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vi Contents

10 CORRELATION AND REGRESSION


10-1 Correlation 444
442
10-2 Regression 462
10-3 Prediction Intervals and Variation 474
10-4 Multiple Regression 481
10-5 Dummy Variables and Logistic Regression 489

11 GOODNESS-OF-FIT AND CONTINGENCY TABLES


11-1 Goodness-of-Fit 503
502
11-2 Contingency Tables 514

12 ANALYSIS OF VARIANCE
12-1 One-Way ANOVA 533
531
12-2 Two-Way ANOVA 547

13 NONPARAMETRIC TESTS
13-1 Basics of Nonparametric Tests 562
560
13-2 Sign Test 564
13-3 Wilcoxon Signed-Ranks Test for Matched Pairs 575
13-4 Wilcoxon Rank-Sum Test for Two Independent Samples 581
13-5 Kruskal-Wallis Test for Three or More Samples 586
13-6 Rank Correlation 592

14 SURVIVAL ANALYSIS
14-1 Life Tables 604
603
14-2 Kaplan-Meier Survival Analysis 614

APPENDIX A TABLES 625


APPENDIX B DATA SETS 638
APPENDIX C WEBSITES AND BIBLIOGRAPHY OF BOOKS 645
APPENDIX D ANSWERS TO ODD-NUMBERED SECTION EXERCISES 646
(and all Quick Quizzes, all Review Exercises, and all Cumulative Review Exercises)

Credits 683
Index 685

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PREFACE

Statistics permeates nearly every aspect of our lives, and its role has become partic-
ularly important in the biological, life, medical, and health sciences. From opinion
polls to clinical trials in medicine and analysis of big data from health applications,
statistics influences and shapes the world around us. Biostatistics for the Health and
Biological Sciences forges the relationship between statistics and our world through
extensive use of a wide variety of real applications that bring life to theory and
methods.

Goals of This Second Edition


■ Incorporate the latest and best methods used by professional statisticians.
■ Include features that address all of the recommendations included in the Guide-
lines for Assessment and Instruction in Statistics Education (GAISE) as recom-
mended by the American Statistical Association.
■ Provide an abundance of new and interesting data sets, examples, and exercises.
■ Foster personal growth of students through critical thinking, use of technology,
collaborative work, and development of communication skills.
■ Enhance teaching and learning with the most extensive and best set of supple-
ments and digital resources.

Audience , Prerequisites
Biostatistics for the Health and Biological Sciences is written for students major-
ing in the biological and health sciences, and it is designed for a wide variety of
students taking their first statistics course. Algebra is used minimally, and calculus
is not required. It is recommended that students have completed at least an elemen-
tary algebra course or that students should learn the relevant algebra components
through an integrated or co-requisite course. In many cases, underlying theory is
included, but this book does not require the mathematical rigor more appropriate for
mathematics majors.

Hallmark Features
Great care has been taken to ensure that each chapter of Biostatistics for the Health
and Biological Sciences will help students understand the concepts presented. The
following features are designed to help meet that objective.

Real Data
Hundreds of hours have been devoted to finding data that are real, meaningful, and
interesting to students. Fully 87% of the examples are based on real data, and 89% of
the exercises are based on real data. Some exercises refer to the 18 data sets listed in
Appendix B, and 12 of those data sets are new to this edition. Exercises requiring use
of the Appendix B data sets are located toward the end of each exercise set and are
marked with a special data set icon .
Real data sets are included throughout the book to provide relevant and interesting
real-world statistical applications, including biometric security, body measurements,
brain sizes and IQ scores, and data from births. Appendix B includes descriptions of

vii

A01_TRIO9015_02_SE_FM_i-xvi.indd 7 03/11/16 4:02 PM


viii Preface

the 18 data sets that can be downloaded from the companion website www.pearson-
highered.com/triola, the author maintained www.TriolaStats.com and MyStatLab.
TriolaStats.com includes downloadable data sets in formats for technologies
including Excel, Minitab, JMP, SPSS, and TI@83>84 Plus calculators. The data
sets are also included in the free Statdisk software, which is also available on the
website.

Readability
Great care, enthusiasm, and passion have been devoted to creating a book that is readable,
understandable, interesting, and relevant. Students pursuing any major in the biological,
life, medical, or health fields are sure to find applications related to their future work.

