Introduction

Hitherto I have endeavoured to prove the veracity of the Mosaic writings by the instances they contain of coincidence without design in their several parts; and I hope and believe that I have succeeded in pointing out such coincidences as might come of truth, and could come of nothing but truth. These presented themselves in the history of the Patriarchs, from Abraham to Joseph; and in the history of the chosen race in general, from their departure out of Egypt to the day when their great Lawgiver expired on the borders of that land of Promise into which Joshua was now to lead them—a long and eventful history. I shall now resume the subject; pursue the adventures of this extraordinary people, as they are unfolded in some of the subsequent books of holy writ; and, still using the same test as before, ascertain whether these portions of Scripture do not appear to be equally trustworthy, and whilst, like the former, they assert, often without any recourse to the intervention of second causes, miracles many and mighty, they do not challenge confidence in those miracles by marks of reality, consistency, and accuracy, which the ordinary matters of fact combined with them constantly exhibit. “For this credibility of the common scripture history,” says Bishop Butler, “gives some credibility to its miraculous history; especially as this is interwoven with the common, so as that they imply each other, and both together make up one revelation.” (Analogy, p. 389).