Neither do men light a lamp, and put it under the bushel, but
on the stand; and it shineth unto all that are in the house. Even
so let your light shine before men, that they may see your good
works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.
Think not that I came to destroy the law or the prophets:
I came not to destroy, but to fulfill. For verily I say unto you,
Till heaven and earth pass away, one jot or one tittle shall in
no wise pass away from the law, till all things be accomplished.
Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least command-
ments, and shall teach men so, shall be called least in the king-
dom of heaven but whosoever shall do and teach them, he shall
be called great in the kingdom of heaven. For I say unto you,
that except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of
the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no wise enter into the
kingdom of heaven.
## p. 10580 (#452) ##########################################
10580
THE NEW TESTAMENT
Ye have heard that it was said to them of old time, Thou
shalt not kill; and whosoever shall kill shall be in danger of the
judgment: but I say unto you, that every one who is angry with
his brother shall be in danger of the judgment; and whosoever
shall say to his brother, Raca, shall be in danger of the council;
and whosoever shall say, Thou fool, shall be in danger of the
hell of fire. If therefore thou art offering thy gift at the altar,
and there rememberest that thy brother hath aught against thee,
leave there thy gift before the altar, and go thy way, first be
reconciled to thy brother, and then come and offer thy gift.
Agree with thine adversary quickly, whiles thou art with him
in the way; lest haply the adversary deliver thee to the judge,
and the judge deliver thee to the officer, and thou be cast into
prison. Verily I say unto thee, Thou shalt by no means come
out thence, till thou have paid the last farthing.
Ye have heard that it was said, Thou shalt not commit
adultery: but I say unto you, that every one that looketh on a
woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her al-
ready in his heart. And if thy right eye causeth thee to stum-
ble, pluck it out, and cast it from thee: for it is profitable for
thee that one of thy members should perish, and not thy whole
body be cast into hell. And if thy right hand causeth thee to
stumble, cut it off, and cast it from thee: for it is profitable
for thee that one of thy members should perish, and not thy
whole body go into hell. It was said also, Whosoever shall
put away his wife, let him give her a writing of divorcement:
but I say unto you, that every one that putteth away his wife,
saving for the cause of fornication, maketh her an adulteress: and
whosoever shall marry her when she is put away committeth
adultery.
Again, ye have heard that it was said to them of old time,
Thou shalt not forswear thyself, but shalt perform unto the Lord
thine oaths: but I say unto you, Swear not at all; neither by the
heaven, for it is the throne of God; nor by the earth, for it is
the footstool of his feet; nor by Jerusalem, for it is the city of
the great King. Neither shalt thou swear by thy head, for thou
canst not make one hair white or black. But let your speech be,
Yea, yea; Nay, nay: and whatsoever is more than these is of the
evil one.
Ye have heard that it was said, An eye for an eye, and a
tooth for a tooth: but I say unto you, Resist not him that is
## p. 10581 (#453) ##########################################
THE NEW TESTAMENT
10581
evil: but whosoever smiteth thee on thy right cheek, turn to
him the other also. And if any man would go to law with
thee, and take away thy coat, let him have thy cloak also. And
whosoever shall compel thee to go one mile, go with him twain.
Give to him that asketh thee, and from him that would borrow
of thee turn not thou away.
Ye have heard that it was said, Thou shalt love thy neighbor,
and hate thine enemy: but I say unto you, Love your enemies,
and pray for them that persecute you; that ye may be sons of
your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise
on the evil and the good, and sendeth rain on the just and the
unjust. For if ye love them that love you, what reward have
ye? do not even the publicans the same? And if ye salute your
brethren only, what do ye more than others? do not even the
Gentiles the same? Ye therefore shall be perfect, as your heav-
enly Father is perfect.
Take heed that ye do not your righteousness before men, to
be seen of them: else ye have no reward with your Father which
is in heaven.