Website
This textbook is supported by www.TriolaStats.com, and www.pearsonhighered.com/
triola which are continually updated to provide the latest digital resources, including:
■ Statdisk: A free, robust statistical software package designed for this book.
■ Downloadable Appendix B data sets in a variety of technology formats.
■ Downloadable textbook supplements including Glossary of Statistical Terms and
Formulas and Tables.
■ Online instructional videos created specifically for this book that provide step-
by-step technology instructions.
■ Triola Blog, which highlights current applications of statistics, statistics in the
news, and online resources.

Chapter Features
Chapter Opening Features
■ Chapters begin with a Chapter Problem that uses real data and motivates the
chapter material.
■ Chapter Objectives provide a summary of key learning goals for each section in
the chapter.
Exercises
Many exercises require the interpretation of results. Great care has been taken to
ensure their usefulness, relevance, and accuracy. Exercises are arranged in order of
increasing difficulty, and they begin with Basic Skills and Concepts. Most sections
include additional Beyond the Basics exercises that address more difficult concepts or
require a stronger mathematical background. In a few cases, these exercises introduce
a new concept.
End-of-Chapter Features
■ Chapter Quick Quiz provides review questions that require brief answers.
■ Review Exercises offer practice on the chapter concepts and procedures.
■ Cumulative Review Exercises reinforce earlier material.
■ Technology Project provides an activity that can be used with a variety of
technologies.
■ From Data to Decision is a capstone problem that requires critical thinking and
writing.
■ Cooperative Group Activities encourage active learning in groups.

A01_TRIO9015_02_SE_FM_i-xvi.indd 8 03/11/16 4:02 PM


Preface ix

Other Features
Margin Essays There are 57 margin essays designed to highlight real-world topics
and foster student interest.
Flowcharts The text includes flowcharts that simplify and clarify more complex con-
cepts and procedures. Animated versions of the text’s flowcharts are available within
MyStatLab and MathXL.
Quick-Reference Endpapers Tables A-2 and A-3 (the normal and t distributions) are
reproduced on the rear inside cover pages.
Detachable Formula and Table Card This insert, organized by chapter, gives students
a quick reference for studying, or for use when taking tests (if allowed by the instruc-
tor). It also includes the most commonly used tables. This is also available for download
at www.TriolaStats.com, www.pearsonhighered.com/triola and in MyStatLab.
Technology Integration
As in the preceding edition, there are many displays of screens from technology through-
out the book, and some exercises are based on displayed results from technology. Where
appropriate, sections include a reference to an online Tech Center subsection that in-
cludes detailed instructions for Statdisk, Minitab®, Excel®, StatCrunch, or a TI@83>84
Plus® calculator. (Throughout this text, “TI-83>84 Plus” is used to identify a TI-83 Plus
or TI-84 Plus calculator). The end-of-chapter features include a Technology Project.
The Statdisk statistical software package is designed specifically for this textbook
and contains all Appendix B data sets. Statdisk is free to users of this book, and it can
be downloaded at www.statdisk.org.

Changes in This Edition


New Features
Chapter Objectives provide a summary of key learning goals for each section in the
chapter.
Larger Data Sets: Some of the data sets in Appendix B are much larger than in the
previous edition. It is no longer practical to print all of the Appendix B data sets in this
book, so the data sets are described in Appendix B, and they can be downloaded at
www.TriolaStats.com, www.pearsonhighered.com/triola, and MyStatLab.
New Content: New examples, new exercises, and Chapter Problems provide relevant
and interesting real-world statistical applications, including biometric security, drug
testing, gender selection, and analyzing ultrasound images.

Number New to This Edition Use Real Data


Exercises 1600 85% 89%
Examples 200 84% 87%

Major Organization Changes

All Chapters
■ New Chapter Objectives: All chapters now begin with a list of key learning goals
for that chapter. Chapter Objectives replaces the former Overview numbered sec-
tions. The first numbered section of each chapter now covers a major topic.
Chapter 1
■ New Section 1-1: Statistical and Critical Thinking
■ New Subsection 1-3, Part 2: Big Data and Missing Data: Too Much and Not Enough

