No. XXXIII.
NEW YEAR, CONTINUED.
We showed in our last number that the first axiom of the.
oral law respecting the mode of justification is false. Moses
requires perfect and universal obedience to all the commandments
as the condition of justification and life, whereas the oral
law says it is sufficient if a man's merits exceed his sins. One
of the two, then, has spoken falsehood. It is for the Jews to
consider which of them they will brand with the character of
liar. As for ourselves, we believe that Moses spoke the truth,
and by his standard of right and wrong we proceed to examine
the second and third principles of Rabbinic justification. The
oral law tells us, further, that when God weighs the merits and
the offences, "This weighing is made not with respect to the
number of the merits and the sins, but according to their
greatness. There is a merit which may outweigh many sins,
as it is said, 'Because in him there is found some good thing.'
(1 Kings xiv. 13.) And there are sins which may outweigh
many merits, for it is said, 'One sinner destroyeth much good.'
(Ecclesiast. ix. 18.)" And for this reason we are told that "In
the ten days between the New Year and the Day of Atonement,
Israel abounds in almsgiving and good works more than in all
the year besides." Such is the hope which the oral law holds
out to Israel. It first tells a man, that if his merits exceed his
sins, he is safe. Then feeling that none but a fool or madman
can dream of his merits exceeding his sins, it tries to quiet the
conscience by assuring the guilty, that the quality of the deeds
is regarded more than their number, and that there may be one
meritorious act which will outweigh many sins. It endeavours
to prove this by a citation from the Book of Kings. This is in
itself suspicious. Why did it not bring one or more plain
passages from the Books of Moses? They contain the law of
God, and the great principles of God's judgment. In determining
a case like this, an appeal to the letter of the law is
absolutely necessary. Let every Israelite, then, before he
trusts his salvation to the oral law, find out one passage in the
law of Moses, where Moses himself declares that "one merit
may outweigh many sins." We know not of one similar
declaration, and therefore hesitate not to say, that whosoever
rests his salvation on this hope, has apostatized from the
religion of Moses.
But the passage itself, which the oral law cites, proves nothing in support of the above principle. The words were spoken of the son of Jeroboam. "He only of Jeroboam shall come to the grave, because in him there is found some good thing towards
