ideas, respecting religion, are introduced, which they did not fully comprehend. More particularly, the ancient translators, that their verfions might be flrictly literal, not only rendered the Greek text verbatim, but introduced the Greek idioms and syntax into their verfions, by which they rendered them not a little obfcure, Nevertheless, by closely following the original, they were reftrained from indulging their own fancy in the tranflation, and have fhewn us what were the readings of the Greek copies which they made ufe of, which certainly are no small advantages. Farther, fo great was their anxiety to give an exact representation of the original, that when they did not know the meaning of any Greek word in the text, they inferted it in their verfion, in Latin characters, without attempting to explain it. This method is followed, not only in the vulgate*, but in the Coptic or Egyptian verfion, which is fuppofed to have been made in the fifth century, (No. 1509). Some words of the text, the ancient translators have omitted, either because they were wanting in their copies, or because they did not know how to tranflate them. Other words + they tranflated erroneously. Befides, although there are many elliptical expreffions, especially in the epiftles, the ancient tranflators have seldom fupplied the words neceffary to complete the fenfe; by which neglect their verfions are often dark, and fometimes erroneous. In other paffages, they have added words and claufes, without any neceffity. * Greek words in Latin characters are found in the following paffages of the Vul. gate: Mat. v. 29. Si oculus tuus dexter (σnavduλ) fcandalizat te.-- -John vii. 2. Ennvownyia, Scenopegia.—John xvi. 7. Si ego non abiero (o wapanλ) Paracletus non veniet ad vos.-1 Cor. iv. 13. Omnium (wep↓nja) peripfema usque adhue.1 Cor. v. 7. Sicut eftis (avμo) azymi.-Heb. xi. 37. Circuierunt (Ev μnhoras) in melotis.—1 Pet. ii. 18. Exoλes is interpreted by Dyfcolis, which is a Greek word of equally difficult interpretation. † Of erroneous tranflations in the vulgate, numerous examples might be given; but the following may fuffice: Mat. vi, 11. Panem noftrum (1800) Supersubftantialem.-James v. 16. vegyɣμɛvn, affidua.-In nine paffages the vulgate hath translated the word μvornglov, by facramentum. See also the following notes. The words wanting to complete the sense in the two following paffages, are not supplied in the vulgate, Rom. i. 4. Ex refurrectione mortuorum Jefu Chrifti.-Heb xi. 21. Et adoravit faftigium virga fua. The following are examples of words added in the vulgate, without neceffity Rom. iii. 22. In eum.-Rom. iv. 5. Secundum propofitum Dei.-Rom. v. 2. Instead of gloria Dei, the vulgate hath gloriæ filiorum Dei.-Rom, xii. 17. Non tantum coram Deo. Nay, Nay, fome paffages they have translated in such a manner as to convey no meaning at all, or meanings extremely abfurd*. Above all, the unfkilfulness of the ancient tranflators appears in their affigning the fame meaning to the fame particle †, almost every where, notwithstanding the Greek particles have very different fignifications, especially as they are ufed by the facred writers. The qualifications of the ancient tranflators of the fcriptures, and the character of their verfions, being fuch as the author hath described, it is easy to see that there must be many faults in them. Yet they are not fuch as to authorise Mofheim's harfh cenfure of the vulgate in particular; namely, that it abounds with innumerable grofs errors, and in many places exhibits a friking barbarity of flyle, and the most impenetrable obfcurity with respect to the meaning of the facred writers. The barbarisms and obfcurities of its style proceeded from its being a strict literal translation: and with respect to its errors, though fome of them may have been occafioned, partly by the careleffness of transcribers, and partly by wrong readings in the copy from which it was made, the far greatest part of them have originated in the unfkilfulness of the authors of the Italic tranflation, of which the vulgate is a tranfcript. I fay authors, because, according to Mill, it was made by different hands, and at different times. Yet, with all its faults, the vulgate is a valuable work; as it hath preserved much of the beautiful fimplicity of the original, and in many paffages its tranflations are more juft than thofe in fome of the modern verfions. Upon the whole, fince most of the ancient tranflators of the fcriptures, on account of the antiquity and reputation of the Italic, or vulgate verfion, have followed it, not indeed in its manifeft abfurdities, but in many of its less apparent mis-translations, and since the subsequent tranflators have generally copied *The following are examples of abfurd unintelligible tranflations in the vulgate: Rom. iv. 18. Qui contra fpem, in fpem credidit, ut fieret pater multarum gentium.2 Cor. i. 11. Ut ex muitarum perfonis facierum, ejus quæ in nohis eft donationis, per multos gratiæ agantur pro nobis. The following are examples of a Greek particle, tranflated uniformly in the vulgate : Mat. vii. 23. Et tunc confitebor illis (ôts) quod nunquam novi vos.—Mat. xxii. 16. Magifter fcimus (ott) quia verax es.-Rom. xv. 11. Vivo ego dicit Dominus (¿T) quoniam mihi flettet. the the vulgate, or have been guided by it, we may now, with some degree of confidence, affirm, that the agreement obfervable in the ancient and modern verfions of the new teftament, especially in the more difficult paffages, is owing, not to the justness of the translation, but to the tranflators having, one after another, followed the old Italic verfion, as it was corrected by Jerome in the vulgate edition. This being the cafe, it cannot be thought ftrange, that the errors and obfcurities of the vulgate have entered more or less into all the ancient verfions of the new teftament, and that from them they have crept into many of the modern verfions likewise*, SECT. II. Of the modern verfions of the new teftament; and particularly of the English translations of the greatest note. As the author does not pretend to be acquainted with all the vernacular tranflations of the fcriptures, ufed at prefent by the different nations of Europe, he will not take upon him to say how far they have copied the vulgate. But this he may affirm, that most of the vernacular versions of the fcriptures made by the Roman catholics fince the reformation, are tranflations of the vulgate. And with respect to the proteftants, though Luther and Olivetan gave out that they made their verfions from the Hebrew, they must be understood with some limitation, if F. Simon's opinion be true, namely, that neither the one nor * To prove what is afferted above, the following examples are produced: Matth. x. 29. Are not two Sparrows fold for a farthing? and one of them fhall not fall on the ground without your Father. This tranflation implies, that the other might fall with-out their Father. The fame error is found in the Syriac and vulgate verfions, and in Beza, and moft of the Latin tranflations, not excepting Erafmus, and in all the old English verfions, and in the Geneva bible. But the abfurdity may eafily be removed, by construing the negative particle with the word (E) one, thus: Yet not one of them falleth on the ground, &c.