A01_TRIO9015_02_SE_FM_i-xvi.indd 9 03/11/16 4:02 PM


x Preface

Chapters 2 and 3
■ Chapter Partitioned: Chapter 2 (Describing, Exploring, and Comparing Data)
from the first edition has been partitioned into Chapter 2 (Summarizing and Graph-
ing) and Chapter 3 (Statistics for Describing, Exploring, and Comparing Data).
■ New Section 2-4: Scatterplots, Correlation, and Regression This new section
includes scatterplots in Part 1, the linear correlation coefficient r in Part 2, and
linear regression in Part 3. These additions are intended to greatly facilitate cover-
age for those professors who prefer some early coverage of correlation and regres-
sion concepts. Chapter 10 includes these topics discussed with much greater detail.
Chapter 4
■ Combined Sections: Section 3-3 (Addition Rule) and Section 3-4 (Multiplication
Rule) from the first edition are now combined into one section: 4-2 (Addition
Rule and Multiplication Rule).
■ New Subsection 4-3, Part 3: Bayes’ Theorem
Chapter 5
■ Combined Sections: Section 4-3 (Binomial Probability Distributions) and
Section 4-4 (Mean, Variance, and Standard Deviation for the Binomial Distribu-
tion) from the first edition are now combined into one section: 5-2 (Binomial
Probability Distributions).
Chapter 6
■ Switched Sections: Section 6-5 (Assessing Normality) now precedes Section 6-6
(Normal as Approximation to Binomial).

Chapter 7
■ Combined Sections: Sections 6-4 (Estimating a Population Mean: s Known)
and 6-5 (Estimating a Population Mean: s Not Known) from the first edition
have been combined into one section: 7-2 (Estimating a Population Mean). The
coverage of the s known case has been substantially reduced and it is now lim-
ited to Part 2 of Section 7-2.
■ New Section 7-4: Bootstrapping: Using Technology for Estimates
Chapter 8
■ Combined Sections: Sections 7-4 (Testing a Claim About a Population Mean: s
Known) and 7-5 (Testing a Claim About a Population Mean: s Not Known) from
the first edition have been combined into one section: 8-3 (Testing a Claim About
a Mean). Coverage of the s known case has been substantially reduced and it is
now limited to Part 2 of Section 8-3.
Chapter 10
■ New Section: 10-5 Dummy Variables and Logistic Regression
Chapter 11
■ New Subsection: Section 11-2, Part 2 Test of Homogeneity, Fisher’s Exact Test,
and McNemar’s Test for Matched Pairs
Chapter 14
■ Combined Sections: Section 13-2 (Elements of a Life Table) and Section 13-3
(Applications of Life Tables) from the first edition have been combined into
Section 14-1 (Life Tables).
■ New Section: 14-2 Kaplan-Meier Survival Analysis

A01_TRIO9015_02_SE_FM_i-xvi.indd 10 03/11/16 4:02 PM


Preface xi

Flexible Syllabus
This book’s organization reflects the preferences of most statistics instructors, but
there are two common variations:
■ Early Coverage of Correlation and Regression: Some instructors prefer to
cover the basics of correlation and regression early in the course. Section 2-4
now includes basic concepts of scatterplots, correlation, and regression without
the use of formulas and greater depth found in Sections 10-1 (Correlation) and
10-2 (Regression).
■ Minimum Probability: Some instructors prefer extensive coverage of probability,
while others prefer to include only basic concepts. Instructors preferring mini-
mum coverage can include Section 4-1 while skipping the remaining sections of
Chapter 4, as they are not essential for the chapters that follow. Many instructors
prefer to cover the fundamentals of probability along with the basics of the addi-
tion rule and multiplication rule (Section 4-2).

GAISE
This book reflects recommendations from the American Statistical Association and
its Guidelines for Assessment and Instruction in Statistics Education (GAISE). Those
guidelines suggest the following objectives and strategies.
1. Emphasize statistical literacy and develop statistical thinking: Each section
exercise set begins with Statistical Literacy and Critical Thinking exercises.
Many of the book’s exercises are designed to encourage statistical thinking
rather than the blind use of mechanical procedures.
2. Use real data: 87% of the examples and 89% of the exercises use real data.
3. Stress conceptual understanding rather than mere knowledge of procedures:
Instead of seeking simple numerical answers, most exercises and examples
involve conceptual understanding through questions that encourage practical
interpretations of results. Also, each chapter includes a From Data to Decision
project.
4. Foster active learning in the classroom: Each chapter ends with several
Cooperative Group Activities.
5. Use technology for developing conceptual understanding and analyzing data:
Computer software displays are included throughout the book. Special Tech
Center subsections are available online, and they include instruction for using
the software. Each chapter includes a Technology Project. When there are dis-
crepancies between answers based on tables and answers based on technology,
Appendix D provides both answers. The websites www.TriolaStats.com and
www.pearsonhighered.com/triola as well as MyStatLab include free text-specific
software (Statdisk), data sets formatted for several different technologies, and
instructional videos for technologies.
6. Use assessments to improve and evaluate student learning: Assessment tools
include an abundance of section exercises, Chapter Quick Quizzes, Review
Exercises, Cumulative Review Exercises, Technology Projects, From Data to
Decision projects, and Cooperative Group Activities.

