for two or three years past, I have been translating Keil's Introduction, as a specimen of a book that gives clear, full, condensed information upon these questions, written these questions, written by a man of unshaken faith in the Word of God. At the same time, it seemed to me desirable to present to students the views of some respectable and thoughtful writer of a different school; and as I translated, I inserted whatever I considered interesting in the opinions of the late Friedrich Bleek,1 a man of high position among the followers of De Wette and the better sceptical school. Besides, I have occasionally made other additions, chiefly in cases where I thought it important to indicate that I differed from Keil; though it must not be inferred that I invariably agree with him where I have not indicated the contrary. All these insertions are distinctly marked by means of square brackets.

In my translation I have endeavoured to lean towards a literal rendering; yet I have habitually taken the liberty of breaking down the extremely long sentences in which German writers are apt to indulge.

I have taken all possible care to verify the quotations from Scripture, and to correct any errors which I observed. I trust that the reader will find the advantage of this, and that he will also derive advantage from the endeavours of the printer and the publisher to do full justice to the work, notwithstanding many difficulties inseparable from its execution.

I have only to add, that I shall be thankful to receive criticisms, corrections, and advice; as my desire simply is to put into the student's hands a Manual which shall be really satisfactory and useful to him.

1 "Einleitung in das Alte Testament, von Friedrich Bleek. Herausgegeben von Joh. F. Bleek und Ad. Kamphausen:" Berlin, 1860. Had I known that Mr. Venables was to publish a translation of this work, as he has done in the course of the present year, I might have somewhat modified my references to Bleek, or have introduced some other writer more frequently to the English reader; but there would certainly have been no essential change in the extracted supplemental matter.

GLASGOW, August 1869,

AUTHOR'S PREFACE

tendency.

N republishing in an enlarged form, after the lapse of five years, this Manual of Introduction to the Old Testament, I can only repeat what I already said in the prefatory note to the first edition on the subject of its aim and

The problem which I set before myself as I worked at it was not merely to collect, to complete, and to present compendiously the results of older and of more recent sound historico-critical investigations into the origin, the genuineness, the integrity, and the credibility of those Scriptures of the Old Testament on which Neological Scepticism has cast doubts, and which it has stripped of historical and theological claims to respect. But along with this, it has been my effort to vindicate for Old Testament Isagogic the rank of a theological science, by an organic division and arrangement of the material which works on Introduction handle, in correspondence with the gradual origination and the historical transmission of the Old Testament; so that this science might form the indispensable foundation on which to work out historically, dogmatically, and apologetically, the revealed religion of the Old Testament. Unprejudiced persons, familiar with this science, must decide how far I have succeeded in solving this problem. It becomes me only to acknowledge that I have paid conscientious regard to whatever has been achieved already in this domain, and that I have gratefully made use of the solid investigations of my predecessors, after having carefully tested them; but yet that I have not neglected, while mentioning those earlier works of which I have made use, to accept only what I deemed true and susceptible of proof out of no small number of special works and discussions, and to combat with scientific weapons the opinions of my

opponents, and every view which seemed to me untenable. Purely uncritical assumptions, unfounded assertions, and hypotheses and productions which are already antiquated (like Sörensen's investigations concerning the Pentateuch), have been thrown aside without going into a minute refutation, or have even been entirely ignored.

I have remained true to these principles whilst elaborating this second edition. But in order that the book might still more thoroughly correspond to its aim, which is to treat of the whole materials for Old Testament Introduction in as brief and condensed a form as possible, I have added in an Appendix an Introduction to the whole of the apocryphal books of the Old Testament, as these are found in Greek, Latin, or German Bibles; and I have also marked this addition in the title of the book. [All this has been omitted in the translation, as really not belonging to the Old Testament. Should there be a demand for it on literary grounds, it may be added in another edition.] And I have made further changes, in order to carry out with greater strictness the historical character of the treatment of the Isagogic material. The contents of the Third Part in the first edition are now transferred so as to be the Fourth Section of the Second Part. The history of the dogmatic representations of the Canon among the Jews, as well as the history of the respect paid to the Old Testament in the Christian Church, the use made of it, and the treatment accorded to it, have been combined with the historical development of the doctrine of the Canon, as to its compass and its component parts, in the Synagogue and in the Christian Church. I have endeavoured to give greater fulness to the history of the Canon of the Old Testament, as regards its ecclesiastical authority and the treatment accorded to it, by giving more complete information as to the symbolical determinations of the various Churches on the subject of the compass of the Canon, and as to exegetical labours or commentaries on the Old Testament. And, finally, I have given attention to books and papers which have appeared for the last five years on Introduction to the Old Testament, and on its criticism and exposition, and have gleaned from them to the best of my ability. This has necessitated many little changes and additions, and has enabled me to make not a few improvements.

But in order that this extension of the materials might not lead

to any enlargement of the size of the book, it appeared to be necessary to economize space, partly by closer printing (though without selecting a smaller type); partly by systematic abbreviation of authors' names and the titles of works which are frequently quoted, as often as they recurred [a contrivance which has been discarded, for the sake of the English reader, except in the case of such words as can scarcely be mistaken, such as the frequent Einl. for Einleitung ; sq. and sqq., or their German and English equivalents f. and ff.; comp. for the often recurring word compare; and the names of two authors, Hengstenberg and Hävernick, who are mentioned with peculiar frequency]; and finally, partly by omitting certain opinions which have already become antiquated, as also some other unessential observations. In this way I have succeeded in keeping within the number of sheets in the first edition, nay, actually to have rather fewer pages.

Thus may this Manual again in its altered shape meet with kindly acceptance on the part of the friends of the Divine Word. And may God the Lord be pleased to add His blessing, that henceforward it still contribute its share to establish men more firmly in the may truth of His Word as it was spoken by Moses and the prophets. To Him be praise and glory evermore!

DORPAT, December 15, 1868.