they had not discovered and could not discover by the
The Holy Spirit in Prophets and Apostles 249
special inspiration to reveal the truth in wood, gold,
silver, brass, etc., as the apostle or prophet needs it to
reveal the Word of God with pen and ink on parchment. There is much reasoning in these days about
inspiration that appears at first sight very learned, but
that will not bear much rigid scrutiny or candid com-
parison with the exact statements of the Word of God. There is nothing in the Bible more inspired than the
tabernacle, and if the Destructive Critics would study
it more, they would give up their ingenious but untena-
ble theories as to the composite structure of the
Pentateuch.
2. Truth hidden from man for ages and which
they had not discovered and could not discover by the
unaided processes of human reasoning has been re-
vealed to apostles and prophets in the Spirit. We read in Eph. iii. 3-5, R* V., " By revelation
was made known unto me the mystery, as I wrote afore
in few words, whereby, when ye read, ye can perceive my understanding in the mystery of Christ ; which in
other generations was not made known unto the sons of
men, as it bath now been revealed unto His holy Apostles and prophets in the Spirit" The Bible contains truth
that men had never discovered before the Bible stated
it. It contains truth that men never could have dis-
covered if left to themselves. Our heavenly Father, in
great grace, has revealed this truth to us His children
through His servants, the apostles and the prophets. TJie
Holy Spirit is the agent of this revelation. There are
many who tell us to-day that we should test the state-
ments of Scripture by the conclusions of human
250 The Person and Work of the Holy Spirit
reasoning or by the " Christian consciousness." The
folly of all this is evident when we bear in mind that
the revelation of God transcends human reasoning, and
that any consciousness that is not the product of the
study and absorption of Bible truth is not really a
Christian consciousness. The fact that the Bible does
contain truth that man never had discovered we know
not merely because it is so stated in the Scriptures, but
we know it also as a matter of fact. There is not one
of the most distinctive and precious doctrines taught in
the Bible that men have ever discovered apart from the
Bible. If our consciousness differs from the state-
ments of this Book, which is so plainly God's Book, it
is not yet fully Christian and the thing to do is not to
try to pull God's revelation down to the level of our
consciousness but to tone our consciousness up to the
level of God's Word.
3. The revelation made to the prophets was in-
dependent of their own thinking. It was made to them
by the Spirit of Christ which was in them. And was
a subject of inquiry to their own mind as to its mean-
ing. It was not their own thought, but His. We read in i Peter i. 10, n, 12, R. V., " Concern-
ing which salvation the prophets sought and searched
diligently, who prophesied of the grace that should come
unto you: searching what time or what manner of time
the Spirit of Christ which was in them did point unto^ when it (He) testified beforehand the sufferings of
Christ, and the glories that should follow them. To whom it was revealed, that not unto themselves, but unto
you, did they minister these things, which now have