A01_TRIO9015_02_SE_FM_i-xvi.indd 11 03/11/16 4:02 PM


xii Preface

Acknowledgments
We would like to thank the many statistics professors and students who have contrib-
uted to the success of this book. We thank the reviewers for their suggestions for this
second edition:
James Baldone, Virginia College
Naomi Brownstein, Florida State University
Christina Caruso, University of Guelph
Erica A. Corbett, Southeastern Oklahoma State University
Xiangming Fang, East Carolina University
Phil Gona, UMASS Boston
Sharon Homan, University of North Texas
Jackie Milton, Boston University
Joe Pick, Palm Beach State College
Steve Rigdon, St. Louis University
Brian Smith, Black Hills State University
Mahbobeh Vezvaei, Kent State University
David Zeitler, Grand Valley State University
We also thank Paul Lorczak, Joseph Pick and Erica Corbett for their help in
checking the accuracy of the text and answers.

Marc Triola
Mario Triola
Jason Roy
September 2016

A01_TRIO9015_02_SE_FM_i-xvi.indd 12 03/11/16 4:02 PM


Resources for Success
MyStatLab® Online Course for Biostatistics: For
the Biological and Health Sciences, 2e by Marc M. Triola,
Mario F. Triola and Jason Roy (access code required)
MyStatLab is available to accompany Pearson’s market leading text offerings. To give
students a consistent tone, voice, and teaching method each text’s flavor and ap-
proach is tightly integrated throughout the accompanying MyStatLab course, making
learning the material as seamless as possible.

MathXL coverage - MathXL is a market-leading


text-specific autograded homework system built
to improve student learning outcomes.

Enhanced video program to meet Introductory


Statistics needs:
• New! Tech-Specific Video Tutorials - These
short, topical videos address how to use varying
technologies to complete exercises.
• Updated! Section Lecture Videos - Watch author,
Marty Triola, work through examples and elaborate
on key objectives of the chapter.

Real-World Data Examples - Help


understand how statistics applies to
everyday life through the extensive
current, real-world data examples and
exercises provided throughout the text.

