DOMESTIC LITERATURE Of the Year 1800. T It is with much pleasure that we was very defective, unless I fube domeftic productions in Theology, by announcing a pious legacy with which a late illuftrious ornament of the Irish church, and of Christianity at large, has enriched the ftores of Biblical literature. We allude to "an Attempt toward revising our English Tranflation of the Greek Scriptures, or the New Covenant of Jefus Chrift, and toward illuftrating the Senfe by philological and explanatory Notes; by William Newcome, D. D. Member of the Royal Irish Academy, and Archbishop of Armagh," in two volumes. This work was printed fo long ago as the year 1796, but was referved for publication until after the author's death; becaufe, as we have good reafon to believe, the worthy prelate was unwilling, at his advanced period of life, to engage in the controverfies to which his alterations of the commonly-received verfion might give rife. When he first undertook this defign, his "intention extended no farther than to improve our authorifed tranflation of the Greek Scriptures, following the text of Griefbach's excellent edition, except in a few inftances, the reafons for which deviations that work itself will fuggeft." After having concluded this talk, "with as much attention and labour as its importance demanded, I was convinced," fays he, "that my plan 1800. fuch an important and difficult book. I therefore engaged in a fecond labour of felection and abridgment from a body of notes which I had formed, or compiled, many years ago, with occafional additions fuggetted by able commentators, or by my own ftudy of the Sacred Writings." The refult, of the archbishop's labour we confider to be very useful to Biblical fholars, as affording them a variety of important elucidations of obfcure paffages in our common translation, pithy and appofite remarks, and a judicious compreffed collection of valuable criticifins, either borrowed from the works of other writers, or fuggefted by his own inquiries and reflexions. As far as we have compared his alterations with our common verfion, and with the original, they do not appear in any inftance to have been introduced unneceffarily, and thev poffefs alfo the merit of a fimplicity and plainnefs that render them eafily affimilable with the phrafcology of the tranflation now in ufe. This work is a proper fequel to his lordhip's former useful exertions in the field of facred criticifm, and will contribute with them to render his memory dear to those who entertain a juft value for the Scriptures, and who with to fee them fo completely understood, as that they may prove a rational Р a rational "rule of faith and practice to the whole world." And like thofe exertions, it is offered to the public with that unaffuming modefty, genuine candour, and unaffected piety, which were the predominant qualities in Dr. New come's mind. We understand that the excellent author had employed much time and labour on a fimilar "attempt toward revifing our Englifh tranflation of the Hebrew Scriptures;" which he has left as a bequeft to the archiepifcopal library at Lambeth Palace. We hope that thofe Scriptural philologifts who have access to that collection, will be permitted to avail themselves of the advantages which his manufcripts cannot but afford, and to benefit the interefts of facred literature by a liberal communication of them to the public. Another pofthamous publication, which is honourable to the author's zealous attachment to the interefts of revealed religion, is "a Commentary, with Notes, on part of the Book of the Revelation of St. John, by the late John Snodgrafs, D. D. Minister of the Middle Church of Paifley." This work was left by the author at his death in an incomplete ftate, but was thought by his friends to poffefs too much merit to be configned to oblivion. And we cannot fay that, in forming their judgment of it, they were biaffed by a blind or undue partiality. It difplays much hiftorical knowledge, found learning, cool reflexion, and no little ingenuity; and it is alfo diftinguished by a prevalent fpirit of ardent piety, and interfperfed with liberal and Ariking fentiments. Whether the author has been more fuccefsful than preceding writers in decyphering the obfcure meaning of this part of Scripture, or whether he may not be thought fometimes to have expofed himself to the charge of being too fanciful and hypothetical, particularly in elucidating the prophetical language by a reference to recent events, we must leave to the judgment of his readers. But his attempt is entitled to praife, and merits notice at a time when the attention of thinking believers in revelation is particularly fixed on the teftimony of prophecy. The "Practical Obfervations on the Revelation of St. John, written in the Year 1775, by the late Mrs. Bowdler," appear to have been originally published in 1787, but then efcaped our notice. They are now reprinted in an enlarged form, with the hope that the inftruction which they contain "may be read with pleasure and advantage by many perfons who have not leifure or inclination to examine the prophetical meaning of the Apocalypfe." Without affecting any profound critical fkill, or pretending to an extenfive acquaintance with ecclefiaftical hiftory, Mrs. Bowdler has chiefly followed, in her expla nations of the vifions, the most approved and rational