15. The Bible And The French Revolution. 297
Society was founded. When the British Society was formed, the Bible had been printed and circulated in fifty tongues. It has since been translated into more than four hundred languages and dialects. 426
For the fifty years preceding 1792, little attention was given to the work of foreign missions. No new societies were formed, and there were but few churches that made any effort for the [ 288 ] spread of Christianity in heathen lands. But toward the close of the eighteenth century a great change took place. Men became dissatisfied with the results of rationalism, and realized the necessity of divine revelation and experimental religion. From this time the work of foreign missions attained an unprecedented growth. 427
The improvements in printing have given an impetus to the work of circulating the Bible. The increased facilities for communication between different countries, the breaking down of ancient barriers of prejudice and national exclusiveness, and the loss of secular power by the pontiff of Rome, have opened the way for the entrance of the word of God. For some years the Bible has been sold without restraint in the streets of Rome, and it has now been carried to every part of the habitable globe.
The infidel Voltaire once boastingly said:“ I am weary of hearing people repeat that twelve men established the Christian religion. I will prove that one man may suffice to overthrow it.” A century has passed since his death. Millions have joined in the war upon the Bible. But it is so far from being destroyed, that where there were a hundred in Voltaire ' s time, there are now ten thousand, yes, a hundred thousand copies of the Book of God. In the words of an early Reformer concerning the Christian church,“ The Bible is an anvil that has worn out many hammers.” Saith the Lord,“ No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper;
426 See Appendix. 427 See Appendix.