THE TALMUD.

(Continued from page 34.)

IN our last number we gave some information relative to the Talmud, shewing how the traditions of men have been exalted above the Word of God, and how both the Old Testament and the New alike condemn that awful preference of human above Divine authority,—that honouring of the Rabbi above the Divine and All-wise teacher of his people. We stated that the Jews affirmed that the oral law was handed down by word of mouth for many generations, till collected by one of their celebrated teachers. We now give the account of this from Allen's "Modern Judaism."

"When Moses came down from the Mount Sinai, he delivered both the written and the oral law to the people. As soon as he returned to his tent, he was attended by Aaron, who sat at his feet, and to whom he recited the text, and taught the interpretation which he had received from God in the mount. Then Aaron rising and seating himself on the right hand of Moses, Eleazar and Ithamar entered, and Moses repeated to them all that he had communicated to their father; after which they arose and seated themselves, one on the left hand of Moses, and the other on the right hand of Aaron. Then went in the seventy elders, and Moses taught them in the same manner as he had taught Aaron and his sons. Afterwards, the congregation at large, or all of them who were desirous of knowing the Divine will; and to them also Moses recited the text and the interpretation in the same manner as before. These two laws, as de

livered by Moses, had now been heard by Aaron four times, by his sons three times, by the seventy elders twice, and by the rest of the people once. After this Moses withdrawing, Aaron repeated the whole that he had heard from Moses, and withdrew; then Eleazar and Ithamar did the same, and on their withdrawing, the same was done by the seventy elders: so that each of them having heard both these laws repeated four times, they all had them firmly fixed in their memories.

"Toward the end of the fortieth year after the departure from Egypt, Moses assembled the people, told them that the time of his death was near, directed those who had forgotten any tradition that he had delivered to come to him, that he might repeat it to them anew, and invited them to apply to him for a solution of all questions in which they found any difficulty. The last month of his life was employed in giving these repetitions and explications to the people, and especially to Joshua, his successor, who was the second receiver of the oral law, and was charged with the handing it down to the next generation. According to these explications, Joshua and the elders gave sentence. Whatever

they had received from Moses, was admitted without any controversy or disagrement: but if there was any branch respecting which nothing had been delivered by Moses, the decision proper to be made in such a case, was discovered by the help of some of the thirteen rules given to Moses on Mount Sinai. Toward these explications of the law, no assistance was given by the Spirit of Prophecy, and Joshua and Phinehas proceeded merely in a way of enquiry and argument, as the celebrated Rabbies did after them.

"When Joshua was about to die, all the interpretations which he had received from Moses, together with all that had been made in his time, were given by him to the elders who survived him. Those elders conveyed them to the prophets, and by one prophet they were delivered to another: so that no age passed without enquiries being made into the meaning of the law. There was never any disagreement respecting the foundations received by tradition down to the time of the men of the great synagogue, of which Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi, Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, Azariah, Ezra the Scribe, Mordecai, Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, formed a part. There were altogether one hundred and twenty of the most eminent and leading men of the nation, who followed the example of those in former ages, inquiring into the sense of the law, making decrees and appointing constitutions. The last of this venerale assembly was Simon the Just, who then filled the office of High Priest, and who was the first of the wise men that are mentioned in the Mishna. After him followed a regular succession which ended with Rabbi Judah, the Saint, a man of most eminent talent and virtue."

Of the above transmission of a divinely given oral law, the Bible makes no mention. The whole is a mere invention to account for its existence and to support its authority. We shall conclude this part of the history of the unwritten law, with a reason assigned for its existence by a learned Rabbi. He "Besays, cause God foresaw that the nations of this world would copy out the twenty-four books, which are contained in the Law, the Prophets, and Hagio

grapha (holy writings), and would abuse them to heresy and impiety, he delivered to Moses an oral exposition: nor would he allow it to be committed to writing till the sects of the Edomites and Ishmaelites (Christians and Mahomedans) had arisen, lest this also should be translated by the Gentiles, and perverted to the same evil purposes as the written law. In the world to come God will enquire who are his children. Then the Gentiles, as well as the Israelites, shall produce the book of the law, and they shall both affirm themselves to be his children. Therefore God will enquire again, with whom is the oral exposition which he delivered on Mount Sinai. At this all will be dumb, and not one, except Israel, will be found to have any knowledge of it." (To be continued.)

MISSIONS TO THE JEWS.

STRASBURG.

THIS important station was first occupied by the Jews' Society as a field of missionary labours in the year 1826. It lies near to a very numerous Jewish population, and the missionary, whose home is here, undertakes from it extensive tours amongst the descendants of Abraham resident in the neighbouring parts of Baden, Wurtemberg, and Westphalia.

In Baden the result of these efforts has been very encouraging. The Rev. J. A. Hausmeister gives the following interesting account of a young Israelite, with whom he met at Pforzheim, in Baden :

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May 8.-To-day I visited the Jews of Pforzheim. I called on Mrs. R. She was not at home, but I entered into conversation with a young man who was in the house. He told me he was unhappy; I asked him, why?

"He. When I was a boy I read the New Testament, and received a very deep impression respecting the doctrines of the Gospel. I was then taught a handicraft, and worked for a year and a half at my trade with a pious Christian at Wurtemberg. When I left the house of this excellent man, who had a real love for Israel, he gave me a little book which he told me to read. From this book I became acquainted with the state of my heart. I found in it what seemed to be a complete description of my own case, and became convinced that Jesus is the Messiah. I lent the book to my father, who was a strict Talmudist, and an orthodox Jew; he read it, and said that it contained much that was good, but he never returned the book to me.'

"I. 'Do you remember the title of the book?

"He. ""Worte der Liebe"(Words of Love.)'

"I. "I am well acquainted with the author of that book; he is still alive, and though he has several times been dangerously ill, and near death's door, yet he has always been comforted by faith in Christ Jesus, and still firmly believes in Him as his Messiah.'

"The young man guessed that I was myself the author; he wept, and threw himself into my arms, and said, 'O that I could confess the Lord!' We continued the conversation until we