Professor Godet is well known all over Europe as one of the ablest and most trustworthy of living Biblical scholars. It is not, I venture to think, too much to say that he combines in himself many of the most valuable characteristics of the best German, French, and English theologians. He has much of the depth of thought, and of the comprehensive knowledge of the whole literature of his subjects, of the Germans, much of the lucidity, compactness of style, and epigrammatic point of the French, and of the sobriety and practical mind of the English. The adversaries whose arguments he selects to meet are, it will not be denied, not the feeblest, but the ablest and most learned on their side - such as Strauss, Baur, and others of their stamp-in these vital controversies. And his mind is so richly furnished with the best kind of knowledge of the Bible and of Christian Theology, that the collateral interest and suggestiveness of these Essays, and of the Professor's obiter dicta upon the subjects of which he treats, is, it seems to me, great. So that, even when one may not be able to agree with his views, one can hardly fail to learn something from what he

says.

Perhaps it may be thought that knowledge of French is now so common amongst us, that it is needless to translate French books. But besides that such knowledge is by no means universal

among Christian ministers and teachers, there are, I think, many, even of those who read French with ease, who would much prefer, as I do myself, to read books upon sacred subjects, and specially the Bible, in their native English.

I trust, therefore, that if I have succeeded in rendering Professor Godet's thoughts into idiomatic and readable English (I can warrant that the translation is strictly faithful), this book may prove a really valuable contribution to our English popular literature upon the great questions of which it treats. In these days, when so many have drifted to sea on the shoreless ocean of a boundless scepticism; when some are ready to erect altars, not only "to the Unknown," but even-alas that it should be so to One whom they think the "Unknowable" God -for some strangely think they know there is an "Unknowable" God; when one man of noble mind. and nature, who had once been a devout Christian, sadly told us, at the end of his short life, that he had arrived at believing that he saw "an empty heaven looking down upon a soulless earth," SO that "we" loving, hoping, fearing persons, "are the offspring" of a huge unconscious machine, grinding on from eternity, till it stumbled into producing us, and the human mind is the highest in existence !— in such days, one may indeed be thankful if one can contribute any thoughts, such as these of Professor

Godet, whereby any souls may, by the blessing of God, be saved from the miseries of blank and hopeless unbelief.

May this book now give its readers some of the great pleasure and edification which its translation has afforded me during a painful illness which unfitted me for other work, and bring some gratitude, and some new readers of his other valuable works, to my honoured friend, Professor Godet.

THE CLOISTERS, GLOUCESTER.

W. H. LYTTELTON.

P.S.-I venture here to draw attention to two other books by Professor Godet, which I, in company with one now withdrawn "beyond the veil," translated some years ago, namely, Biblical Studies on the Old and New Testaments (published by Hodder & Stoughton).

The earlier parts of this book were originally published in The Expositor, which I regret that I forgot to mention in the First Edition.