Calvin's Commentaries, Vol. 26: Hosea, tr. by John King, [1847-50], at sacred-texts.com
Prejudice has often deprived many of advantages which they might have otherwise derived: and this has been much the case with respect to The Works of Calvin; they have been almost entirely neglected for a long time, owing to impressions unfavorable to the Author. In his own and the succeeding age, the authority of Calvin as a Divine, and especially as an Expounder of Scripture, was very high, and higher than that of any of the Reformers. Though an eminent writer of the present day, Dr. D’Aubigne, has pronounced Melancthon “the Theologian of the Reformation,” yet there is sufficient reason to ascribe that distinction to Calvin; and to him, no doubt, it more justly belongs, than to any other of the many illustrious men whom God raised up during that memorable period.
It is not difficult to account for what happened to our Author. Various things combined to depreciate his repute. In this country his views on Church government created in many a prejudice against him; and then the progress of a theological system, not more contrary to what he held than to what our own Reformers maintained, increased this prejudice; and where the former ground of difference and dislike did not exist, the latter prevailed: so that, generally in our Church, and among Dissenting bodies, the revered name of Calvin has been regarded with no feelings of affection, or even of respect; no discrimination being exercised, and no distinction being made between his great excellencies as an Expounder of Scripture, and his peculiar views on Church discipline, and on the doctrine of Predestination.
On the Continent other things operated against his reputation. Popery owed him a deep grudge; for no one of the Reformers probed the depths of its iniquities with so much discrimination, and with such an unsparing hand as he did. His remarkably acute mind enabled him to do this most effectually; and there is much on this subject in the present work, which renders it especially valuable at this period, when Popery makes such efforts to spread its errors and delusions. The two weapons which he commonly employed were Scripture and common sense, — weapons ever dreaded by Popery; and to blunt their edge has at all times been its attempt, the first, by vain tradition, and the other, by implicit faith, not in God, or in God’s word, but in a palpably degenerated Church. But these weapons Calvin wielded with no common skill dexterity, and power, being deeply versed in Scripture, and endued with no ordinary share of sound and penetrating judgment. In addition to this, his doctrinal views were diametrically opposed to those of Popery, and especially to the papal system, as modified by and concentrated in Jesuitism, which may be considered to be the most perfect form of Popery. For these reasons, the Writings of Calvin could not have been otherwise than extremely obnoxious to the adherents of the Church of Rome: and the consequence has been, that they spared no efforts to vilify his name, and to lessen his reputation.
The first writer of eminence and acknowledged learning in this country, who has done any thing like justice to Calvin, was Bishop Horsley; and when we consider the very strong prejudice which at that time prevailed almost in all quarters against Calvin, to vindicate his character was no ordinary proof of moral courage. There were, no doubt, some points in which the two were very like. They both possessed minds of no common strength and vigor, and minds discriminating no less than vigorous. In clearness of perception, also, they had few equals; so that no one needs hardly ever read a passage in the writings of either twice over in order to understand its meaning. But probably the most striking point of likeness was their independence of mind. They thought for themselves, without being swayed by authority either ancient or modern, and acknowledged no rule and no authority in religion but that which is divine. The Bishop had more imagination, but the Pastor of Geneva had a sounder judgment. Hence the Bishop, notwithstanding his strong mind and great acuteness, was sometimes led away by what was plausible and novel; but Calvin was ever sober-minded and judicious, and whatever new view he gives to a passage, it is commonly well supported, and for the most part gains at once our approbation.
But something must be said of the present work.
It embraces the most difficult portion, in some respects, of The Old Testament, and of that portion, as acknowledged by all, the most difficult is The Book Of The Prophet Hosea. Probably no part of Scripture is commonly read with so little benefit as The Minor Prophets, owing, no doubt, to the obscurity in which some parts are involved. That there is much light thrown on many abstruse passages in this Work, and more than by any existing Comment in our language, is the full conviction of the writer. Acute, sagacious, and sometimes profound, the Author is at the same time remarkably simple, plain, and lucid, and ever practical and useful. The most learned may here gather instruction, and the most unlearned may understand almost every thing that is said. The whole object of the Author seems to be to explain, simplify, and illustrate the text, and he never turns aside to other matters. He is throughout an Expounder, keeps strictly to his office, and gives to every part its full and legitimate meaning according to the context, to which he ever especially attends.
