their majestic rhythm. But have you ever, sitting in
church on a Christmas morning, asked yourself what it all means, or if it
mean anything more than a sing-song according somehow with the holly and
ivy around the pillars? _'Thou hast multiplied the nation, and not
increased the joy: they joy before thee according to the joy in
harvest,'_ But why--if the joy be not increased? _'For every battle of
the warrior is with confused noise, and garments rolled in blood: but
this shall be with burning and fuel of fire.'_ Granted the rhythmical
antithesis, where is the real antithesis, the difference, the
improvement? If a battle there must be, how is burning better than
garments rolled in blood? And, in fine, what is it all about? Now let us
turn to the Revised Version:--

But there shall be no gloom to her that was in anguish. In the
former time he brought into contempt the land of Zebulun and the
land of Naphtali, but in the latter time hath he made it glorious,
by the way of the sea, beyond Jordan, Galilee of the nations.

The people that walked in darkness have seen a great light: they
that dwelt in the land of the shadow of death, upon them hath the
light shined. Thou hast multiplied the nation, thou hast
increased their joy: they joy before thee according to the joy in
harvest, as men rejoice when they divide the spoil.

For the yoke of his burden, and the staff of his shoulder, the
rod of his oppressor, thou hast broken as in the day of Midian.

For all the armour of the armed man in the tumult, and the
garments rolled in blood, shall even be for burning, for fuel of
fire.

For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given; and the
government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be
called Wonderful, Counsellor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father,
Prince of Peace.

I say (knowing no Hebrew, merely assuming our Revisers to be at least no
worse scholars than the forty-seven) that here, with the old cadences
kept so far as possible, we are given sense in place of nonsense: and I
ask you to come to the Revised Version with a fair mind. I myself came to
it with some prejudice; in complete ignorance of Hebrew, and with no more
than the usual amount of Hellenistic Greek. I grant at once that the
Revised New Testament was a literary fiasco; largely due (if gossip may
be trusted) to trouble with the Greek Aorist, and an unwise d