. But without appealing to his authority every unbiased reader
may convince himself of the nature and character {27} of the Book; it
is not necessary to depend upon the testimony of men who lived
centuries ago, though they were inspired men. The Book is an open
book, ready for examination, and inviting the closest scrutiny on the
part of every reader.

Former generations found the principal arguments in favor of the belief
in a divine element in the Old Testament in the presence of miracles in
its records and in the fulfillment of prophecy. The present generation
cannot depend upon these arguments exclusively. The whole question of
miracles in the Old Testament has assumed a different aspect within
recent years. In the first place, it is seen that in some places where
formerly a miracle was thought to have been wrought natural causes may
have played a prominent part, as, for example, in the crossing of the
Red Sea and the Jordan. In other cases language which used to be
interpreted literally is now seen to be poetic and imaginative. In
still other cases the absolute historical accuracy of certain
narratives has come to be questioned. All this has resulted in a
weakening of the evidence relied upon by former generations.
Approaching the subject of miracles from another side, a better
acquaintance with the uniformity of nature and the laws of nature has
led some to question even the possibility of miracles, while the
greater emphasis upon the immanence of God has resulted {28} in altered
conceptions of the natural and supernatural, if not in an almost
complete obliteration of any distinction between the two. Since
miracles are involved in so much uncertainty, they do not at present
constitute a very strong argument to prove the presence of a divine
element in the Old Testament to one who is at all skeptically inclined;
indeed, there are many sincere Christians who find miracles useless as
an aid to faith.

In a similar manner, one cannot appeal with the same assurance as
formerly to the fulfillment of prophecy. It is undoubtedly true that
many prophetic utterances were fulfilled; it is equally true that some
were not fulfilled. If, however, the apologist depends upon the
fulfillment of prophecy as a proof, the nonfulfillment of even a single
one weakens his position. Moreover, it is recognized at present that
prophecy in the sense of prediction occupies a relatively insignificant
place in the Old Testament.