century's witness to the bible. 



95 



(1517) with the Pope's approval. And each Annual Report of the 

 Bible Society contained instances of some Roman Catholics who 

 were favourable to its work. 



In illustration of his expression of " the inerrancy of the letter of 

 Scripture as it had come down to us," Mr. Sharp gave an example 

 of his meaning from 1 Sam. xiii, 1. The Revised Version prints 

 that verse thus : — " Saul was [thirty] years old when he began to 

 reign." In the margin we are told that "the Hebrew text has, 

 Saul was a year old. The whole verse is omitted in the unrevised 

 Septuagint, but in a later recension the number thirty is inserted." 

 Such slips in numerals were more easily made by copyists in olden 

 times when figures were denoted merely by letters of the alphabet 

 with a dash attached ; and the numeral indicated varied immensely 

 according as the dash stood over or under the letter. 



At the close of the meeting, and in conveying to Mr. Sharp the 

 best thanks of the Institute for his most useful paper, the Chairman 

 referred to the criticisms that had been made, and the pain felt by 

 those who did not admit their force. The Institute allowed its 

 members and associates a free hand, but the Bible would always 

 vindicate itself. It is ours to study it, pray over it, and circulate 

 this wonderful Book. 



Professor Langhorne Orchard writes : — Besides its marvellous 

 history and the complete harmony subsisting between the Bible 

 and modern science, what specially impresses me is the fact, 

 brought before us on pp. 85 and 86 of this paper, that the Bible is 

 "The Word of Life." It has power to transform the characters 

 and lives of those whose hearts receive and carry out its holy 

 teaching; it renovates the desires and purposes, and strengthens 

 the will unto holiness of thought. There is the manifestation of 

 spiritual vitality — all things become new. 



Now science affirms emphatically that the source of life is always 

 that which is itself living. Redi's great doctrine — " Omne vivum 

 ex vivo " — is, says Huxley, victorious " all along the line." Thus 

 science affirms that the Bible is living, that it is "The Word of 

 Life." The testimony of science does not stop here. She associates 

 herself with our late President, Sir G. G. Stokes, in the belief 

 that the cause of all life is Spirit. Thus science tells us that 

 the cause of Eternal life is the Eternal Spirit, that the Cause 

 of the Bible, the one Author speaking through its many writers, 



