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Excerpt
from A. Campbell's historic address, delivered at the Cross
Creek (Va.) Regular Baptist Assoc. Meeting.
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"The
term 'law' denotes in common usage, "a rule of
action." It was used by the Jews, until the time of our
Savior, to distinguish the whole revelation made to the
Patriarchs and Prophets, from the traditions and commandments of
the rabbis or doctors of the law. Thus the Jews called the
Psalms of David, law, Jn. 12:34 (Psa. 110:4). And again,
our Savior calls the Psalms of David, law, Jer. 10:34 (Psm.
82:6). Thus when we hear David extolling God's law, we are to
understand him as referring to all divine revelation extant in
his time. But when the Old Testament scriptures were finished,
and divided according to their contents for the use of
synagogues, the Jews styled them the law, the prophets and the
psalms. Lu. 24:44. Christ says, "All things written in the
law of Moses, in the prophets and in the psalms concerning me,
must be fulfilled."
The
addition of the definite article in this instance as well as all
others, alters the signification or at least determines it.
During the life of Moses, the words "the law," without
some explicative addition, were never used. Joshua, Moses'
successor, denominates the writings of Moses, "the book of
the law"; but never uses the phrase by itself. Nor indeed
have we any authentic account of this phrase being used, without
some restrictive definition, until the reign of Abijah, 2 Chron.
14:4, at which time it was used to denote the whole legal
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dispensation by Moses. In this way it is used about thirty times in the Old Testament, and as
often with such epithets as show that the whole law of Moses is
intended.
When
the doctrines of the reign of Heaven began to be... contrasted
with the Mosaic economy, the phrase "the law,"
became very common, and when used without... restrictive
definition invariably denoted the whole legal or Mosaic
dispensation. In this acceptation it occurs about 150 times in
the New Testament. To make myself more intelligible, I would
observe that when the terms "the law"
have such distinguishing properties or restrictive', definitions
as "the law of faith," "the law of Christ,"
"the law of the spirit of life," etc., it is most
obvious the whole Mosaic law or dispensation is not intended.
But when we find the phrase "the law," without any
such limitations or epithets, as "the law was given by
Moses," "then law and the prophets were until
John," "if ye be led by the Spirit, ye are not under
the law," "ye are not under the law but under
grace," etc., we must perceive the whole law of Moses, or
legal dispensation, is intended.
I
say the whole law, or dispensation of Moses; — for in
modern times the law of Moses is divided and classified under
three heads, denominated the moral, ceremonial, and judicial
law. This division of the law being unknown in the apostolic
age, and of course never used by the Apostles, can serve no
valuable purpose in obtaining a correct knowledge of the
doctrine delivered by the Apostles respecting the law."
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