LECTURE.

Temuka Leader, Issue 2259, 26 September 1891, Page 4

LECTURE.

« la the Bible the Word of God ?” was the subject of a lecture delivered by Mr E. T. Loach; of New, South Wales, in the Oddfellows’ Hall, Geraldine, on Thursday evening last, when there was a moderately good attendance,. and the Rev. W. 0. f Wood occupied the ‘chair. The lecturer at the opening assured his hearers that the lecture was not intended to i bringflcjati .Hoy. controvery. He believed in preaching the Gospel, which, in his.opmucovdid-.nmre good than entering into any controversy. He had been a member of the Christion Evidence So-1 ciety ‘sL<)i»dg)n,'«nd never known' ahy gbo|l effects |on ,|h|u through controversy. However, ,I*6 .did not think that God intended iheh Aha''women to take up His holy book and swallow it all, without questioning its authenticity, j The lecture then proceeded.- ,to • prove that the Bible is the" Word of God by internal and external evidence. He divided his lecture under eight heads, as follows: (1) Tne preservation of the Bible; (2) the agreement of the several parts of the Bible; (3)Vthe spirit of the writers; [4) pirophecy; (B) the state of mankind without the Bible.; (6) - the moral effects of the Bible; (7) the enemies of the Bible; (8) the design of God in the gift of the Bible. The Bible bookp, he said, were the* oldest books in the: world; they were written about 3400 years ago,-? The oldest profane Writers were Herodotus «nd Thucydides, and there was a difference, of : 1000 years between the time of their writings and the Bible. The ( Jews had the care of the Bible, and it ■ was strictly confined to the Jews in those days. The Jews were., an., oppressed people, and yet during f all lheir oppression and captivity in Babylon the Word ot God was preserved. Notwithstanding the corruptions which crept in among the Jews in time; the Word of God remained intact. One remarkable evidence was that the Jewish copy of the Word of God j agreed substantially with,the Samaritan | tronslation. The general aim of the | writers of the Bible sweetly , harmonised. I If they were talking about sacrifice,' you could get it right through the book;: from cover to cover, and, though these writers were separated by thousands of years and mile, the illustrations respecting certain things were somewhat alike. The fulfilment of prophecy was a great evidence. The prophecy concerning the‘destruction of Nineveh, Bablyon, Tyre, and Sidon was fulfilled to the very letter. The prophecy respecting Christ, as shown in the the 63rd chapter of Isaiah and ; elsewhere, was literally fulfilled. / The moral effects of the Bible were that wherever the Bible had access it had always been a means of civilisation. The enemies of the Bible when they were in robust health were loud in their boasts against it, but when health declined they died a miserable death. God’s great gift in the Bible was to show us our place,i a, kind of chart to chow man where he was. At the conclusion .of the lecture a vote of thanks to the lecturer was carried by acclamation.