When therefore thou doest alms, sound not a trumpet before
thee, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets,
that they may have glory of men. Verily I say unto you, They
have received their reward. But when thou doest alms, let not
thy left hand know what thy right hand doeth: that thine alms
may be in secret: and thy Father which seeth in secret shall
recompense thee.
And when ye pray, ye shall not be as the hypocrites: for they
love to stand and pray in the synagogues and in the corners of
the streets, that they may be seen of men. Verily I say unto
you, They have received their reward. But thou, when thou
prayest, enter into thine inner chamber, and having shut thy
door, pray to thy Father which is in secret, and thy Father which
seeth in secret shall recompense thee. And in praying use not
vain repetitions, as the Gentiles do: for they think that they
shall be heard for their much speaking. Be not therefore like
unto them: for your Father knoweth what things ye have need
of, before ye ask him. After this manner therefore pray ye: Our
Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy king-
dom come. Thy will be done, as in heaven, so on earth. Give
us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we
also have forgiven our debtors. And bring us not into tempta-
## p. 10582 (#454) ##########################################
10582
THE NEW TESTAMENT
tion, but deliver us from the evil one. For if ye forgive men
their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But
if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father
forgive your trespasses.
Moreover when ye fast, be not, as the hypocrites, of a sad
countenance: for they disfigure their faces, that they may be
seen of men to fast. Verily I say unto you, They have received
their reward. But thou, when thou fastest, anoint thy head, and
wash thy face; that thou be not seen of men to fast, but of thy
Father which is in secret: and thy Father, which seeth in secret,
shall recompense thee.
Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon the earth, where
moth and rust doth consume, and where thieves break through
and steal: but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where
neither moth nor rust doth consume, and where thieves do not
break through nor steal: for where thy treasure is, there will thy
heart be also. The lamp of the body is the eye: if therefore
thine eye be single, thy whole body shall be full of light. But
if thine eye be evil, thy whole body shall be full of darkness.
If therefore the light that is in thee be darkness, how great is
the darkness! No man can serve two masters: for either he
will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to
one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.
Therefore I say unto you, Be not anxious for your life, what
ye shall eat, or. what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body,
what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than the food, and
the body than the raiment? Behold the birds of the heaven, that
they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; and
your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are not ye of much more
value than they? And which of you by being anxious can add
one cubit unto his stature ? And why are ye anxious concern-
ing raiment ? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow;
they toil not, neither do they spin: yet I say unto you, that
even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.
But if God doth so clothe the grass of the field, which to-day
is, and to-morrow is cast into the oven, shall he not much more
clothe you, O ye of little faith? Be not therefore anxious, say-
ing, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Where-
withal shall we be clothed? For after all these things do the
Gentiles seek; for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have
need of all these things. But seek ye first his kingdom, and his
## p. 10583 (#455) ##########################################
THE NEW TESTAMENT
10583
righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.
Be not therefore anxious for the morrow: for the morrow will
be anxious for itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.
Judge not, that ye be not judged. For with what judgment
ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete,
it shall be measured unto you. And why beholdest thou the
mote that is in thy brother's eye, but considerest not the beam
that is in thine own eye? Or how wilt thou say to thy brother,
Let me cast out the mote out of thine eye; and lo, the beam is
in thine own eye? Thou hypocrite, cast out first the beam out
of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the
mote out of thy brother's eye.
Give not that which is holy unto the dogs, neither cast your
pearls before the swine, lest haply they trample them under their
feet, and turn and rend you.
Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock,
and it shall be opened unto you: for every one that asketh
receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh
it shall be opened. Or what man is there of you, who, if his
son shall ask him for a loaf, will give him a stone; or if he
shall ask for a fish, will give him a serpent? If ye then, being
evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much
more shall your Father which is in heaven give good things to
them that ask him? All things therefore whatsoever ye would
that men should do unto you, even so do ye also unto them: for
this is the law and the prophets.
Enter ye in by the narrow gate: for wide is the gate, and
broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many be they
that enter in thereby. For narrow is the gate, and straitened
the way, that leadeth unto life, and few be they that find it.
Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep's cloth-
ing, but inwardly are ravening wolves. By their fruits ye shall
know them. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles?
Even so every good tree bringeth forth good fruit; but the cor-
rupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit. A good tree cannot bring
forth evil fruit, neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit.
Every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and
cast into the fire. Therefore by their fruits ye shall know them.
Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into
the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father
which is in heaven. Many will say to me in that day, Lord,
## p. 10584 (#456) ##########################################
10584
THE NEW TESTAMENT
Lord, did we not prophesy by thy name, and by thy name cast
out devils, and by thy name do many mighty works? And then
will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me,
ye that work iniquity. Every one therefore which heareth these
words of mine, and doeth them, shall be likened unto a wise man,
which built his house upon the rock: and the rain descended,
and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that
house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon the rock. And
every one that heareth these words of mine, and doeth them not,
shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon
the sand and the rain descended, and the floods came, and the
winds blew, and smote upon that house; and it fell: and great
Iwas the fall thereof.
And it came to pass, when Jesus ended these words, the mul-
titudes were astonished at his teaching: for he taught them as
one having authority, and not as their scribes.
FROM THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO ST. MARK
ANT
ND they brought unto him little children, that he should
touch them; and the disciples rebuked them. But when
Jesus saw it, he was moved with indignation, and said unto
them, Suffer the little children to come unto me; forbid them
not: for of such is the kingdom of God. Verily I say unto you,
Whosoever shall not receive the kingdom of God as a little child,
he shall in no wise enter therein. And he took them in his
arms, and blessed them, laying his hands upon them.
And as he was going forth into the way, there ran one to
him, and kneeled to him, and asked him, Good Master, what
shall I do that I may inherit eternal life? And Jesus said unto
him, Why callest thou me good? none is good save one, even
God. Thou knowest the commandments, Do not kill, Do not
commit adultery, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Do not
defraud, Honor thy father and mother. And he said unto him,
Master, all these things have I observed from my youth. And
Jesus looking upon him loved him, and said unto him, One thing
thou lackest: go, sell whatsoever thou hast, and give to the poor,
and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come, follow me.
But his countenance fell at the saying, and he went away sor-
rowful: for he was one that had great possessions.
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10585
THE PARABLE OF THE GOOD SAMARITAN
From the Gospel according to St. Luke
ND behold, a certain lawyer stood up and tempted him, say-
Master, what shall I do to inherit eternal life? And
he said unto him, What is written in the law? how readest
thou? And he answering said, Thou shalt love the Lord thy
God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy
strength, and with all thy mind; and thy neighbor as thyself.
And he said unto him, Thou hast answered right: this do, and
thou shalt live. But he, desiring to justify himself, said unto
Jesus, And who is my neighbor? Jesus made answer and said,
A certain man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho; and
he fell among robbers, which both stripped him and beat him,
and departed, leaving him half dead. And by chance a certain
priest was going down that way: and when he saw him, he
passed by on the other side. And in like manner a Levite also,
when he came to the place, and saw him, passed by on the other
side. But a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he
was: and when he saw him, he was moved with compassion, and
came to him, and bound up his wounds, pouring on them oil
and wine; and he set him on his own beast, and brought him
to an inn, and took care of him. And on the morrow he took
out two pence, and gave them to the host, and said, Take care
of him; and whatsoever thou spendest more, I, when I come
back again, will repay thee. Which of these three, thinkest thou,
proved neighbor unto him that fell among the robbers? And
he said, He that shewed mercy on him. And Jesus said unto
him, Go, and do thou likewise.