www.mystatlab.com
xiii

A01_TRIO9015_02_SE_FM_i-xvi.indd 13 04/11/16 1:29 PM


xiv Preface

Supplements Insider’s Guide to Teaching with the Triola Statistics


Series, by Mario F. Triola, contains sample syllabi and
For the Student
tips for incorporating projects, as well as lesson overviews,
Student’s Solutions Manual, by James Lapp (Colorado extra examples, minimum outcome objectives, and recom-
Mesa University) provides detailed, worked-out solutions mended assignments for each chapter.
to all odd-numbered text exercises. (ISBN-13: 978-0-13-446425-1; ISBN-10: 0-13-446425-7)
(ISBN-13: 978-0-13-403909-1; ISBN-10: 0-13-403909-2)
TestGen® Computerized Test Bank (www.pearsoned.
Student Workbook for the Triola Statistics Series, by com/testgen) enables instructors to build, edit, print, and
Laura lossi (Broward College) offers additional exam- administer tests using a computerized bank of questions
ples, concept exercises, and vocabulary exercises for each developed to cover all the objectives of the text. TestGen is
chapter. algorithmically based, allowing instructors to create mul-
(ISBN-13: 978-0-13-446423-7; ISBN 10: 0-13-446423-0) tiple but equivalent versions of the same question or test
The following technology manuals, available in MyStatLab, with the click of a button. Instructors can also modify test
include instructions, examples from the main text, and bank questions or add new questions. The software and tes-
interpretations to complement those given in the text. tbank are available for download from Pearson Education’s
online catalog at www.pearsonhighered.com. A test bank
Excel Student Laboratory Manual and Workbook (Download Only) is also available from the online catalog.
(Download Only), by Laurel Chiappetta (University of
Pittsburgh). Learning Catalytics: Learning Catalytics is a web-based
(ISBN-13: 978-0-13-446427-5; ISBN-10: 0-13-446427-3) engagement and assessment tool. As a “bring-your-own-
device” direct response system, Learning Catalytics offers
MINITAB Student Laboratory Manual and Work- a diverse library of dynamic question types that allow stu-
book (Download Only), by Mario F. Triola. dents to interact with and think critically about statistical
(ISBN-13: 978-0-13-446418-3; ISBN-10: 0-13-446418-4) concepts. As a real-time resource, instructors can take ad-
Graphing Calculator Manual for the TI-83 Plus, vantage of critical teaching moments both in the classroom
TI-84 Plus, TI-84 Plus C and TI-84 Plus CE (Down- or through assignable and gradeable homework.
load Only), by Kathleen McLaughlin (University of
Connecticut) & Dorothy Wakefield (University of Con- Technology Resources
necticut Health Center). The following resources can be found on the Triola Statistics
(ISBN-13: 978-0-13-446414-5; ISBN 10: 0-13-446414-1) Series website (http://www.pearsonhighered.com/triola), the
Statdisk Student Laboratory Manual and Workbook author maintained www.triolastats.com, and MyStatLab
(Download Only), by Mario F. Triola. These files are ■ Appendix B data sets formatted for Minitab, SPSS,
available to instructors and students through the Triola Sta- SAS, Excel, JMP, and as text files. Additionally, these
tistics Series website, www.pearsonhighered.com/triola, data sets are available as an APP for the TI-83>84
and MyStatLab. Plus calculators, and supplemental programs for the
SPSS Student Laboratory Manual and Workbook TI-83>84 Plus calculator are also available.
(Download Only), by James J. Ball (Indiana State Uni- ■ Statdisk statistical software instructions for down-
versity). These files are available to instructors and stu- load. New features include the ability to directly use
dents through the Triola Statistics Series website, www. lists of data instead of requiring the use of their sum-
pearsonhighered.com/triola, and MyStatLab. mary statistics.
■ Extra data sets, an index of applications, and a sym-
For the Instructor bols table.
Instructor’s Solutions Manual (Download Only), by
James Lapp (Colorado Mesa University) contains so- Video resources have been expanded, updated and now
lutions to all the exercises. These files are available to supplement most sections of the book, with many topics
qualified instructors through Pearson Education’s on- presented by the author. The videos aim to support both
line catalog at www.pearsonhighered.com/irc or within instructors and students through lecture, reinforcing sta-
MyStatLab. tistical basics through technology, and applying concepts:
■ Section Lecture Videos

A01_TRIO9015_02_SE_FM_i-xvi.indd 14 03/11/16 4:02 PM


Preface xv

■ New! Technology Video Tutorials - These short, your textbook, there is a library of 1000 Conceptual
topical videos address how to use Excel, Statdisk, Questions available in the assessment manager that re-
and the TI graphing calculator to complete exercises. quire students to apply their statistical understanding.
■ StatTalk Videos: 24 Conceptual Videos to Help ■ StatCrunch™: MyStatLab integrates the web-based
You Actually Understand Statistics. Fun-loving statistical software, StatCrunch, within the online as-
statistician Andrew Vickers takes to the streets of sessment platform so that students can easily analyze
Brooklyn, NY, to demonstrate important statistical data sets from exercises and the text. In addition,
concepts through interesting stories and real-life MyStatLab includes access to www.StatCrunch.com,
events. These fun and engaging videos will help a website where users can access more than 15,000
students actually understand statistical concepts. shared data sets, conduct online surveys, perform
Available with an instructors user guide and assess- complex analyses using the powerful statistical
ment questions. software, and generate compelling reports.
■ Statistical Software Support: Knowing that students
MyStatLab™ Online Course (access code required) often use external statistical software, we make it
MyStatLab is a course management system that delivers easy to copy our data sets, both from the ebook and
proven results in helping individual students succeed. the MyStatLab questions, into software such as
■ MyStatLab can be successfully implemented in StatCrunch, Minitab, Excel, and more. Students have
any environment—lab-based, hybrid, fully online, access to a variety of support tools—Technology
traditional—and demonstrates the quantifiable differ- Tutorial Videos, Technology Study Cards, and Tech-
ence that integrated usage has on student retention, nology Manuals for select titles—to learn how to
subsequent success, and overall achievement. effectively use statistical software.
■ MyStatLab’s comprehensive online gradebook au- MathXL® for Statistics Online Course (access code
tomatically tracks students’ results on tests, quizzes, required)
homework, and in the study plan. Instructors can use MathXL® is the homework and assessment engine that
the gradebook to provide positive feedback or inter- runs MyStatLab. (MyStatLab is MathXL plus a learning
vene if students have trouble. Gradebook data can be management system.)
easily exported to a variety of spreadsheet programs,
such as Microsoft Excel. You can determine which With MathXL for Statistics, instructors can:
points of data you want to export, and then analyze ■ Create, edit, and assign online homework and tests
the results to determine success. using algorithmically generated exercises correlated
at the objective level to the textbook.
MyStatLab provides engaging experiences that personal- ■ Create and assign their own online exercises and
ize, stimulate, and measure learning for each student. In
import TestGen tests for added flexibility.
addition to the resources below, each course includes a full
interactive online version of the accompanying textbook. ■ Maintain records of all student work, tracked in
MathXL’s online gradebook.
■ Tutorial Exercises with Multimedia Learning Aids:
The homework and practice exercises in MyStatLab With MathXL for Statistics, students can:
align with the exercises in the textbook, and they
regenerate algorithmically to give students unlim- ■ Take chapter tests in MathXL and receive personal-
ited opportunity for practice and mastery. Exercises ized study plans and>or personalized homework
offer immediate helpful feedback, guided solutions, assignments based on their test results.
sample problems, animations, videos, and eText clips ■ Use the study plan and>or the homework to link
for extra help at point-of-use. directly to tutorial exercises for the objectives they
■ Getting Ready for Statistics: A library of questions need to study.
now appears within each MyStatLab course to offer ■ Students can also access supplemental animations
the developmental math topics students need for the and video clips directly from selected exercises.
course. These can be assigned as a prerequisite to ■ Knowing that students often use external statistical
other assignments, if desired. software, we make it easy to copy our data sets, both
■ Conceptual Question Library: In addition to algo- from the ebook and the MyStatLab questions, into
rithmically regenerated questions that are aligned with software like StatCrunch™, Minitab, Excel, and more.

