which has resulted from the labours of a generation of rationalistic exegetical experts; in a word, he neither busies himself with philosophical basis nor theological superstructure,—he simply accepts Mr. Smith's work itself as a fact to be met with facts, as a fact, since it embodies the views of Mr. Smith, to be met with facts, in order to discover whether the opinions of Mr. Smith are Bible-truth. Accepting the representations of the "newer criticism," as expressed in the lectures controverted, four questions are asked,-first, What says the Old Testament to these representations? secondly, What says the New Testament to them? third, What is the position of the Westminster Confession relative thereto? and, fourthly, Do the views in question bear traces of inconsistency with each other as well as with external authorities; the main stress of the argument being laid upon the two first queries. Full, therefore, as the book is of matter for adepts in Old Testament study, it is admirably suited to popular reading. And its popular use will be aided by another peculiarity of method. In working out the plan laid down, the whole subject is split into separate points, and each point is subdivided under convenient headings, so that the book may be taken up and laid down at any time without danger of losing the thread. We could have wished that an index, or at least an analysis of contents, had been added; nevertheless, the lucid arrangement and beautiful printing will largely facilitate its use by the general reader. Whilst adhering strictly then to the method selected, such prominent themes are passed under review as the argument from the reformation of Josiah, the recognition by the critics of the Deuteronomic code in Josiah's day, the transmission of the Pentateuch, the ceremonial versus the moral law, the critical notion of Old Testament worship, and the several arguments from the Levitical ritual,-the sacrifices, the ark, the priesthood. We are afraid that Professor Watts has laid himself open to cogent rejoinders here and there; but it is the book as a whole that must be demolished, if its assault is to be repelled. From the nature of the form of attack adopted, it teems with crucial instances, the truth of any one of which means the downfall of the elaborate structure of the "newer criticism." We thank its author for its directness, tact, learning, and ability, and we trust it will find many readers.

Hebrew Accentuation.

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Turning from the work of applied Hebraism to Hebrew theory, we have much pleasure in calling attention to a learned treatise, just published by the Clarendon Press, upon the accentuation of the Books of Psalms, Proverbs, and Job (2). Every tiro in Hebrew is aware that, when a system of vowel points was invented, or, to speak with more accuracy, adopted, to fix the traditional pronunciation of each word in the Bible of the Jew, a series of signs, called accents, was also invented to guide the official readers to the traditional modulation of each word. Every tiro also knows that the three poetical books, as they are called, are distinguished from the twentyone prose writings of the Old Testament, by a different system. of accents. The peculiarity of these Hebrew accents, as compared with the accents of Latin and Greek, is, that they really served a threefold purpose; they were signs of accent proper, or the stress to be laid upon the syllables; they were punctual signs, and regulated the arrangement of words into sentences; and they were also musical signs, guiding the reciter of the synagogue to the risings and fallings of that characteristic cantillation the Jews called reading the Scriptures. By means of the traditional interpretations handed down from the scholastic age of Hebrew literature, as well as by means of the rational investigations of Ewald and Baer in more recent times, the broad principles of the Hebrew accentuation, especially of the prose writings, have become tolerably well understood. The peculiar system of the poetical books, however, is largely still a matter of darkness and difficulty. Certainly it is manifest, as Dr. Wickes remarks, that this poetical accentuation was the refinement of one class of scribes, the Palestinian synagogue and schools, and also that its aim was, as contrasted with the commoner system, to prompt " a finer and fuller, more artificial and impressive melody;" but the distinctive principles, to say nothing of the entire theory, has not yet been explained-nay, has commonly been regarded as inexplicable. An explanation has been attempted in this treatise, and with more success than might have been anticipated, mainly for one reason, it is true,

(2) M ̋DN "DVD: A Treatise on the Accentuation of the three so-called Poetical Books of the Old Testament-Psalms, Proverbs, and Job; with an Appendix, containing the treatise assigned to R. Jehuda Ben-Bil'am, on the same subject, in the original Arabic, by William Wickes, D.D. The Clarendon Press.

Oxford:

-the careful researches of the author in textual criticism and accurate orthography. Very justly surmising that the printed texts, varying as they do from each other in the matter of accents, pre-eminently varied also from the ancient manuscripts which these printed copies represent, he has undertaken a laborious collation of the best authorities, printed and written, attainable, the results of which not only facilitate his main object, but have an interest of their own. The various points of the theory itself, of course, require a long and careful testing; but, whether they prove ultimately satisfactory or not, such conscientious and painstaking research, in a recondite field, merits the warmest commendations of all Hebraists. In an appendix, an Arabic treatise of Rabbi Jehuda Ben-Bil'am, upon the accents of the three books, is printed in Hebrew characters.

