Y Prawf O Wirionedd Y Grefydd Gristionogol Wedi Ei Gasglu O Gyflawniad Llythyrenol Prophwydoliaeth; Yn Neillduol Fel Y Mae Yn Cael Ei Egluro Yn Hanes Yr Iuddewon; A Thrwy Ddarganfyddiadau Teithwyr Diweddar. Yn Nghyd Ag Arddawd Yn Cynwys Eglurhad O Wirionedd Hanesyddol Yr Ysgrythyrau, Wedi Ei Gyfieithu, A'I Gasglu Gan Y Parch. Owen Jones. Y Cyfan Wedi Ei Addurno A'i Egluro A Iluaws O gerf-Luniau. (First Welsh Edition)
Llundain: Blackie A'I Fab, Paternoster Row; Glasgow, AC Edinburgh, 1869. Illustrated. First Welsh Edition. Hardcover. Written entirely in Welsh. Title loosely translated into English: "The Test of the Truth of the Christian Religion Compiled from Literal Completement The Prophet of Doliath; Especially as it is Explained in the History of the Jews; and Through the Discoveries of Recent Travelers. By Alexander Keith, D.D.; Together with an Endorsement of Containing an Explanation of the Historical Truth of the Scriptures, Translated and Collected by the Reverend Owen Jones. The Whole Decorated and Explained with Multiple Sculptures. Published by Blackie A'I Fab, Paternoster Row; Glasgow, AC Edinburgh. London. 1869."
Alexander Keith (1791–1880) was a Church of Scotland minister at St. Cyrus. The English book first appeared in 1828 and was reprinted many times. The Welsh title means “The Proof of the Truth of the Christian Religion, Collected from the Literal Fulfilment of Prophecy; Particularly as Explained in the History of the Jews, and by the Discoveries of Recent Travellers.”
The argument is evidential, not a life of Christ or a systematic theology. Keith holds that Old Testament predictions were fulfilled literally, and that this fulfilment is proof of Christianity against sceptics. The main case is the history of the Jews: dispersion, the fall of Jerusalem, survival as a distinct people, and the desolation of Judea and neighbouring cities, read as matching texts in Moses, Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Ezekiel. He then uses early nineteenth-century travel accounts — ruins at Babylon, Nineveh, Tyre, Petra, and in Palestine — as on-the-ground confirmation that prophecies of ruined cities had come true. Later editions, including this illustrated one, lean heavily on those plates.
Keith was also a Christian restorationist, and the book treats a future return of the Jews to the land as part of the same prophetic scheme. The 1869 Blackie volume is that argument in Welsh, packaged as a large illustrated religious book rather than a new work.
ABOUT THIS COPY: Bound in half navy blue leather and navy blue textured cloth. Covers are plain with gilt lining at the leather cloth seams. Hubbed spine bears five raised bands and is ornamented with gilt and stamped gilt lettering. All edges marbled. Olive green endpapers. Contains 23 illustrative plates in both sepia and black and white, one of which is fold-out. Also contains smaller images within the text in black and white. Indexed. xvi, 656 pp.
CONDITION: Moderate external wear and rubbing. Inner hinges have cracked yet boards are still well affixed and the binding is sound. Leaves are lightly toned with some foxing throughout, yet does not contain any annotation or written markings. Illustrations are intricate and lovely. A nice first Welsh edition, and solid copy. Full refund if not satisfied. Very Good.
Item #081922
Price: $100.00