ty, the distinction between the Bible and the Apocrypha is
fundamental: the one is accepted as authoritative in matters of faith,
whereas the Apocryphal books are merely recommended for devout reading.
But in literary study the distinction disappears; and two books of the
Apocrypha are of the highest literary importance,--Ecclesiasticus and
The Wisdom of Solomon. The Wisdom series of the Modern Reader's Bible
arranges the representative books of Biblical philosophy in the order of
its logical development. The Proverbs is a Miscellany of Sayings and
Poems, embodying isolated observations of life. Ecclesiasticus is a
Miscellany including longer compositions, but still embodying only
isolated observations of life. In Ecclesiastes we find a connected
series of writings, in which attempt is made to solve the mystery of the
universe: but the attempt breaks down in despair. The Wisdom of Solomon
renews the attempt in the light of an immortal life beyond the grave,
and despair yields to serenity of spirit. The four books thus reflect a
philosophical advance. In The Book of Job--one of the world's literary
marvels--men's varying attitudes towards the mystery of life are
represented in various speakers, and drawn together into a unity by the
movement of a dramatic plot. Such is the wisdom of the sacred Scriptures
viewed as a whole; in the present volume it is only possible to
illustrate the different forms, whether of poetry or of prose, in which
Biblical philosophy is conveyed.

Biblical Lyrics may be mentioned next. Originally, all poetry was spoken
with musical accompaniment; when this primitive literature began to
divide up into specialised forms, Lyric was the literary form which
retained most of the spirit of music. It includes Songs and Odes, in
which the very structure of the poem is determined by the mode of its
performance; Psalms and Lamentations; the Traditional Poetry scattered
through the historical books; again, considerable portions of prophetic
literature are found to take a lyric form. Even in the ordinary versions
the Psalms and Lamentations retain something of their poetic structure;
the less obvious features of lyric rhythm will be illustrated in the
selections admitted into this volume.

Of the fundamental divisions of literature there yet remains one--the
Drama. The relation of this to the Bible is interesting. It is
impossible to read the scriptures of the Old Testament without feeling
that the genius of