A01_TRIO9015_02_SE_FM_i-xvi.indd 15 03/11/16 4:02 PM


xvi Preface

MathXL for Statistics is available to qualified adopters. Full access to StatCrunch is available with ­MyStatLab
For more information, visit our website at www.mathxl and StatCrunch is available by itself to qualified adopt-
.com, or contact your Pearson representative. ers. StatCrunch Mobile is now available to access from
your mobile device. For more information, visit our web-
StatCrunch™ site at www.StatCrunch.com, or contact your Pearson
StatCrunch is powerful, web-based statistical software ­representative.
that allows users to perform complex analyses, share data
sets, and generate compelling reports. A vibrant online Minitab® 17 and Minitab Express™ make learning sta-
community offers more than 15,000 data sets for students tistics easy and provide students with a skill-set that’s
to analyze. in demand in today’s data driven workforce. Bundling
■■ Collect. Users can upload their own data to ­StatCrunch Minitab® software with educational materials ensures stu-
or search a large library of publicly shared data sets, dents have access to the software they need in the class-
spanning almost any topic of interest. Also, an online room, around campus, and at home. And having 12 month
survey tool allows users to quickly collect data via versions of Minitab 17 and Minitab Express available
web-based surveys. ensures students can use the software for the duration of
their course.
■■ Crunch. A full range of numerical and graphical
ISBN 13: 978-0-13-445640-9
methods allow users to analyze and gain insights
ISBN 10: 0-13-445640-8 (Access Card only; not sold as
from any data set. Interactive graphics help users
stand alone.)
understand statistical concepts and are available for
export to enrich reports with visual representations JMP Student Edition, Version 12 is an easy-to-use, stream-
of data. lined version of JMP desktop statistical discovery software
■■ Communicate. Reporting options help users create a from SAS Institute, Inc., and is available for bundling with
wide variety of visually appealing representations of the text.
their data. (ISBN-13: 978-0-13-467979-2 ISBN-10: 0-13-467979-2)

A01_TRIO9015_02_SE_FM_i-xvi.indd 16 11/9/16 3:00 PM


1 Introduction
to Statistics
1-1 Statistical and Critical
Thinking

1-2 Types of Data

1-3 Collecting Sample Data

CHAPTER
PROBLEM Survey Question: Do You Need Caffeine to Start Up Your Brain for the Day?

Surveys provide data that enable us to improve products or of a research program that studies the health and nutrition of
services. Surveys guide political candidates, shape business thousands of adults and children in the United States.
practices, identify effective medical treatments, and affect Let’s consider one USA Today survey in which respondents
many aspects of our lives. Surveys give us insight into the were asked if they need caffeine to start up their brain for the
opinions and behaviors of others. As an example, the National day. Among 2,006 respondents, 74% said that they did need the
Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) is part caffeine. Figure 1-1 includes graphs that depict these results.

