THE MORXING STAR IX THE GOSPELS. 



253 



still is a witness to the truth," John v, 33 ^Weymouth's 

 translation). A name for the planet Venus as " lamp " or 

 light," was used in Sanscrit and also in Arabic, and this is 

 very natural ; long before he had any thought that this passage 

 of Scripture refers to the morning star the author of this 

 article described the setting of the evening star at sea (it is 

 just similar in appearance to the morning star rising), as re- 

 sembling a lighthouse near at hand* ; and in Scripture, the 

 translation of " helel," Is. xiv, 12, (A.Y.), is Lucifer, which means 

 " light bearer,'' indicating the morning star. (Compare Is. Ixii, 

 1, when " the brightness *' and a lamp that burneth " may 

 refer to the sun and to the morning star respectively.) 



Eegarding the phrase " to rejoice for a season in his light " it is a 

 custom, still sometimes observed in Eg}'pt, India, and Palestine, 

 for travellers by night — and night travelling is usual in hot 

 climates — to sing .songst on the rising of the morning star, be- 

 cause it aunoimces that the darkness and dangers of the night are 

 coming to an end. An astronomical friend who had never 

 heard of this custom, could not understand how anyone could 

 possibly rejoice in the light of Venus; the abundance of his 

 instruments and clocks Jiad prevented him from realizing the 

 use which Easterns still make of the planet to foretell day ; 

 probably most astronomers would have spoken in the same 

 way. 



The argument used by our Lord in the passage under con- 

 sideration seems to be — you were willing to rejoice in the light 

 of the herald of day, which only shines by reflecting the light 

 of the comincr sun ; the inference to be drawn is, much more 

 should you rejoice when the sun itself has actually risen, w hen 

 I, the Light of the World, have actually come. This interpreta- 

 tion harmonises with His statement just afterwards (verse 39), 

 that " ye search the Scriptures . . . which bear witness of Me/"' 

 the inference again being, now that I am come, you ought to 

 receive Me. AH through the conversation, the subject is that 

 of witness-bearing — by His own works, by the Father, by John, 

 by the Scriptures, and by Moses ; the whole sentence pointing 

 to the necessity of receiving the One to whom such abundant 

 witness had been borne. 



The time of this utterance was just after the unnamed feast 

 of John V, 1, and before the Passover of John vi, 1. If, as is often 



* " The Transit of Tenus, 1882.^' Fro. R.A. Institution, vol. xii, Xo. 7. 



t According to letters received from Dr. Harpur, C.M.S., Egypt, 

 Moulvie Maliomed Nizamnddin, B.A., Prime Minister, Bhopal, and 

 "Mr. Forder, of Jerusalem. 



