the unchanged character of Romanism, its still cruel and soul destroying power; it holds up the power of the word of God still to enlighten and save; and it presents strong encouragement to Protestants to use well their time and gifts in the circulation of scripture truth. THE GREAT EXHIBITION SPIRITUALIZED. By the Rev. HENRY BIRCH. London: John Snow. A worthy and pious effort to turn to religious account this great wonder of our times, and one, we trust, which may give rise to solemn and profitable thought in many minds. CHRISTIANITY, as applied to the Mind of a Child in the Sunday School. A Sermon, by the Rev. ALBERT BARNES. London: Benjamin L. Green. This is a sermon to parents and teachers, not to children. It is a fine development of the adaptation of Christianity even to children, and the blessed effects secured from its possession and enjoyment by them. The conversion of the children should be the aim of all faithful and earnest sabbath school teachers. Here is motive and encouragement to seek it which they will do well to read, and cannot read without advantage. Chapter of Varieties. THE CORRUPTING WRITERS. I don't mean to check inquiry, but you must take care how you approach the depth! "In the great water-floods they shall not come nigh him." It is dangerous for a young man to try how much poison his constitution will bear. I remember having two intimates at college. We were accustomed to meet together, and read the publications of the day. A subtle and mischievous book made its appearance; I refused to read it. I believe God put the thought in my heart, for I never made a wiser resolution in my life. "Oh!" said one of the party, "have we not sense to form our own opinions?" "I tell you, R;' said I, "it seems to me like a naked man entering the lists with a com batant armed cap-à-pie." He read on, and became an infidel. I ran away, and waited for my armour. I can now face the Goliath without fear, and fetch him down with a sling and stone, which God has proThis was vided for the assault. not cowardice, but good sense measuring the enemy's forces, and making due preparation for the conflict. -A Father's Reasons for Repose. BURYING A BIBLE. Bibles have been buried in many ways. An infidel became so angry once at the word of God, that he dug a hole in the ground, and in it covered deep the book which had exasperated him. Some very reputable people, nominally Christians, let their bibles lie so long undis turbed upon an upper shelf, that it is scarcely a figure of speech to say that they are buried by the dust. It was a bible, buried in an old seachest, whose resurrection was the instrument of converting to piety the pirate crew of Pitcairn's Island. But the most singular way of such a burial which we remember to have heard of, is the one mentioned in the history of Judah's monarchs, in the books of Kings and Chronicles. This, too, was only discovered by a resurrection, as unlooked for as it was beneficial. ances among the members is at the prayer-meetings. The sabbath congregations are so large, and so many strangers attend, that the members can scarcely become familiar with each other if they meet only there. But if you are seen regularly at the prayer-meeting, you will soon be recognised and welcomed. Have you been to the Dorcas society?" "Oh, no! I did not like to go where all were strangers to me." "But how are they to become acquainted with you if you do not give them the least opportunity? I hope you have visited the sabbath school?" "No; I should like to take a class, but I have been waiting for an invitation." "My dear friend, do you not perceive that you are far more to blame for remaining a comparative stranger among us, than the members of the church generally can be? You are waiting for advances to be made by those to whom you give scarcely an opportunity for friendly intercourse. You give them no reason to think that you desire an acquaintanceship. Now, my advice to you is, attend the more familiar meetings of the church, manifest an interest in its spirituality and prosperity, kindly recognise any whom you know to be members, dispense with the worldly courtesy that requires a formal introduction to these disciples of Jesus, and then if they remain indifferent to you, the blame will rest with them."-Watchman. Miscellaneous Papers. MY OWN BIBLE. THE BISHOPS' BOOK, AND OUR COMMON VERSION. It is a remarkable fact, that, although the queen's patent had been granted to Bodleigh, to print and publish the Exiles' Bible in English, no edition of it was printed here until the year 1575. In the meantime, however, in the year 1568, another version appeared. This was an edition planned and superintended by Archbishop Parker, and revised and translated mainly by several bishops, from whence it got its name of "The Bishops' Book." To Parker is due the praise of having conceived the design, and then pushed it to its successful close. "The archbishop," says Strype, "took on himself the labour to contrive and set the whole work a going, in a proper method, by setting out the whole Bible into parcels, and distributing these parcels to a few bishops and other learned men, to peruse and collate each of the books allotted to them; sending withal his instructions for the order they should observe; and they were to add some short