THE PARABLE OF THE PRODIGAL SON
From the Gospel according to St. Luke
Α
ND he said, A certain man had two sons: and the younger of
them said to his father, Father, give me the portion of thy
substance that falleth to me. And he divided unto them
his living. And not many days after, the younger son gathered
all together, and took his journey into a far country; and there
he wasted his substance with riotous living. And when he had
spent all, there arose a mighty famine in that country; and he
began to be in want. And he went and joined himself to one
of the citizens of that country; and he sent him into his fields to
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10586
THE NEW TESTAMENT
feed swine. And he would fain have been filled with the husks
that the swine did eat: and no man gave unto him. But when
he came to himself he said, How many hired servants of my
father's have bread enough and to spare, and I perish here with
hunger! I will arise and go to my father, and will say unto
him, Father, I have sinned against heaven and in thy sight: I am
no more worthy to be called thy son: make me as one of thy
hired servants. And he arose, and came to his father. But
while he was yet afar off, his father saw him, and was moved
with compassion, and ran, and fell on his neck, and kissed him.
And the son said unto him, Father, I have sinned against heaven
and in thy sight: I am no more worthy to be called thy son.
But the father said to his servants, Bring forth quickly the best
robe, and put it on him; and put a ring on his hand, and shoes
on his feet: and bring the fatted calf and kill it, and let us eat,
and make merry: for this my son was dead, and is alive again;
he was lost, and is found. And they began to be merry. Now
his elder son was in the field: and as he came and drew nigh to
the house, he heard music and dancing. And he called to him
one of the servants, and inquired what these things might be.
And he said unto him, Thy brother is come; and thy father hath
killed the fatted calf, because he hath received him safe and
sound. But he was angry, and would not go in: and his father
came out and intreated him. But he answered and said to his
father, Lo, these many years do I serve thee, and I never trans-
gressed a commandment of thine: and yet thou never gavest me
a kid, that I might make merry with my friends: but when this
thy son came, which hath devoured thy living with harlots, thou
killedst for him the fatted calf. And he said unto him, Son, thou
art ever with me, and all that is mine is thine. But it was meet
to make merry and be glad: for this thy brother was dead, and
is alive again; and was lost, and is found.
ON THE SABBATH
I
From the Gospel according to St. Mark
ND it came to pass, that he was going on the Sabbath day
A through the cornfields; and his disciples began, as they
went, to pluck the ears of corn. And the Pharisees said
unto him, Behold, why do they on the Sabbath day that which is
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10587
not lawful? And he said unto them, Did ye never read what
David did, when he had need, and was an hungred, he, and they
that were with him? How he entered into the house of God
when Abiathar was high priest, and did eat the shewbread, which
it is not lawful to eat save for the priests, and gave also to them
that were with him? And he said unto them, The Sabbath was
made for man, and not man for the Sabbath: so that the Son of
man is lord even of the Sabbath.
And he entered again into the synagogue; and there was a
man there which had his hand withered. And they watched him,
whether he would heal him on the Sabbath day; that they might
accuse him. And he saith unto the man that had his hand with-
ered, Stand forth. And he saith unto them, Is it lawful on the
Sabbath day to do good, or to do harm? to save a life, or to kill?
But they held their peace. And when he had looked round about
on them with anger, being grieved at the hardening of their
heart, he saith unto the man, Stretch forth thy hand. And he
stretched it forth: and his hand was restored.
II
From the Gospel according to St. Luke
AND he was teaching in one of the synagogues on the Sab-
bath day. And behold, a woman which had a spirit of infirmity
eighteen years; and she was bowed together, and could in no
wise lift herself up. And when Jesus saw her, he called her,
and said to her, Woman, thou art loosed from thine infirmity.
And he laid his hands upon her: and immediately she was made.
straight, and glorified God. And the ruler of the synagogue,
being moved with indignation because Jesus had healed on the
Sabbath, answered and said to the multitude, There are six days
in which men ought to work: in them therefore come and be
healed, and not on the day of the Sabbath. But the Lord an-
swered him, and said, Ye hypocrites, doth not each one of you
on the Sabbath loose his ox or his ass from the stall, and lead
him away to watering? And ought not this woman, being at
daughter of Abraham, whom Satan had bound, lo, these eighteen
years, to have been loosed from this bond on the day of the
Sabbath?
