DR. WESTCOTT ON ST. JOHN'S EPISTLES.*

WE are glad that Dr. Westcott has at length given to the world the result of his prolonged study of the writings of St. John. We are told in the preface that it was "a dream of early youth," and for " thirty years " he has with more or less diligence devoted himself to bis task. We were beginning to fear lest the cares of a Bishopric might overtake him before' his work was done. It would be disastrous if Dr. Westcott should be constrained to give up to a diocese the time, thought, and strength which he owes to the whole Catholic Church. If we bad our way, and could wield despotic power over the Church of England for a time, we should at once appoint a Coadjutor Bishop to the diocese of Durham, lay all the burden of administration on his shoulders, and set Dr. Lightfoot free, in order that he might find time to carry out the dream of his youth, and give to us a series of commentaries on the Epistles of St. Paul, on the scale and in the style of those already accomplished. This work would be well worth the revenue of a Bishopric. Almost any man of shrewdness, common-sense, and eloquence might do the work of a Bishop, but a commen- tator of the eminence of the Bishop of Durham is seldom found.

The work of Dr. Westcott is of the highest value. Nor could he find a fitter field for the exercise of his great and varied powers than he has found in the exposition of the Gospel and Epistles of St. John. He has great sympathy with and delight in the mystic tone of mind. Indeed, he is himself a mystic.

• The Epistles of St. John. The Greek Text, with Notes and Essays, by Brooks Foss Westcott, D.D., D.C.L. London: Macmillan and Co. 1883.

But the tendency to mysticism is controlled and balanced by logical exactness, and a habit of careful and minute scholarship. These opposite tendencies, so seldom united in the same man, are found together in Dr. Westcott, and were blended together in St. John. Hence the fitness of Dr. Westcott to be the in- terpreter of St. John to the men of our century. Sympathy with the author, deep knowledge of the thought and style of St. John, scholarship adequate to its task, Dr. Westcott has brought to the exposition of these Epistles, and the result is a contribu- tion to our knowledge of St. John which no student of theology can afford to pass by.

In order to show the spirit and attitude of Dr. Westcott to the books of Scripture in general, and to these books in par- ticular, we quote a paragraph from the preface:—

" The Catholicity of the Bible is made more impressive by the fact that the Bible is in a large degree historical. It has pleased God to reveal himself in and through life, and the record of the revelation is literary, and not dogmatic. From first to last, God is seen in the Bible conversing with man. He speaks to man as man can hear, and man replies as he can use the gift of the Spirit. But word and answer alike are according to the troth of life. All that has been written for us has been part of real human experience, and therefore it has an unending value. Thus, in the main, tfie Bible is the continuous un- folding in many parts and in many ways of the spiritual progress of mankind. It may be a law, a narrative, a prophecy, a psalm, a proverb,—but in each case it comes from life and enters into life, it belongs to a distinct epoch, it is only in its vital context, so to speak, that it can be perfectly understood. In this long series of spiritual records the First Epistle of St. John probably holds the last place. It is probably the final interpretation of the whole series of the divine revelations ; and under this aspect it proclaims and satisfies the highest hope of man. It declares that in the Presence of Christ there has been given, and there will be given, that knowledge of God for which man was made, issuing in fellowship which is realised here in the Christian society, and which reaches to the Source of all life. In this consummation the past finds accomplishment, and the sufferings and riddles of the present are shown to be part of a sovereign counsel which passes beyond our sight. As we look backward and forward in the light thus thrown over the world, we can work and wait." (Preface, vii.-viii.)

With this high conception of the greatness of his subject, Dr. Westcott has spared no pains nor labour in order worthily to set forth the thought of St. John. He has set himself to determine with the utmost accuracy the exact words written

by the Apostle. He has given us a critical text. Nor was this a task with which he could dispense. For great as have been the labours of Tischendorf in this depart-

ment of sacred learning, it is now recognised that he has been more successful in providing material for the construc- tion of a critical text than he was in the critical text he actually constructed. It would lead us too far afield to enter into the merits of the text Dr. Westcott has here given us.

The controversy between the rival critical methods, one of which is represented by Dr. Westcott and Dr. Hort, and the other by Dean Burgos, is at present too hot for any wise writer rashly to intermeddle with it. At all events, it ought to be acknowledged that the time is not yet come when a com- mentator can regard a critical text as settled for him by the consent of those who know. He must, for some time to come, form his own judgment, and accept the responsibility devolving on him. This Dr. Westcott has done. He has given us a Greek text, a continuous commentary on the Epistles, verse by verse, almost word by word. When a passage requires larger elucida- tion, the notes expand, and room is found for a fuller treatment.

A series of detached notes contain most important theological

and exegetical discussions ; and, as Dr. Westcott himself says, "These notes, when taken in proper order, will serve as an introduction to the study of the doctrine of St. John."

