since the truths of the New Church first began to be published;for Wetstein printed his immense collection of Various Readings in the same year that Swedenborg published the fourth volume of the Arc. Coelestia; and more especially since the era of the Last Judgment; -for it is since then that the great labours of Kennicott, De Rossi, Doederlein, and others, have been bestowed on the Old Testament, and those of Matthaei, Adler, Alter, Birch, Griesbach, &c. on the New. For our own parts, we cannot but see in these extraordinary works, even more than in the other wonderful improvements of all kinds which are going on throughout the earth, the evident effects of the accomplishment of the Last Judgment in the spiritual world, and of the new divine influx which is thence pouring into the human mind. In the labours in which learned men are rivalling each other, in bringing together the materials necessary for a restored and pure recension of the Word, for the use, though of this they are not aware, of the New Jerusalem, we see a plain fulfilment, in one sense, of the prediction which says, "And the kings of the earth do bring their glory and honour into it;"-we behold the Egyptians loading the Israelites with jewels of silver and jewels of gold, which the latter shall apply to the adornment of the tabernacle which shall be built again to the living God. An ample store of these seems already to have been provided; and when New-Church Kennicotts and Griesbachs shall be raised up; men who, to all the learning and diligence of those modern Masorites, shall add the just reverence for the Word and knowledge of its real nature which the light of the New Jerusalem can alone impart; that church, to which alone the gift is really important, shall 'enjoy the inestimable treasure of the Word of God, in all its integrity, even in individual copies. Nor shall it ever be corrupted any more; for what was impossible, whilst manuscript 'copies only could be made, in which the correction of mistakes was difficult without so spoiling the copy as to render it unsaleable, and in which, also, every fresh copy was a new edition, is now, by the modern invention of the art of printing, (which doubtless has been given to mankind by Divine Providence for that purpose,) and the recent improvements in that art, no longer beyond the reach of human care and diligence: and the requisite care and diligence, undoubtedly, the New-Church Masorites, acting under the more immediate leadings of Providence, will not fail to supply. This, we think, must be allowed to be a genuine NewChurch view of the subject: and it surely is calculated to lead our minds to higher ideas of the inestimable benefits, which Divine Mercy, by the New-Jerusalem Dispensation, is preparing for mankind. In the mean time, also, is it not important that the receivers of the doctrines of the New Jerusalem should open their minds to an acknowledgment of the true state of the case? that they should not strain a few general remarks of the heavenenlightened Swedenborg, into such a dogma of faith, as forbids to the receivers of it the use of their reason, and commands them to shut their eyes against the most certain facts? when in those remarks, as we have seen, he does not deliver any sentiment of his own, or any sentiment received by him in consequence of his heavenly illumination, but merely urges, in proof of another point, and by way of an argumentum ad hominem, the common opinion of the learned of his time. We have constantly maintained, that, for the most part, the various readings are of a very slight nature; multitudes, indeed, are such as make no difference whatever on being translated into another language. This also is stated by Griesbach, notwithstanding the strong manner in which he has demonstrated the difference of character in the different recensions. He says, "I confess that most of the various readings, though not all, are extremely trifling but so far ought the critics from being reproached, on this account, for bringing the variations to light, that we ought to rise from the perusal of their labours with gratitude to Divine Providence, which has so watched over the preservation of the Scriptures, that very few important corruptions should be propagated among so many copies :-for as all the varieties of reading have now been examined, not only by me but by many learned men, it may be seen with certainty by every one, that the suspicions which have been raised by adversaries against the integrity of the sacred text, and the certainty of the Christian religion as thereon depending, are frivolous and vain." We cite this passage, again to warn our readers from concluding, from the arguments we have brought to evince that the Word does not exist in all its integrity in individual copies, either that the integrity of the sacred text does not exist among them all, or that the discrepances in the copies are more important than is the fact. But is it not, we again ask, important to the members of the New Church to know exactly what the fact is? Some few of the various readings are important: and though the chief of these, as far as relates to proof-passages for certain doctrines, are in the Epistles; yet as we equally use the evidence of the Epistles in proof of our doctrines; and those with whom we have to contend regard their authority as the same as that of the books which are, in the strict and proper sense, the Word of God; into what difficulties may we not fall, in our discussions with others, if we are ignorant of the variations which, in such passages, exist in different copies! Unitarians, for instance, often catch at various readings, even sometimes at such as are of little authority, to evade the force of the arguments brought against them: suppose then, in arguing with a Unitarian, we should quote the passage (1 Tim. iii. 16,) "Great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the spirit," &c. and our opponent was to tell us, that in the best manuscripts it does not read "God was manifest," &c. but "He that," or "That which was manifest:" how important should we feel it to know with certainty the true state of the case! and when we did know it, we should find that the evidence against the common reading is here so strong, that we never could hope to convince a