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10588
THE NEW TESTAMENT
DISCIPLESHIP
From the Gospel according to St. John
I
AM the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman. Every
branch in me that beareth not fruit, he taketh it away: and
every branch that beareth fruit, he cleanseth it, that it may
bear more fruit. Already ye are clean because of the word
which I have spoken unto you. Abide in me, and I in you. As
the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the
vine, so neither can ye, except ye abide in me. I am the vine,
ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the
same beareth much fruit: for apart from me ye can do nothing.
If a man abide not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is
withered; and they gather them, and cast them into the fire, and
they are burned. If ye abide in me, and my words abide in
you, ask whatsoever ye will, and it shall be done unto you.
Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit; and so
shall ye be my disciples. Even as the Father hath loved me, I
also have loved you: abide ye in my love. If ye keep my com-
mandments, ye shall abide in my love; even as I have kept my
Father's commandments, and abide in his love. These things
have I spoken unto you, that my joy may be in you, and that
your joy may be fulfilled. This is my commandment, that ye
love one another, even as I have loved you. Greater love hath
no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.
Ye are my friends, if ye do the things which I command you.
No longer do I call you servants; for the servant knoweth not
what his lord doeth: but I have called you friends; for all things
that I heard from my Father I have made known unto you. Ye
did not choose me, but I chose you, and appointed you, that ye
should go and bear fruit, and that your fruit should abide: that
whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in my name, he may give it
you. These things I command you, that ye may love one another.
If the world hateth you, ye know that it hath hated me before
it hated you.
If ye were of the world, the world would love its
own: but because ye are not of the world, but I chose you out
of the world, therefore the world hateth you. Remember the
word that I said unto you. A servant is not greater than his
lord. If they persecuted me, they will also persecute you; if
they kept my word, they will keep yours also. But all these
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10589
things will they do unto you for my name's sake, because they
know not him that sent me. If I had not come and spoken unto
them, they had not had sin: but now they have no excuse for
their sin. He that hateth me hateth my Father also. If I had
not done among them the works which none other did, they
had not had sin: but now have they both seen and hated both
me and my Father. But this cometh to pass, that the word may
be fulfilled that is written in their law, They hated me without
a cause. But when the Comforter is come, whom I will send
unto you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth, which pro-
ceedeth from the Father, he shall bear witness of me; and ye also
bear witness, because ye have been with me from the beginning.
THE CONVERSION OF PAUL
From the Acts of the Apostles
B
UT Saul, yet breathing threatening and slaughter against the
disciples of the Lord, went unto the high priest, and asked
of him letters to Damascus unto the synagogues, that if
he found any that were of the Way, whether men or women, he
might bring them bound to Jerusalem. And as he journeyed,
it came to pass that he drew nigh unto Damascus: and suddenly
there shone round about him a light out of heaven: and he fell
upon the earth, and heard a voice saying unto him, Saul, Saul,
why persecutest thou me? And he said, Who art thou, Lord?
And he said, I am Jesus whom thou persecutest, but rise, and
enter into the city, and it shall be told thee what thou must
do. And the men that journeyed with him stood speechless,
hearing the voice, but beholding no man. And Saul arose from
the earth; and when his eyes were opened, he saw nothing;
and they led him by the hand, and brought him into Damascus.
And he was three days without sight, and did neither eat nor
drink.
Now there was a certain disciple at Damascus, named Ana-
nias; and the Lord said unto him in a vision, Ananias. And he
said, Behold, I am here, Lord. And the Lord said unto him,
Arise, and go to the street which is called Straight, and inquire
in the house of Judas for one named Saul, a man of Tarsus: for
behold, he prayeth; and he hath seen a man named Ananias
coming in, and laying his hands on him, that he might receive
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THE NEW TESTAMENT
10590
his sight. But Ananias answered, Lord, I have heard from many
of this man, how much evil he did to thy saints at Jerusalem:
and here he hath authority from the chief priests to bind all that
call upon thy name. But the Lord said unto him, Go thy way:
for he is a chosen vessel unto me, to bear my name before the
Gentiles and kings, and the children of Israel: for I will shew
him how many things he must suffer for my name's sake. And
Ananias departed, and entered into the house; and laying his
hands on him said, Brother Saul, the Lord, even Jesus, who ap-
peared unto thee in the way which thou camest, hath sent me,
that thou mayest receive thy sight, and be filled with the Holy
Ghost. And straightway there fell from his eyes as it were
scales, and he received his sight; and he arose and was baptized;
and he took food and was strengthened.