The style of Hosea is somewhat peculiar. Jerome has long ago characterized it as being commatic, sententious; and those links, the connective particles, by which different parts are joined together, are sometimes omitted. This is, indeed, in a measure the character of the style of all the Prophets, but more so with respect to Hosea than any other. What at the same time creates the greatest difficulty is the rapidity of his transitions, and the change of person, number, and gender. Persons are spoken to and spoken of sometimes in the same verse; and he passes from the singular to the plural number, and the reverse, and sometimes from the masculine to the feminine gender. To account for these transitions is not always easy.
It has been thought by many critics, that the received Hebrew text of Hosea is in a more imperfect state than that of any other portion of Scripture; but Bishop Horsley denies this in a manner the most unhesitating; and those emendations which Archbishop Newcome introduced in his version, about 51 in number, the Bishop has swept away as unauthorized, and, indeed, as unnecessary, for most of them had been proposed to remedy the anomalies peculiar to the style of this Prophet; and some of those few emendations, which the Bishop himself introduced, founded on the authority of MSS., Calvin’s exposition shows to be unnecessary. The fact is, that different readings, collected by the laborious Kennicott and others, have done chiefly this great good — to show the extraordinary correctness of our received text. Throughout this Prophet, there is hardly an instance in which the collations of MSS. have supplied an improvement, and certainly no improvement of any material consequence.
This Work of Calvin appears now for the first time in the English language. There is a French translation, but not made by the Author himself, as in the case of some other portions of his writings, and can therefore be of no authority. The following translation has been made from an edition printed at Geneva in 1567, three years after Calvin’s death, compared with another, printed also at Geneva in 1610.
It has been thought advisable to adopt our common version as the text, and to put Calvin’s Latin version in a parallel column. His version is a literal rendering of the original, without any regard to idiom, and to translate it has been found impracticable, at least in such a way as to be understood by common readers. His practice evidently was to translate the Hebrew word for word, and to make this his text, and then in his Comment to modify the expressions so as to reduce them into readable Latin, and his version thus modified agrees in most instances with our authorized version. The agreement is so remarkable, that the only conclusion is, that this Work must have been much consulted by our Translators.
In making quotations from Scripture, the Author seems to have followed no version, but to have made one of his own; and they are often given paraphrastically, the meaning rather than the words being regarded. The same is often done also with respect to the passages explained, the words being frequently varied. In these instances the Author has been strictly followed throughout in this Translation, and his quotations, and the text when paraphrased, are marked by a single inverted comma.
The Hebrew words which occur in the Lectures are not accompanied with the points, and it has not been deemed necessary to add them. The words are given in corresponding English characters, with the insertion of such vowels only as are necessary to enunciate them, and these vowels, to distinguish them from the Hebrew vowels, are put in Roman characters. The Hebrew vowels are uniformly given the same, and not with that almost endless variety of sounds to which the points have reduced them. The ו vau, is always represented by u, except when in sonic instances it is followed by a vowel, and then by v. The Hebrews have four vowels corresponding with a, e, u, i, and o, in English.
This work is calculated to be of material help to those engaged in translations. Our Missionaries may derive from it no small assistance, as it gives as literal a version of the Hebrew as can well be made, and contains much valuable criticism, and develops, in a very lucid and satisfactory manner, the drift and meaning of many difficult passages. There is no existing Commentary in which the text is so minutely examined, and so clearly explained. There are also many of the most approved expositions given by others referred to and stated; and the Translator has added, on interesting and difficult passages, what has been suggested by learned critics since the time of the Author.