interpreters of the book of Revelation, particularly the learned Jofeph Mede; but not without occafional deviations from their opinions, which are supported with ingenuity, if not always fatisfactorily. Her principal object, however, has been to deduce practical inftruction from a view of the important fcenes and circumstances to which the attention is drawn in the book of Revelation; and i■ this light her obfervations are entitled to much praife, and cannot fail to afford pleafure and improvement to ferious readers, by the good fenfe, piety, candour, and modefty which they difcover. Mr. Zouch's "Attempt to illu- ftrate fome of the Prophecies of the Old and New Teftament," is a work which, within a small compafs, contains much found learning, judicious criticifm, and calm difcuffion, united to an ardent zeal for the honour of revelation, and a lively jealoufy against antichriftian corruptions and abufes. The prophecies which engage his attention are thofe which the Proteftant world in general formerly confidered to be clearly predictive of the errors and vices of the papal church; but which fome commentators of late have applied to the ftate of things in France, during its revolutionary fcenes. That they are not juftified in fuch an application of them, Mr. Zouch fhows with great clearness and force of reafoning, and eftablishes the fact, that the apoftafy predicted in the Old and New Teftament writings relates not to a dereliction of all religion, or a change of political principles, but to a falling away from the purity of the Gofpel, by the admiffion of tenets and practices contrary to its genuine principles and fpirit. And he is equally fuccessful in proving that papal Rome bears, moft expreffively, many of the diftinctive marks which the Scriptural predictions attribute to the antichriftian power. Whether he is justifiable in maintaining that there and there only are we to look for the predicted apoftafy, the feeds of which were fown in the first ages of the church, have long fince taken deep root, and brought forth fruit abundantly," is another queftion, about which the Proteftant world will be divided in opinion. His concluding remarks, on the actual state of the Chriftian religion in the world, are peculiarly deferving of attention; and, indeed, his whole work merits the ferious perufal of those who with thoroughly to investigate the meaning of the prophetical parts of Scripture. The "Obfervations on the Seventh Form of Roman Government, in a Letter to the Rev. Henry Kett, B. D. Author of Hiftory the Interpreter of Prophecy, by a Layman," conftitute a very able and well-written treatise, which will be perufed with much pleasure by Biblical fcholars. Mr. Kett, in his interpretation of the vifion of the feven-headed beaft in the Revelation of St. John, which is univerfally allowed to defignate the feven forms of government that have prevailed in Rome, confidered the feventh form to refer to the government under the Gothic kings, and the exarchs of Ravenna. Against this interpretation the author of the Obfervations before us offers fuch objections as appear to us to be unanfwerable, for which we must refer the inquifitive reader to the work itfelf. It is faid, that they have had the effect of altering the opinion of the refpectable writer to whom they are addreffed. Our layman's own hypothefis is, that the feventh form of Roman government commenced with pope Boniface the Third's affumption of the title of Univerfal Bishop, in the beginning of the feventh century; under which he and his immediate fucceffors gradually enlarged the power of the papal See, until the bishops of Rome acquired that plenitude of fpiritual and temporal dominion, in the eighth century, which entitle the papacy from that time to be confidered as the eighth form mentioned in the Revelation, that is "of the feven," or proceeding or fpringing from the feven, and goeth into perdition." Whether the arguments by which the author fupports his hypothefis be P2 geuerally generally thought fatisfactory, or otherwife, it must be acknowledged that they are maintained with much ingenuity and modefty; and the whole scope of his treatife cannot fail of proving interefting to ftudents in the facred writings. deed, and all of one blood, and in the image of God,-but of different Species, with different capacities, and powers, and difpofitions, for very wife purpofes-having Adam (of fuper-eminent abilities and endowments) as the first and head clafs or fpecies,-and who was therefore diftinguished by that noble appellation of being a fon of God;" that at the deluge, not only Noah and his family, and the animals which were with him in the ark, were preferved, but " that fome few other human beings, the defcendants of the other claffes or fpecies of the firft created man, might be preserved here and there, by the direction and permiffion of the Almighty wifdom, and by such providential means of deliverance as are in general called fortunate accidents," &c. Some of the philofophical notions which he advances, likewife, are as peculiarly his own as the above hypothefes refpecting the Mofaic hiftory; but for their particulars, and the au thor's method of fupporting them, we must refer our curious readers In our Regifter for the year 1788 we announced the appearance of "Morfels of Criticifm, &c. by Edward King, Efq." During the present