M01_TRIO9015_02_SE_C01_001-039.indd 1 02/08/16 4:46 PM


2 CHAPTER 1 Introduction to Statistics

FIGURE 1-1(a) Survey Results

People Needing Caffeine to Start People Not Needing Caffeine to Start


Up Brain for the Day Up Brain for the Day

FIGURE 1-1(b) Survey Results

The survey results suggest that people overwhelmingly need caffeine to start up their brains
for the day. The graphs in Figure 1-1 visually depict the survey results. One of the most impor-
tant objectives of this book is to encourage the use of critical thinking so that such results are
not blindly accepted. We might question whether the survey results are valid. Who conducted
the survey? How were respondents selected? Do the graphs in Figure 1-1 depict the results
well, or are those graphs somehow misleading?
The survey results presented here have major flaws that are among the most common, so
they are especially important to recognize. Here are brief descriptions of each of the major flaws:

Flaw 1: Misleading Graphs The bar chart in Figure 1-1(a) is very deceptive. By using a
vertical scale that does not start at zero, the difference between the two percentages is grossly
exaggerated. Figure 1-1(a) makes it appear that approximately eight times as many people
need the caffeine. However, with 74% needing caffeine and 26% not needing caffeine, the
ratio is actually about 3:1, rather than the 8:1 ratio that is suggested by the graph.
The illustration in Figure 1-1(b) is also deceptive. Again, the difference between the actual
response rates of 74% (needing caffeine) and 26% (not needing caffeine) is a difference that
is grossly distorted. The picture graph (or “pictograph”) in Figure 1-1(b) makes it appear that

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Chapter Objectives 3

the ratio of people needing caffeine to people not needing caffeine is roughly 9:1 instead of
the correct ratio of about 3:1. (Objects with area or volume can distort perceptions because
they can be drawn to be disproportionately larger or smaller than the data indicate.) Decep-
tive graphs are discussed in more detail in Section 2-3, but we see here that the illustrations in
Figure 1-1 grossly exaggerate the number of people needing caffeine.

Flaw 2: Bad Sampling Method The aforementioned survey responses are from a USA
Today survey of Internet users. The survey question was posted on a website and Internet
users decided whether to respond. This is an example of a voluntary response sample—a
sample in which respondents themselves decide whether to participate. With a voluntary
response sample, it often happens that those with a strong interest in the topic are more likely
to participate, so the results are very questionable. For example, people who strongly feel that
they cannot function without their morning cup(s) of coffee might be more likely to respond to
the caffeine survey than people who are more ambivalent about caffeine or coffee. When using
sample data to learn something about a population, it is extremely important to obtain sample
data that are representative of the population from which the data are drawn. As we proceed
through this chapter and discuss types of data and sampling methods, we should focus on
these key concepts:

• Sample data must be collected in an appropriate way, such as through a process of


random selection.

• If sample data are not collected in an appropriate way, the data may be so completely
useless that no amount of statistical torturing can salvage them.

It would be easy to accept the preceding survey results and blindly proceed with calcula-
tions and statistical analyses, but we would miss the critical two flaws described above. We
could then develop conclusions that are fundamentally wrong and misleading. Instead, we
should develop skills in statistical thinking and critical thinking so that we are better prepared
to analyze such data.

CHAPTER OBJECTIVES

The single most important concept presented in this chapter is this: When using meth-
ods of statistics with sample data to form conclusions about a population, it is absolutely
essential to collect sample data in a way that is appropriate. Here are the main chapter
objectives:

1-1 Statistical and Critical Thinking


• Analyze sample data relative to context, source, and sampling method.
• Understand the difference between statistical significance and practical significance.
• Define and identify a voluntary response sample and know that statistical conclu-
sions based on data from such a sample are generally not valid.
>>>

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4 CHAPTER 1 Introduction to Statistics

1-2 Types of Data


• Distinguish between a parameter and a statistic.
• Distinguish between quantitative data and categorical (or qualitative or attribute) data.
• Distinguish between discrete data and continuous data.
• Determine whether basic statistical calculations are appropriate for a particular data set.
1-3 Collecting Sample Data
• Define and identify a simple random sample.
• Understand the importance of sound sampling methods and the importance of
good design of experiments.

