Let us,
first of all, consider it from the common-sense point of view, as
ordinary men of the world, trying to get at the truth and the reason of
a thing.

What would one naturally expect in a revelation by God to man?

1. We should expect God to reveal truths of which mankind were ignorant.

2. We should expect God to make no errors of fact in His revelation.

3. We should expect God to make His revelation so clear and so definite
that it could be neither misunderstood nor misrepresented.

4. We should expect God to ensure that His revelation should reach _all_
men; and should reach all men directly and quickly.

5. We should expect God's revelation of the relations existing between
Himself and man to be true.

6. We should expect the ethical code in God's revelation to be complete,
and final, and perfect. The divine ethics should at least be above
human criticism and beyond human amendment.

To what extent does the Bible revelation fulfil the above natural
expectations?

1. Does the Bible reveal any new moral truths?

I cannot speak very positively, but I think there is very little moral
truth in the Bible which has not been, or will not be traced back to
more ancient times and religions.

2. Does the Bible revelation contain no errors of fact?

I claim that it contains many errors of fact, and the Higher Criticism
supports the claim; as we shall see.

3. Is the Bible revelation so clear and explicit that no difference of
opinion as to its meaning is possible?

No. It is not. No one living can claim anything of the kind.

4. Has God's revelation, as given in the Bible, reached all men?

No. After thousands of years it is not yet known to one-half the human
race.

5. Is God's revelation of the relations between man and God true?

I claim that it is not true. For the word of God makes it appear that
man was created by God in His own image, and that man sinned against
God. Whereas man, being only what God made him, and having only the
powers God gave him, _could_ not sin against God any more than a
steam-engine can sin against the engineer who designed and built it.

6. Is the ethical code of the Bible complete, and final, and perfect?

No. The ethical code of the Bible gradually develops and improves. Had
it been divine it would have been perfect from the first. It is because
it is human that it develops. As the prophets and the poets of the Jews
grew wiser,