Excerpt from A New and Complete Concordance to the Holy Scriptures, on the Basis of Cruden

The question may reasonably be proposed, Why add another to the many works of the kind already published? In reply, the following explanations are subjoined: A perfectly complete concordance would be one by which any passage of the Bible might be found by any word which the passage sought for contained. But such a concordance, though per feet in completeness, would be so large and unwieldy, as in a great measure to defeat its own utility. Accordingly, Cruden omits many of the minuter words from his columns of reference, and not unfrequently words of considerable consequence to the passages which contain them. The London edition of 1836 is before me, and selecting a passage at ran dom, I find that the 17th verse of the 49th Psalm is vainly sought by any of the words printed in italics. For when he dieth he shall carry nothing away his glory shall not descend after him. See in like manner, John Jesus then cometh, and taketh bread, and giveth them, and fish likewise. Many such examples will present themselves in the familiar use of his concordance. No doubt the passages may generally be found without difiiculty by means of some other term embodied in them or their immediate con text; but that just shows what I am now wishing to establish, that Cruden himself very properly proceeds, to a great extent, on the principle of harmless abbreviation. In the de sire, however, to make his concordance what it professes to be, complete, he has crowded many pages with words of inferior moment, by which, it may be safely averred, the portions of Scripture to which they belong are seldom, if ever, consulted. In all ordinary cases, then, these supernumerary references obstruct, instead of promoting a prompt and ready access to the passages desired. Might not an important service, then, be rendered to scrip tural knowledge by reducing Cruden's work as much as possible in its dimensions, so as to render it less cumbrous and less costly, without materially impairing its actual useful ness? It did not appear that the design was quite satisfactorily accomplished by any of the minor concordances already in existence. Brown's Concordance is so small as to be quite inadequate. Bagster's, by referring only to chapters and verses, without introducing any of the words, leaves the inquirer uncertain in which of all the localities referred to he is to find what he is seeking. Butterworth gives the reference, sometimes with and some times without quotations, thus occasioning, to a considerable degree, the same sort of per plexity; and all the other abridgments which there was an opportunity of examining, appeared liable to some such objections. Hence the present work was undertaken; and the religious community will judge how far it was required, and how far it is fitted to sup ply the deficiency.

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