The Hereafter. By James Fyfe. (T. and T. Clark, Edinburgh.)
—Mr. Fyfe discusses in this volume " Sheol, Hades, and Hell, the World to Come, and the Scripture Doctrine of Retribution _according to Law." He begins by reviewing the notions held by the various nations of antiquity on the subject of the future life. For the most part we do not pretend to follow him; and when we find him quoting from the Iliad,—" Achilles exclaims : What a wonder! all the Trojans slain by me shall again arise from the kingdom of the dead,' "—we must protest. What Achilles says is, of course, ironical. So astonished is he to see Lycaon, whom he had taken prisoner and sold across the sea to Lemnos, appearing again among the enemy, that he cries : " Good heavens ! why, all the Trojans whom I have slain will be rising," 8:c. And Mr. Fyfe supposes it to be a prophecy of the resurrection ! After this, one is disposed to distrust his criticism, however highly one may esti- mate his diligence. When he comes to the conclusion that punish- ment is everlasting and the state of man after death unchange- able, we understand him to say that if he could believe otherwise, he would. Surely this is something like Alfonso the Wise, who thought that if he had been consulted when the universe was created, he would have devised a better plan than the sun going round the world!
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