claration, that God hath made no foul, or spirit, in vain; for that the mighty work, designed from the creation of the world, shall surely be at last accomplished.

All which is moft confiftent with what is faid in another part of this Divine Prophecy, ch. lv. ver. 10, 11, 12; and confiftent alfo with what, in the courfe of the many preceding Remarks, has appeared to be the uniform tenor of the Holy Scriptures.

BESIDES

$45.

BESIDES the feveral paffages in the Septuagint already mentioned in thefe Remarks, there are the following, amongst others, which plainly fhew that the word TXH is used to denote d

living principle, or the human animal foul, or fpirit:

Leviticus, ch. iv. ver. 2, 27; ch. v. ver. 1, 4; 17; ch. vi. ver. 2. Deuteronomy, ch. iv. ver. 9, 29; ch. vi. ver. 5; ch. x. ver. 12; ch. xii. ver. 15; ch. xiv. ver. 26; ch. xxvi. ver. 16; ch. xxx. ver. 2, 10.

And the following do alfo, befides thofe already cited, fhew the fuperior diftinction of HINOH and ΠΝΕΥΜΑ. And many more might be adduced to the fame purpose:

Numbers, ch. xiv. ver. 24. ch. ii. ver. 30; ch. xxxiv. ver. 9.

Deuteronomy, Pfalm lxxviii. ver. 8. Job, ch. iv. ver. 15; ch. xxvi. ver. 4; ch. xxxii. ver. 9, 18. Luke, ch. xxiv. ver. 39. Acts, ch. xxiii. ver. 8, 9.

WE have feen, in the courfe of thefe Remarks, that in fome inftances the tranflation of the LXX varies exceedingly from our more modern verfions from the Hebrew; and perhaps, in fome places, in fuch a manner that it may even be doubted whether it was made from the fame original text.

But I cannot finish thefe obfervations without adding, that, in fuch paffages, we should be very careful not to conclude rafhly (as fome have done) that the Septuagint was, in thofe parts, a bad tranflation.

For, (to fay nothing of the probability, that the

perfons

perfons who were employed, at different times, in the various parts of that excellent work, were more likely to understand the true and full meaning of the original words, than more modern interpreters,) it is a queftion that may very fairly be afked, whether the tranflators who compofed the Septuagint had not before them even more perfect and exact copies of the original Hebrew text than we now have?

Probably they had. And there is the utmost reason to believe, that they adhered faithfully and clofely to the original fenfe, in all parts; fince we 546. find Our Lord, and his Holy Apoftles, giving fuch

fanction to this verfion.

It has itself unquestionably been fubject to fome corruptions, and alterations, in the various copies

of it but as far as we can come at the true ori-
ginal, which, as I have before observed, seems to
be always, most unquestionably, wherever the two
celebrated copies, the Alexandrian and the Vati-
can, both
agree entirely or nearly; (and fuch are
the paffages I have most infifted upon;) as far as
we can come at the true original, there it seems to
be the best authority, we can have, for the reading
or meaning of any part of Holy Writ.

And, with regard to other translations, either in Greek, or in other languages, and especially fuch as profefs to give only the general fenfe, in elegant vernacular expreffions of fuch languages, without adhering precifely to the meaning of the individual words in the original: furely we ought to hefitate fomewhat, before we allow them to contain the true and full import of the Word of God. Becaufe, if the tranflator lived in an age (as I am perfuaded every one of us even till does,) not yet fully enlightened by the advantages and revelation of fcience; or, if (though a man VOL. II. learned

Y

learned in language) he chanced to be a man of dull apprehenfion, or unacquainted with the vast extent of truly philofophical ideas, he is too likely to have given us, as a juft interpretation, only his own imperfect apprehenfion of the purport of cach paffage, rather than the deep and wondrous information contained in the original Divine Word.

Thefe obfervations ought not, therefore, to be concluded, without a caution, that, as we have reafon to believe the LXX did really adhere clofely to the original copies before them, fo, in tranflating their work, we fhould be as careful to adhere clofely and minutely to the full purport and nice distinct meaning of the Greek words they made ufe of; endeavouring at the fame time, as far as we are able, to illuftrate that meaning faithfully, by the light of recent philofophical difcoveries, relating to thofe glorious Works of Creation, which contain a manifeftation of the wisdom and defigns of the Great Creator, in expreffions fo addreffed, to the human understanding, that there is neither Speech nor language, but their voices are heard among them.

APPENDIX.

APPENDIX.