(from the latter part of the quotation just given) to have had his eye on the Septuagint rendering which agrees with the English.
The celebrated Rabbi Maimonides took the same view, as will be seen later on. And thus, I hope, is one obstacle to a right understanding of the Scripture on this point wholly swept away.
II. I come now to what is here called "Parity of Reasoning:" "a wonderful phrase," says Mr. Punshon—yes, wonderfully inconvenient for him. The phrase is used by excellent scholars on both sides, who, I dare say, think it very good English. The meaning, however, is all we are concerned with. It is an argument from the parallelism of the cases ruled by the Law of Marriage, and must come home to men's reason and consciences as "wonderfully" just and weighty. Here it is; In Lev. xviii. 6 the general principle is laid down, "None of you shall approach to any that is near of kin to him, [Marg. Heb. "remainder of flesh "], to uncover their nakedness." The expression here used, "near of kin" or "remainder of flesh," includes without any controversy whatever two classes of relations—those of consanguinity, or blood relations; and those of affinity, or relations by marriage. Of the former there is no dispute; of the latter, take the example referred to before in ver. 17, where a man is forbidden to marry the daughter of his wife or the daughter of her son, or of her daughter. They are no blood relations to him; why then are they forbidden? "For they are her near kinswomen (or flesh): it is wickedness." And this is the same expression and the same reason as where blood relations are spoken of; e. g. ver. 12, " Thou shalt not uncover the nakedness of thy father's sister: she is thy father's near kinswoman, (or flesh). "Quite clear then it is that there may be and are relationships by affinity which preclude marriage according to God's Law, but we most unreasonably expect to find in the Scripture detailed lists of prohibited degrees. It is enough to find great principles set down with the utmost perspicuity, and numerous examples enabling us to apply those principles with certainty. Here is such a list.
The Word of God forbids a man to marry "any that is near of kin to him;" and mentions, in the following order, thirteen instances of persons directly or indirectly near of kin, viz:—
His Mother,
his Stepmother or Father's Wife,
his Sister,
his Half-sister,
his own Grand-daughter,
his Father's Sister,
his Mother's Sister,
his Aunt or Father's Brother's Wife,
his own Daughter-in-Law or Son's Wife,
his Sister-in-Law or Brother's Wife,
his Wife's Mother,
his Wife's Daughter,
his Wife's Grand-daughter.
Six of these women are blood-relations; seven (printed in Italics) are relations by marriage only. Yet the whole follow the words "near of kin" without any distinction: except that after the charge not to marry his wife's relations there is added, "for they are her near kinswomen; it is wickedness." This last Word is the translation of the