If it be a right rule to judge of the impressions which the perusal of this volume, now presented to the public, may produce on others, by what one has himself experienced, the Editor will mention one thing in particular, and that is, that he fully expects that those who will carefully read this volume will be more impressed than ever with the extreme propensity of human nature to idolatry, and with the amazing power and blinding effects of superstition. The conduct of the Israelites, notwithstanding all the means employed to restore them to the true worship of God, is here described with no ordinary minuteness and specialty. Though God sent his Prophets to them to remind them of their sins, to reason and expostulate with them, to threaten and to exhort them, to draw and allure them with promises of pardon and acceptance; and though God chastised them in various ways, and then withheld his displeasure, and showed them indulgence, they yet continued obstinately attached to their idolatry and superstition, and all the while professed and boasted that they worshipped the true God, and perversely maintained that their mixed service, the worship of God, and the worship of idols, was right and lawful, and vastly superior to what the Prophets recommended.
Having this case of the Israelites in view, we need not be surprised at the fascinating and blinding influence of Popery, whose idolatry and superstitions are exactly of the same character with those of the Israelites; no two cases can be more alike. Their identity is especially seen in this, — that there is an union of two worships — of God and of images; and this union was the idolatry condemned in the Israelites, and is the very idolatry that now exists in the Church of Rome: and as among the Israelites, so among the Papists, though God is not excluded, but owned, yet the chief worship is given to false gods and their images. That the two systems are the same, no one can doubt, except those who are under the influence of strong delusion; and this is what is often referred to and amply proved in this work.
It may be useful to subjoin here an account of the time in which THE TWELVE MINOR PROPHETS lived. The precise time cannot be ascertained: they flourished between the two dates which are here given. The names of the other four Prophets are also added.
BEFORE THE BABYLONIAN CAPTIVITY
I. Jonah,... 856-784.
II. Amos,... 810-785.
III. Hosea,... 810-725.
1 Isaiah,.... 810-698.
IV. Joel,... 810-660.
V. Micah,... 758-699.
VI. Nahum,... 720-698.
VII. Zephaniah,... 640-609.
IMMEDIATELY PREVIOUS TO AND DURING THE CAPTIVITY
2. Jeremiah,... 628-586.
VIII. Habakkuk,... 612-598.
3. Daniel,... 606-534.
IX. Obadiah,... 588-583.
4. Ezekiel,... 595-536.
X. Haggai,... 520-518.
XI. Zechariah,... 520-518.
XII. Malachi,... 436-420.
In the last Volume, the fourth, will be given the two Indices appended to the original work.
J.O.
THRUSSINGTON, September 1, 1816.
After the preceding Preface had gone through the press, it has been discovered that The Twelve Minor Prophets cannot be comprised in four volumes of the size generally published in the present Series of The Works Of John Calvin.
The Translation, though it be as brief and concise as the idiom of the English language will well admit, takes up more space than the Editor at first anticipated. His first calculation was made from the Latin: he was not then fully aware of the great disparity in the two languages as to relative diffuseness of style. He has since found, by a minute comparison, that a work in Latin, comprised in five volumes, would require at least six of the same size and type in English: and in the present instance, what was calculated would be contained in four, must be extended to five volumes, on account of the respective Prefaces and Notes, &C. by the Editor, besides the Literal Translations Of each of the Books Of The Twelve Minor Prophets, which it has since been resolved shall be appended to each successive Commentary,
The arrangement of this Work, now made with some degree of certainty, is as follows:
The First Volume is to contain Hosea;
The Second Volume, Joel, Amos, and Obadiah;
The Third Volume, Jonah, Micah, and Nahum;
The Fourth Volume, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, and Haggai; and
The Fifth Volume, Zechariah and Malachi.
On this account, the Volumes cannot be all of equal size, some being considerably above, and some below, the average extent of the present Series of Calvin’s Works, being 500 pages on the average. To avoid such inequality, it would have been needful to divide some of the Books — a thing by no means desirable in any case, and which has been studiously shunned in all the other Commentaries.
In addition to what was originally contemplated, there will be given at the end of each Book a continuous Literal Translation Of Calvin’s Latin Version, as modified by his Commentary; and the Editor is requested to state that a similar plan is to be observed in all the other Prophetical Books of the Old Testament.
Editor.
Thrussington, September 1846.