The introduction to the First Epistle contains a luminous discussion of the following topics :—The text, title, form, authorship, place and date of writing, destination, character, object, style, and language, and the Epistles and the Gospel ; and a plan of the Epistle is added. All these in their way are im- portant, but the most important of all of them is the com- parison between the Epistles and the Gospel. This is briefly, yet thoroughly done. Some of the most significant verbal coincidences between the Epistles and the Gospel are noticed, while greater space is given to 'the larger coincidences of thought and expression. Dr. Westcott never formally enters into con- troversy in this volume ; but every one acquainted with the literature which has grown up around the Johannine writings will at once recognise that he has these in view at every turn. For instance, much has been made of the fact that in the First Epistle, Jesus Christ is called the Paraclete, while in the Gospel the Holy Spirit has been called the Paraclete. It would be tedious to enumerate the various theories built on this fact. But Dr. Westcott calmly seta them aside, and makes them of no account, by the simple statement, which without controversy attains all the results of controversy,—" St. John's treatment of the present work of Christ stands in close connection with this view of his future work. As the Holy Spirit is sent to believers as their Advocate on earth, so he is their Advocate with the Father in heaven. The two thoughts are complementary ; and the heavenly advocacy of Christ rests upon his own promise in the Gospel, though it must not be interpreted as excluding the Father's spontaneous love." (p. xlv.) It is pleasant to trace many similar references to recent theories, and to find them calmly set aside by a statement true and simple, yet based on the deepest consideration of all the elements in the case.

We hasten on to notice shortly the three masterly disserta• tions with which the volume concludes. The first one is historical, the second theological, while the third may be de- scribed as both, with a third element, which we may describe as literary and artistic. At first sight, there does not seem to be any direct connection between these essays and the Epistles of St. John. But as we study them, we find the connection to be close and vital. No one can read the Epistles without asking the question, " What is the World ?" and the essay on "The Two Empires : the Church and the World," is the answer to the question. For here Dr. Westcott describes the organised society which fronted the Church at every turn, on her first entrance upon her work. Over against her was the Roman world, with its absolute power, its supreme dominion, and its system of law and order. By the time these Epistles were written, the system of Rome had become more than an empire or a government. It had become a religion, and emperor- worship had become the established religion. The power of Rome, and her visible supremacy, had caused the ancient polytheism of the nations to become effete, and the religions instincts of the peoples enthroned Rome, and placed her in the sphere vacated by the Gods. The Emperor was consecrated, and "in the consecration of the Emperors two distinct elements were combined, the national faith in the Genius, and the Eastern adoration of power." Thus in the days of John the world had a distinctively religious aspect, and visible worship of the Roman Emperor had become the highest duty of every citizen.

In Dr. Westcott's essay we find how inevitable was the conflict which ensued between the two empires. For the kingdom of Christ was universal, absolute, aggressive, and spiritual, and it is shown by our author how in each of these aspects it was necessarily led into collision with the Roman power. The essay

is highly suggestive, and we are struck with a modern parallel.

The worship of the Roman State, as described by Dr. Westcott, is exactly like the worship of Nature, as that is described by the author of Natural Religion. And the necessary relation of Christianity to the latter is just what the relation of

Christianity was to the former during the first centuries of the Christian era.

The second essay is one on the " Gospel of Creation," and the

question discussed is one which has fallen into abeyance,—Is the Incarnation independent of the Fall ? With great care and circumspection, Dr. Westcott discusses this difficult question. The essay is valuable, if on no other account than on this,—

that it gives a full and sufficient history of the question, and of the treatment the question has received from the time of Rupert of Deutz onwards. Dr. Westcott believes, and there is much to be said for his belief, that the Incarnation would have been, even had there been no fall, and no necessity for humilia- tion in connection with the mission of Jesus Christ:-

" It cannot be said that a belief in the absolute purpose of the Incarnation is at variance with Scripture. Nor does it in any way derogate from the infinite love of God. If it is most consonant to the judgment of reason,' it seems to be also ' most consonant to piety of faith.' It adds to every motive of devout gratitude which is susgested by the circumstances of the Incarnation, a farther motive of gratitude in the contemplation of that love which the self-will of man could not thwart Nothing is lost, and fcir those who cannot but turn from time to time with aux ions questionings from the contemplation of the vastness, the complexity, the contradictions, the earnest expectation, as we are encouraged to call it, of the world,. to Holy Scripture, much is gained by the thought that from the first it was the purpose of God to gather up all things in the Son of his love." (p. 314.)

The third essay is the one which possesses the most general human interest. In it, an answer is sought to the question,— Does Christianity leave scope for the free development of Art P Are the artistic instincts and powers of man taken into account by the records of the faith ? Man seeks beauty, and external 'nature needs interpretation ; but Art is not directly recognised in the New Testament, and, according to some, seems to be con- demned in it. How are these things to be reconciled? The -essay is the answer, and, in brief, it lies in the central message of Christianity,—" The Word became flesh." Then the essay becomes historical, and traces the position of Art in relation to Christianity, (1) in the Apostolic age, (2) the character of Christian Art in the first four centuries, (3) the relation of Christianity to Art, and (4) the peculiar office of Art. The con- clusion to which Dr. Westcott comes is that Christianity claims the ministry of Art in the whole field of life. And the office of Art is "to present the truth of things, under the aspect of beauty."

To sum up what we have sought to say, we find in this volume all the characteristic excellencies of the work of Dr. Westcott. We have his careful workmanship, his profound learn- ing, his deep insight into men and nature, and his wise, thought- ful glance over all the history of theology. It is, in our opinion, one of the largest contributions yet made to the right under- standing of the writings of St. John. Taken, as it ought to be taken, in connection with Dr. Westcott's exposition of the -Gospel, and studied in connection with it, we have in our hands the means of knowing the writings of St. John as these were never known before.