NEW CHAPTERS IN THE WARFARE OF SCIENCE. 295 



During the eighteenth, century constant additions were made 

 to the enormous structure of orthodox scriptural interpretation, 

 some of them gaining the applause of the Christian world then, 

 though nearly all are utterly discredited now. But in 1753 ap- 

 peared two contributions of permanent influence, though dif- 

 fering vastly in value. In the comparative estimate of these 

 two works the world has seen a remarkable reversal of public 

 opinion. 



The first of these was Bishop Lowth's Prelections upon the 

 Sacred Poetry of the Hebrews. In this was well brought out that 

 characteristic of Hebrew poetry to which it owes so much of its 

 peculiar charm its parallelism. 



The second of these books was Astruc's Conjectures on the 

 Original Memoirs which Moses used in composing the Book of 

 Genesis. In this was for the first time clearly revealed the fact 

 that, amid various fragments of old writings, at least two main 

 narratives enter into the composition of Genesis ; that in the first 

 of these is used as an appellation of the Almighty the word " Elo- 

 him," and in the second the word " Yahveh " (Jehovah) ; that each 

 narrative has grammatical and literary characteristics of its own 

 which distinguish it from the other ; that, by separating these, two 

 clear and distinct narratives may be obtained, each consistent with 

 itself, and that thus, and thus alone, can be explained the repeti- 

 tions, discrepancies, and contradictions in Genesis which so long 

 baffled the ingenuity of commentators, especially the two accounts 

 of the creation, so utterly inconsistent with each other. 



Interesting as was Lowth's book, this work by Astruc was, as 



For La Peyrere's view, see especially his Prse-Adamitse, lib. iv, chap, ii, also lib. ii, passim ; 

 also, Lecky, Rationalism in Europe, vol. i, p. 294 ; also interesting points in Bayle's Dic- 

 tionary. For Spinoza's view, see the Tractatus Theologico-Politicus, ch. ii and iii, and for 

 the persecution see the various biographies. Details regarding the demonstration against 

 the unveiling of his statue were given to the present writer at the time by Berthold Auer- 

 bach, who took part in the ceremony. For Morinus and Cappellus, see Farrar as above, p. 

 387 and note. For Richard Simon, see his Histoire Critique de PAncien Testament, liv. i> 

 chap, ii, iii, iv, v, and xiii. For his denial of the prevailing theory regarding Hebrew, see 

 liv. i, chap. xiv. For Morinus (Morin) and his work, see the Biog. Univ. and Nouvelle Biog. 

 Generale ; also Curtiss. For Bossuet's opposition to Simon, see the Histoire de Bossuet in 

 the (Euvres de Bossuet, Paris, 1846, tome xii, pp. 330, 331 ; also x, 738 ; also sundry attacks 

 in various volumes. It is interesting to note that among the chief instigators of the per- 

 secution were the Port- Royalists, upon whose persecution afterward by the Jesuits so much 

 sympathy has been lavished by the Protestant world. For Le Clerc, see especially his Penta- 

 teuchus, Prolegom., dissertat. i ; also, Com. in Genes., vi-viii. For a translation of selected 

 passages on the points noted, see Twelve Dissertations out of Monsieur Le Gere's Genesis, 

 done out of Latin by Mr. Brown, London, 1 696 ; also, Le Clerc's Sentiments de Quelques 

 Theologiens de Hollande, passim ; also, his work on Inspiration, English translation, Boston, 

 1820, pp. 47-50, also 57-67. For Witsius and Carpzov, see Curtiss, as above. For some 

 subordinate points in the earlier growth of the opinion at present dominant, see Briggs, The 

 Higher Criticism of the Hexateuch, New York, 1893, chap. iv. 



