no mere
presentation, or representation of the Deity, could, in itself, give any
deep insight into His moral character, or the relation in which He stands
to us. Even if the Deity were constantly present, we know not how we
could obtain any accurate knowledge of His attributes, except by
observation of His words and acts. If we had been introduced to the
philanthropist, Howard, we could not have become acquainted with his
excellence by merely gazing at his countenance. We must have listened to
his words, and followed him to those scenes of misery which he was in the
habit of visiting, if we would obtain a clear understanding of his
benevolence. So too, the holiness, love, and other moral perfections of
the Deity, are not matters which can be apprehended from any mere
intuition of the Divine nature. A glorious exhibition of the Divine
presence, such, for instance, as that described in Exodus, as having
occurred on Mount Sinai, might inspire feelings of awe, and enable those
who witnessed it to apprehend more clearly, perhaps, than could have been
effected in any other way, the dignity and majesty of God; but, for a
revelation of His moral nature, and the relation in which He stands to
man, we must look more to words--such words, for instance, as He is said
to have spoken to the children of Israel at that time, and afterwards,
during forty days, to Moses. While, then, we think that a revelation by
perception, with regard to some things, might be expected, we do not
consider that it would convey a large amount of information, unless it
were combined with a revelation through words. Words are, in fact, the
most natural and effectual mode of imparting most kinds of knowledge, and
we may, therefore, reasonably expect that, in any revelation which the
Divine Being might think fit to make to man, they would form a chief
method of communication. When we thus speak of words in connection with
a revelation, we do not mean only words addressed actually to the ear,
but also such, as in a dream or vision, may appear to be spoken. We
desire also that it should be remembered that, for the main purpose of
our argument, it is not so much words as _ideas_ which we wish to keep in
view. What we chiefly wish to leave on the mind is, that a revelation,
except so far as a new perception may be given, _must be limited by the
ideas previously existing in the mind of the person to whom it is made_.
It may be reasonably expected that God