year the worthy author has publifhed a Second Part to the Morfels of Criticifm, containing additional Differtations, and additional Notes; furtherilluftrating the original Work, and tending to how the most perfect Confiftency of Philofophical Discoveries, and of Hiftorical Facts, with the Holy Scriptures." This work poffeffes a fimilar character with the preceding, to which it is a fupplement, and prefents us with learning, piety, curious fpeculation, fanciful conjectures, and fome peculiarly fingular notions for a zealous believer in revealed religion, (as Mr. King unquestionably is) blended together in a strange affociation. It is but juftice to the author, how-to his work itself. ever, to remark, that he does not obtrude his fentiments with a dogmatical and imperative air, but offers them "as the apprehenfions of a honeft humble mind; no ways withing to impofe opinions upon others, but merely to offer fair confiderations, and wifhing only truth to prevail." Among other bold hypotheses, he maintains "that the commonly received opinion that all mankind are the fons of Adam, is fo far from being really founded on Scripture, or neceffarily to be implied from the whole tenor of the infpired Mofaic writings, that it is even directly contrary to what is contained there;" "that man was at first created of one genus in The "Concife View, from Hiftory and Prophecy, of the great Predictions in the Sacred Writings that have been fulfilled, alfo of thofe that are fulfilling, and that remain to be accomplished; by Francis Dobbs, Efq. Member for the Borough of Charlemont in Ireland, in Letters to his eldest Son," is a most extraordinary production, abounding in wonderful discoveries, which the unenlightened and profane part of mankind will be apt to attribute to the dreams of a heated or difordered imagination. The author, however, is prepared to meet their taunts and fneers, and, . under a firm conviction that he poffeffes the genuine key to the pro phetic phetic writings, thus addreffes his correfpondent: "Let men call your father mad if they pleafe, but I know that I can bear the teftimony `of fober examination, and that I am, in all I fhall fay on this fubject, only the zealous advocate of facred truth." According to this writer, the fecond coming of the Meffiah is immediately to be expected, and Ireland is the happy country in which Satan is to receive his first deadly blow. By Armageddon, in the Revelation, is meant Armagh, which is to be the chief city in the Meffiah's empire. There are now on the earth 144,000 true believers and followers of Chrift, ready to receive and obey the commands of their Mafter, who are the falt of the earth, and by whom it will be faved. All men, both good and bad, now upon the earth have lived before, and no man has lived fince the flood who was not in exiftence before it. And there are two diftinct races of men, the one from God through Adam, the other through a creation of the devil. Thofe of our readers whofe curiofity is excited by the particulars juft enumerated, may find abundant novelties of a fimilar defcription in Mr. Dobbs's Concife View. Mofes; of the hiftory of the Jews from the period laft mentioned to the prefent time; of the books of the Old Testament; of the books of the New Teftament; of the evidences of the Christian religion; of the leading doctrines of the Chriftian religion; of the character of Jefus Chrift; of the hiftory of Chriftianity to the fubverfion of the western empire, and from that event to the prefent time; and of forms of church government and ecclefiaftical establishments. The concluding chapter contains cautions against infidelity; and exhortations to the cultivation of Chriftian virtue from Chriftian motives. With fuch a large field before him, the author cannot be expected, within the compafs of one octavo volume, to have dwelt very fully on any of the fubjects which he has felected. He has, however, upon the whole, treated of them in a manner that is judiciously adapted to the underftandings and inftruction of the perfons for whofe ufe his furvey was defigned, and with the fame fpirit of liberality and candour that have characterifed his former productions. Against particular paffages and fentiments exceptions will be made by many, whofe views of Chriftian doctrines and church establifhments differ from thofe of the author; but they will concur with us in commending the general excellence of his work, and in applauding the benevolent and pious defign in which it originated, Mr. Gisborne's "Familiar Survey of the Chriftian Religion, and of Hiftory as connected with the Introduction of Chriftianity and with its Progress to the prefent Time," was drawn up by the worthy author for the information and improvement of young perfons of either fex, during the courfe of public or private education. It confifts of thirteen chapters, in which the author treats of the ftate of mankind from the creation of the world to the calling of Abraham; of the origin of the Jewish race; and of the hiftory of that people to the death of The "Summary of the principal Evidences of the Truth and divine Origin of the Chriftian Revelation, defigned chiefly for the Ufe of Young Perfons, more particularly of those who have lately been confirmed in the Diocefe of London, by Beilby, Lord Bishop of London," is a very valuable prefent to the rifing ge P 3 neratio |