-Luke xxiii. 32. Ducebantur autem, et alii duo nequam, cum eo, ut interficerentur. This tranflation moft falfely reprefents Jefus as a malefator; and being found in the first Syriac and Vulgate verfions, the Arabic, Ethiopic, &c. derived it either from the Syriac or the vulgate. Wickliff alfo, Erafmus, Caftalio, the Rhemish, and even our English tranflators, have all followed the vulgate in this grofs error. Yet the original, Ηίγοντο δε και έτεροι δυο κακεργοι συν αυτῳ αναιρεθήναι, by fupplying the word OTES, as Thomfon hath done, may juftly be rendered; Now with bim alfo two others who were malefactors were led to be put to death; or rather, without any addition, thus: Now, there were led alfo two others, malefactors, with him to be put to death; and fo the fhocking abfurdity will be avoided. the the other understood Hebrew fo well as to be able to translate the fcriptures from that language. Be that, however, as it will, this is known, that all the vernacular verfions now used by the Lutherans are tranflations of Luther's German bible, and that most of those used by the Calvinifts are tranflations either from Olivetan's verfion, as corrected by Calvin, or from Beza's Latin new teftament; confequently, neither the Lutheran nor the Calvinist vernacular verfions can be fuppofed as exact as they fhould be. But without infifting on this, the author supposes the utility of a new English tranflation of the apoftolical epiftles will be fufficiently evinced, if it can be fhewn that the first English translators made their verfions from the vulgate, and that the subsequent translators, by copying them, have retained a number of the errors of that ancient verfion. WICKLIFF'S NEW TESTAMENT.-If we except the Saxon tranflation of the four gofpels mentioned, p. 5. the most ancient English version of the new teftament now remaining, is that which was made by John Wickliff, a fellow of Merton college, Oxford. Such a change had taken place in the language fince the Norman conqueft, that the Anglo-faxon, the only English verfion of the scriptures then extant, was in Wickliff's time become unintelligible to the common people, who neither understood a number of the words, nor the spelling, nor even the letters in which it was written. This excellent perfon, therefore, with a view to expose the errors of popery, and to spread the knowledge of religion among his countrymen, employed himself in making a tranflation of the new teftament into the English language, as it was then spoken, and finished it about the year 1367. But because, by tranflating the fcriptures, Wickliff put it in the power of every one who could read, to compare the doctrines of Rome with the doctrines of Chrift, his translation was univerfally condemned as heretical by the Romish clergy, and a bill was brought into the house of lords anno 1390, for fuppreffing it. But the duke of Lancaster, a favourer of Wickliff, and uncle to king Richard II. oppofing the bill, it was thrown out. After Wickliff's death, by a conftitution of the convocation at Oxford, the reading of his tranflation was prohibited, and fome, for using it, suffered death. Wickliff Wickliff did not make his tranflation of the new teftament from the Greek, which it is thought he did not understand, but from the Latin bible then read in the churches, which he rendered verbatim, without regarding the idiom of the languages. A translation of the new teftament, made in that manner, from such an incorrect copy as the Latin bible then was, could not mifs to be both erroneous and obfcure. Nevertheless, being anxiously sought after, and much read by persons of all ranks, it was of great ufe in opening the eyes of the nation to the errors of popery and the rather, that to the books of the new teftament, Wickliff had prefixed a tranflation of Jerome's prologues, with fome additions of his own, tending to expose the Romish fuperftitions. Afterwards, the faults of Wickliff's tranflation being discovered, fome of his followers, as Lewis informs us, (p. 29.) revised it; or rather made another tranflation, not fo ftrictly literal as his, and more according to the sense. Of this revised tranflation, the MS. copies are more rare, though fome of them are still preferved in the public libraries. In the advocates library at Edinburgh, there is a beautiful MS. of Wickliff's tranflation, on vellum. But whether it is of the first, or of the revised tranflation, the author does not know. TYNDAL'S TRANSLATION.-The next English translation of the new teftament which merits attention, was made in the reign of Henry VIII. by William Tyndal, a Welchman, educated in Magdalen-hall, Oxford, where he read lectures in divinity. But after a while, becoming fenfible of the errors of popery, to fhew their oppofition to the word of God, he formed the defign of tranflating the new teftament into English, and of publishing it from the prefs; a measure at that time neceffary, as both the language and orthography of Wickliff's tranflation was become in a great measure obfolete. While Tyndal was executing his pious intention, he fell under the fufpicion of herefy, and was obliged to flee to Antwerp, where, with the affistance of one John Frith, he finished his translation of the new teftament, and published it either at Antwerp or Hamburgh, in the year 1526.-When the copies of Tyndal's tranflation were imported into England, and dispersed, the Romish clergy were exceedingly provoked. Some of them faid it was impoflible |