Dr. Franz Delitzsch, by a long and wide series of writings, now extending over fifty years, has raised himself to a very unique position in all questions connected with the language and exposition of the Old Testament. A hearty welcome may therefore be given to the notes, just published by Dr. Curtiss, of his lectures upon the Old Testament History of Redemption (3). It is the custom of German professors to dictate a series of paragraphs to be taken down by their students verbatim, and to be subsequently expanded by oral or written additions, sometimes to be discussed by the class. This book, as Dr. Curtiss says, is essentially an accurate reproduction of the paragraphs delivered to the theological students in Leipzig during the summer of 1880. Fragmentary as these lectures necessarily are, they teem with suggestive hints. Nor are these skeleton lectures by any means unimportant as a contribution to the history of the Old Covenant. The work may be described as an attempt to trace the development of what we call distinctively Christian doctrine in the education of the Old Testament Church. The plan followed will be understood by the mention of the seven periods through which Professor Delitzsch traces the progress of this evangelical teaching:-1. The primitive period before and after the flood, with the dawning of the light in the dark

(3) Old Testament History of Redemption; Lectures by Franz Delitzsch, translated from Manuscript Notes by Samuel Ives Curtiss, Professor in Chicago Theological Seminary. T. and T. Clark, Edinburgh.

Old Testament History of Redemption.

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ness, which began before the flood and was renewed after it. 2. The period of the patriarchs, or the separation in the tumultuous sea of nations. 3. The period of Israel's development, and its transplantation to the promised land. 4. The period of David and Solomon, or the rising and setting of the royal glory over Israel. 5. The period of Israel's conflicts with the world-empires, and the elevation of prophecy, which poises over both states until their fall. 6. The period of the recognition, which breaks through in prophecy and chochma, of the Mediator and of the Logos, and the historical appearance of the Messiah, who is no longer conceived of in a onesided way as national, but as human and spiritual. 7. The death and burial of the One who has appeared, and with Him of the old covenant; "the concluding Sabbath of the Old Testament history." It is a peculiarly characteristic feature of this division that it carries out the Sabbatic-or rather hebdomadal-idea so visibly; the time of God's dealings with His ancient people starting as it were from the Creation Sabbath, and ending with the Sabbath of our Lord's rest in the grave; and there is something alike profound and beautiful in the comparison which Professor Delitzsch draws between the Creation Sabbath-" a dividing wall between the creation of the world and the world's history "-and the Sabbath of the Redeemer" the dividing wall between conflict and victory." Taken throughout, the volume comes to us opportunely at the present time; for it recalls us from the discussion and criticism of external aspects of Old Testament history to the great inward truth which it was designed to unfold both to the fathers and to us. There are many points dwelt upon here which we could willingly discuss at length, did space allow; and there are some-notably that of sacrifice, where the author draws a subtle distinction between the pouring out of the blood and the slaying of the animal as to their symbolical efficacy—which need to be studied in the light of his other writings. These we must forbear to touch, as no mere mention of them would be satisfactory: all that we can further do is to indicate some of the interesting side-lights which are shed upon matters which we are at present constantly discussing. The story of Jonah, for instance, which elitzsch appears to accept in its literalness, is regarded as an exemplification of a

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conflict with Jewish exclusiveness; Jonah's dislike of his commission being the outcome not so much of abstract wilfulness, as of unwillingness to look beyond the bounds of the chosen nation. His burial in the great fish is thus a sign of our Lord's burial, inasmuch as it prepares the way, like the latter, for the widening of the evangelical call. Again, as to the Book of Job: "The hero of the Book of Job is a personal and actual proof of the grace which is also active outside of Israel, and the entire book is a protest against the legal pride of orthodox Phariseeism, which having run fast into the dogma of retribution, is not able to keep sin and suffering apart." The book is assigned by the author to the period of "Solomonic literature." Solomon's Song is "a circle of dramatic pictures which place before our eyes the love of man and woman in its monogamous and divinely sanctified ideality;" and Ecclesiastes-which the author places between 405 and 359 B.C.-takes its place in the redemptive history as representing the confession of the "inability" of the old covenant, and thus singing its "burialsong." This book is not one of Biblical criticism, and the author gives his conclusions, as a rule, without argument; we do not feel therefore called upon to say anything regarding his dates, save this, that they are not to be accepted as infallible; nor can we pass from the subject without the remark that his interpretation of Canticles does not appear upon a first reading peculiarly happy, or even for that matter peculiarly intelligible; indeed, we confess to a fancy that it does not quite satisfy himself. Let this be sufficient to indicate what we mean in our commendation of this book; we prize it as a devout attempt of a profound and profoundly spiritual mind to trace anew through Old Testament story the central truths of the Christian faith; but we do not by any means go with the author into every turn and winding of that attempt. Indeed, nobody, we suspect, knows better than Professor Curtiss (who, by the way, has done his translating work as well as the author's well-known idiosyncrasies of expression will admit) that to get the best use of Delitzsch's mind you must be content at times to let it fly into the clouds for a little while now and again, and to pursue your journey till it rejoins you.

Words of commendation have several times been spoken in