And he was certain days with the disciples which were at
Damascus. And straightway in the synagogues he proclaimed
Jesus, that he is the Son of God. And all that heard him were
amazed, and said, Is not this he that in Jerusalem made havoc
of them which called on this name? and he had come hither for
this intent, that he might bring them bound before the chief
priests. But Saul increased the more in strength, and con-
founded the Jews which dwelt at Damascus, proving that this is
the Christ.
And when many days were fulfilled, the Jews took counsel
together to kill him: but their plot became known to Saul. And
they watched the gates also day and night that they might kill
him: but his disciples took him by night, and let him down
through the wall, lowering him in a basket.
And when he was come to Jerusalem, he assayed to join
himself to the disciples: and they were all afraid of him, not
believing that he was a disciple. But Barnabas took him, and
brought him to the apostles, and declared unto them how he
had seen the Lord in the way, and that he had spoken to him,
and how at Damascus he had preached boldly in the name of
Jesus. And he was with them going in and going out at Jeru-
salem, preaching boldly in the name of the Lord: and he spake
and disputed against the Grecian Jews; but they went about to
kill him. And when the brethren knew it, they brought him
down to Cæsarea, and sent him forth to Tarsus.
## p. 10591 (#463) ##########################################
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THE NATURE OF LOVE
From the First Epistle to the Corinthians
10591
IF
I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but have not
love, I am become sounding brass, or a clanging cymbal.
And if I have the gift of prophecy, and know all mysteries
and all knowledge; and if I have all faith, so as to remove
mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. And if I bestow
all my goods to feed the poor, and if I give my body to be
burned, but have not love, it profiteth me nothing. Love suf-
fereth long, and is kind; love envieth not; love vaunteth not
itself, is not puffed up, doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh
not its own, is not provoked, taketh not account of evil; rejoiceth
not in unrighteousness, but rejoiceth with the truth; beareth all
things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things.
Love never faileth: but whether there be prophecies, they shall
be done away; whether there be tongues, they shall cease;
whether there be knowledge, it shall be done away.
For we
know in part, and we prophesy in part: but when that which is
perfect is come, that which is in part shall be done away. When
I was a child, I spake as a child, I felt as a child, I thought as
a child: now that I am become a man, I have put away childish
things. For now we see in a mirror, darkly; but then face to
face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also
I have been known. But now abideth faith, hope, love, these
three; and the greatest of these is love.
IMMORTALITY
From the First Epistle to the Corinthians
BE
NOT deceived: Evil company doth corrupt good manners.
Awake up righteously, and sin not; for some have no
knowledge of God: I speak this to move you to shame.
But some one will say, How are the dead raised? and with
what manner of body do they come? Thou foolish one, that
which thou thyself sowest is not quickened, except it die: and
that which thou sowest, thou sowest not the body that shall be,
but a bare grain, it may chance of wheat, or of some other kind:
but God giveth it a body even as it pleased him, and to each
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10592
seed a body of its own. All flesh is not the same flesh: but
there is one flesh of men, and another flesh of beasts, and another
flesh of birds, and another of fishes. There are also celestial
bodies, and bodies terrestrial: but the glory of the celestial is
one, and the glory of the terrestrial is another. There is one
glory of the sun, and another glory of the moon, and another
glory of the stars; for one star differeth from another star
in glory. So also is the resurrection of the dead. It is sown in
corruption; it is raised in incorruption: it is sown in dishonor; it
is raised in glory: it is sown in weakness; it is raised in power:
it is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body. If
there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body. So also
it is written, The first man Adam became a living soul.