Unitarian of the truth by alleging this text against him; though the evidence for it is also so strong, that scarce any Trinitarian will dispute it. Again: when the Unitarian, to get rid of the miraculous conception, rejects the two first chapters of Matthew and of Luke; though the authorities on which he relies in so doing are extremely futile, it is necessary for us to know this, and to be able to demonstrate it to him, before we can bring an argument that he will listen to from those chapters. So, when we wish to prove the doctrine of a trinity; though there are many unexceptionable texts to be brought for the purpose, were we to add to them the celebrated text in 1 John v. 7, "There are three that bear record in heaven," &c. every antagonist would laugh in our face; for no Greek manuscript, except a modern one forged for the purpose, has ever been found, in which the clause exists; and thus its genuineness is now given up by all, except one or two thick-and-thin advocates of the Tripersonality.* * A remark of importance may here be necessary. When Swedenborg wrote, the conclusive evidence against this text was not generally known ;— at least, it was not then known that there is absolulely nothing to counten In every point of view, then, we trust it will be admitted, that we have been labouring for the real advantage and progress of the New Church in the view we have been endeavouring to establish respecting the preservation, in its integrity, of the Word; and that the matters which we have brought forward on the subject are such as it is highly necessary for the member of the New Church to know. This is the reason that we have treated of it at so great a length: we intended our remarks more as an opening of an important subject heretofore little attended-to in the New Church, than as a defence of our own sentiments, as first briefly stated, against the objections of our friend Mr. Hindmarsh. Here then we close our Inquiry: for the examination of the passage in 2 Sam. xxiv. is a specific matter of very subordinate importance: we propose however to give some attention to it in our next. As the Inquiry which is now on our part ended, arose out of the remarks of our friend Mr. H., we have been obliged to notice what he had advanced. In so doing, we wished to avoid any thing that might be painful to that gentleman's feelings: if we have, in the haste in which most of our observations have been composed and hurried from the pen through the press, let any thing drop which he might feel as personally unpleasant, we cordially beg his pardon, and assure him that we shall ever retain the highest respect for his character, his talents, and his attainments. Whether he is in any ance it in the manuscript copies: hence he quotes it, (as, at that time, without any impeachment of his knowledge or judgment, he justly might,) in the True Christian Religion, among other texts relating to the Trinity. We have heard this argued from, by a Clergyman of the Church of England, who at the same time professes great respect for the doctrines of the New Church because his father and family received them, and himself also professed them till be went into the ministry of the Established Church, as conclusive against Swedenborg's claim to any divine illumination. Hence we see again, not only the necessity that the member of the Church should be acquainted with the subject of various readings, but also, that he should have just ideas on the nature of Swedenborg's inspiration, and believe his own authority when he assures us, that the knowledge of natural things, even of the natural sense of the Scriptures, is a matter to be learned in this world: then it is seen at once, that no argument can be drawn against Swedenborg's inspiration from the fact, that he received his knowledge of natural things in this way, and not by immediate infusion from heaven, which, according to his doctrine, would be a violation of divine order, and is therefore impossible. This we have already shewn, in our VII. above, and shall more fully evince in the article we are pledged to prepare expressly on that subject. degree disposed now to go with us, we know not. Of course, our pages will be open to any further remarks upon the subject from any quarter whatever. We will promise, also, not to reply to any thing that may be offered on the other side of the question, any further than to correct any misapprehension or misstatement of our own sentiments. For the strength of our case does not lie in our arguments, but in our facts: these, as to the chief of them, at least, no counter-arguments can possibly shake: we therefore leave them to recommend themselves as they may to the acceptance of the New Church; satisfied that, however the prepossessions of some may create an indisposition, for a time, seriously to look at them, they must be accepted at last, together with the conclusions that are their inevitable result. EDITORS. REVIEW OF NEW PUBLICATIONS. The Trial of the Spirits,-or, A Demonstration of the Heavenly Doctrines of Emanuel Swedenborg, as the same are set forth in a Vindication from the cavils of all Objectors, By Robert Hindmarsh, Minister of the New Jerusalem Temple, at Salford, near Manchester, 1821-65. Sunderland. 301 Pages, Price 6s. WE were not a little surprised at the appearance of this volume. No one, on first reading the title-page, can conclude otherwise, than that it is designed to afford "a demonstration" of the truth" of the heavenly doctrines of Emanuel Swedenborg" for who ever heard that the demonstration of any proposition meant the proof of its contrary? Suppose any mathematical theorem to be proposed:-for example: "If a triangle has two equal angles, the sides opposite to them will also be equal;" and a demonstration, in due form, to be subjoined: what should we think of the demonstrator, if, instead of proving the affirmative of the proposition, he should labour to bring out a negative conclusion? Yet such is the aim of this "Demonstration of the heavenly doctrines of Emanuel Swedenborg." It is no excuse of the demonstrator, that his success is such as might be expected from the absurdity of the terms in which he announces his design; it being just as easy to demonstrate the falsehood of those doctrines, as it would be to demonstrate, that "if a -- |