fluence upon
them, leading them to undervalue and neglect the Old Testament
Scriptures. Even if the idea under consideration were in accordance with
truth, it would still be to every earnest Christian a matter of deep
historical interest to study the way by which God prepared the world for
the full light of the gospel. But it is not true. It rests on a
foundation of error and delusion. For, (1.) The system of divine
revelation constitutes a _whole_, all the parts of which are connected,
from beginning to end, so that no single part can be truly understood
without a knowledge of all the rest. The impenetrable darkness that
rests on some portions of Scripture has its ground in the fact that the
plan of redemption is not yet completed. The mighty disclosures of the
future can alone dissipate this darkness.

"God is his own interpreter,
And he will make it plain."

(2.) We know that the writers of the New Testament constantly refer to
the Old for arguments and illustrations. A knowledge of the Old
Testament is necessary, therefore, for a full comprehension of their
meaning. How can the reader, for example, understand the epistles to the
Romans and Galatians, or that to the Hebrews, without a thorough
acquaintance with "Moses and the prophets," to which these epistles have
such constant reference? (3.) The Old Testament is occupied with the
record of God's dealings with men. Such a record must be a perpetual
revelation of God's infinite attributes, and of human character also,
and the course of human society, every part of which is luminous with
instruction. (4.) Although the old theocracy, with its particular laws
and forms of worship, has passed away, yet the _principles_ on which it
rested, which interpenetrated it in every part, and which shone forth
with a clear light throughout its whole history--these principles are
eternal verities, as valid for us as for the ancient patriarchs. Some of
these principles--for example, God's unity, personality, and infinite
perfections; his universal providence; his supremacy over all nations;
the tendency of nations to degeneracy, and the stern judgments employed
by God to reclaim them--are so fully unfolded in the Old Testament that
they needed no repetition in the New. There they became _axioms_ rather
than doctrines. (5.) "The manifold wisdom of God" in adapting his
dealings with men to the different stages of human progress cannot be
seen without a diligent study of the Old