Scripture

Use in the book

The comparison of the Bible with the Iliad concerns their relation to religions and poetry; it is not a claim of identical doctrine. Biblical style appears to conceal all operation of mind and art, leaving pure nature. Yet translating it requires choices: spacious words, loose joins and an air of age, in contrast with the Gospel’s ease and flowing naturalness. Another fragment pairs the Gospels’ hope with the old testament’s promises without elaborating their difference. These witnesses show why a single uniform sacred style would flatten Joubert’s vocabulary.

Places to read

1. I, p. 151, entry 8, ¶1A relation between books and traditions is expressed by analogy.
2. I, p. 463, entry 5, ¶1Biblical style seems natural and without felt art.
3. II, p. 846, entry 4, ¶1Hope and promises form an unexplained nominal pairing.
4. II, p. 873–874, entry 8, ¶1Different translation textures are prescribed for Bible and Gospel.

Translation in this edition

The English translation preserves the Bible/Gospel distinction and the unfinished syntax of the translation prescription. The source punctuation anomaly after air remains in French. Beaunier’s earlier excerpt is separately labeled; its printed editorial omissions are not used to complete the main text.

Use in the book

The imagined private book sent from heaven is surpassed by the actual Bible. Its long history fills many ages with prophets, holy persons, and divine acts; what seemed less extraordinary than a personal miracle proves more abundant. Scripture’s reception is itself part of the world’s communicative wealth.

Understanding matters as much as possession of the text. The truths of creation and human dignity open Scripture’s glory, while an implicit faith ought to grow toward intelligent assurance. The friend who cites a biblical saying also delights in giving its reason. This is not a programme of replacing Scripture with unaided speculation. It is the insistence that testimony should become a clear and active perception of what is testified.

Places to read

1. II.2Misunderstanding the world’s first gifts obscures the glory of Scripture.
2. III.34The Bible’s historical transmission is preferred to an isolated miraculous delivery.
3. III.43Scriptures belong among the provisions of the covenant of grace.
4. IV.6Assurance grows through understanding what faith receives.
5. IV.31A scriptural claim is accompanied by an account of its reason.

In this edition

Biblical quotation, Traherne’s exposition, and the 2026 editor’s annotations are distinct layers. The comments in this entry concern the first two and do not attribute modern source notes to Traherne.