marginal notes, for the illustration or correction of the text: and all these portions being finished, and sent back to the archbishop, he was to add the last hand to them, and so to take care for printing and publishing the whole." More than fifteen learned men, Greek and Hebrew scholars, were employed upon this version, besides Parker himself; and it must be considered a decided improvement, on the whole, upon "The Great," or "Cranmer's Bible." The text was amended in various places, and the whole made more conformable to the original scriptures. It was also more splendidly got up, and contained no fewer than 143 engravings, in copper or wood, of maps, portraits, and coats of arms, while no pains were spared to make it in every way worthy the royal patronage its projector sought. Great indeed was the archbishop's joy on seeing the book BIBLE CLASS MAGAZINE.] [DECEMBER, 1851. N complete, and he could not forbear exclaiming, as he took it in his hands, "Lord, now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace; for mine eyes have seen thy salvation." These various editions of the sacred word rather increased than satisfied the people's thirst for it; and so great was the demand, that no fewer than 130 distinct issues of Bibles and Testaments, 90 of which were of the Genevan text, were circulated in Elizabeth's reign. To Elizabeth succeeded James the First, and scarcely had he been well seated on the throne, when a proposal was made by the well-known Dr. Rainolds, and concurred in by the king, that a new translation of the scriptures without note or comment should be prepared. The proposal was made in the far-famed Hampton Court conference, and though the first object for the calling of that conference failed, this proposition lived, and issued in our present valuable version of the scriptures coming from the press. The king did but little towards the furtherance of the work. He appointed fifty-four learned men to undertake it, wrote a letter to Bancroft, the bishop of London, desiring him to take measures to have the work carried through, and conveniently shifted all the expense and trouble of the undertaking from his own shoulders to others; but beyond this, did very little to advance the scheme. To Dr. Rainolds for proposing; to him and Bancroft and other learned men for carrying out, and working diligently at the task; and to Matthew Barker, the printer, for finding almost all the money and means for accomplishing the work; and not to James, as commonly thought, are we indebted for this precious version. No time was lost by Bancroft in starting the work. Letters were written by him to the bishops and universities, and fitting men selected by them for the performance of the task. The list of these has been carefully preserved; we have only room to say that it contains the names of some of the most distinguished divines of the day. They were forty-seven in number, and their memory is held dear by the true friends of piety and learning. They were divided into six companies, two of which met at Westminster, two at Cambridge, and two at Oxford. The first, which met at Westminster, was presided over by Dr. Launcelot Andrews, and had committed to it the Penta teuch, with the historical books as far as the second book of Kings. The second company met at Cambridge, and was presided over by Edward Lively, regius professor at Cambridge. To this company, consisting of eight, was committed the translation from the beginning of Chronicles to the end of the Canticles. The third company met at Oxford, and consisted of seven members. It was presided over by Dr. John Harding, and undertook the rest of the Old Testament, from Isaiah to the end of Malachi. The fourth company met at Oxford. It consisted of eight persons, was presided over by Dr. Ravis, and had committed to it the four Gospels, the Acts, and the Revelation. The fifth company met at Westminster. Their president was Dr. Barlowe, and their work the translation of the Epistles. The sixth company had to translate the Apocrypha. They held their sittings at Cambridge, and had for their president Dr. John Duport. The way the translators proceeded in their work was this. Every member of a company took the same portion, and translated and emended it by himself. Then all met and compared their work, and so formed one revised copy in which they all agreed. So soon as a portion was thus finished by one company, it was sent to all the others for their examination, and if they could suggest any improvement, they were required to do it, and send it back to the company from whence it came. If the alteration was approved, it was adopted at once, and if not, it was referred to a special committee for examination and decision. Each translation was thus submitted to several ordeals before it was allowed to pass, thus securing, as far as possible, the most correct translation possible. The final revision of the whole work was completed in London, by a committee formed of two delegates from Westminster, two from Cambridge, and two from Oxford. They met in the old hall of the Stationers' Company, and spent threequarters of a year in completing their task. It would appear, too, that six other learned men, who had not been engaged in the translation, were added to these delegates, to review the |