1-1 Statistical and Critical Thinking


Key Concept In this section we begin with a few very basic definitions, and then we
consider an overview of the process involved in conducting a statistical study. This
process consists of “prepare, analyze, and conclude.” “Preparation” involves consid-
eration of the context, the source of data, and sampling method. In future chapters we
construct suitable graphs, explore the data, and execute computations required for the
statistical method being used. In future chapters we also form conclusions by deter-
mining whether results have statistical significance and practical significance.
Statistical thinking involves critical thinking and the ability to make sense of results.
Statistical thinking demands so much more than the ability to execute complicated cal-
culations. Through numerous examples, exercises, and discussions, this text will help
you develop the statistical thinking skills that are so important in today’s world.
We begin with some very basic definitions.

DEFINITIONS
Data are collections of observations, such as measurements, or survey responses.
(A single data value is called a datum, a term rarely used. The term “data” is plural,
so it is correct to say “data are…” not “data is…”)
Statistics is the science of planning studies and experiments; obtaining data; and
organizing, summarizing, presenting, analyzing, and interpreting those data and
then drawing conclusions based on them.
A population is the complete collection of all measurements or data that are be-
ing considered. Typically, the population is the complete collection of data that we
would like to make inferences about.
A census is the collection of data from every member of the population.
A sample is a subcollection of members selected from a population.

Because populations are often very large, a common objective of the use of statis-
tics is to obtain data from a sample and then use those data to form a conclusion about
the population.

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1-1 Statistical and Critical Thinking 5

EXAMPLE 1 Residential Carbon Monoxide Detectors


Survivorship Bias
In the journal article “Residential Carbon Monoxide Detector Failure Rates in the
United States” (by Ryan and Arnold, American Journal of Public Health, Vol. 101, In World War
No. 10), it was stated that there are 38 million carbon monoxide detectors installed II, statisti-
in the United States. When 30 of them were randomly selected and tested, it was cian Abraham
Wald saved
found that 12 of them failed to provide an alarm in hazardous carbon monoxide
many lives
conditions. In this case, the population and sample are as follows:
with his work
Population: All 38 million carbon monoxide detectors in the United States on the Applied
Mathematics Panel. Military
Sample: The 30 carbon monoxide detectors that were selected and tested
leaders asked the panel how they
The objective is to use the sample data as a basis for drawing a conclusion about the could improve the chances of
population of all carbon monoxide detectors, and methods of statistics are helpful in aircraft bombers returning after
drawing such conclusions. missions. They wanted to add
some armor for protection, and
they recorded locations on the
bombers where damaging holes
were found. They reasoned that
We now proceed to consider the process involved in a statistical study. See Figure 1-2
armor should be placed in loca-
for a summary of this process and note that the focus is on critical thinking, not mathe-
tions with the most holes, but
matical calculations. Thanks to wonderful developments in technology, we have power- Wald said that strategy would be
ful tools that effectively do the number crunching so that we can focus on understanding a big mistake. He said that armor
and interpreting results. should be placed where returning
bombers were not damaged. His
reasoning was this: The bombers
that made it back with damage
Prepare were survivors, so the damage
1. Context
they suffered could be survived.
• What do the data represent?
• What is the goal of study? Locations on the aircraft that
2. Source of the Data were not damaged were the most
• Are the data from a source with a special interest so that there is pressure to obtain vulnerable, and aircraft suffer-
results that are favorable to the source? ing damage in those vulnerable
3. Sampling Method areas were the ones that did
• Were the data collected in a way that is unbiased, or were the data collected in a not make it back. The military
way that is biased (such as a procedure in which respondents volunteer to participate)? leaders would have made a big
mistake with survivorship bias by
studying the planes that survived
Analyze instead of thinking about the
1. Graph the Data planes that did not survive.
2. Explore the Data
• Are there any outliers (numbers very far away from almost all of the other data)?
• What important statistics summarize the data (such as the mean and standard deviation
described in Chapter 3)?
• How are the data distributed?
• Are there missing data?
• Did many selected subjects refuse to respond?
3. Apply Statistical Methods
• Use technology to obtain results.

Conclude
1. Significance
• Do the results have statistical significance?
• Do the results have practical significance?

FIGURE 1-2 Statistical Thinking

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6 CHAPTER 1 Introduction to Statistics

TABLE 1-1 IQ Scores and Brain Volumes (cm3)


Origin of “Statistics” IQ 96 87 101 103 127 96 88 85 97 124

The word Brain Volume (cm3) 1005 1035 1281 1051 1034 1079 1104 1439 1029 1160
statistics is
derived from Prepare
the Latin word
Context Figure 1-2 suggests that we begin our preparation by considering the context
status (mean-
ing “state”).
of the data, so let’s start with context by considering the data in Table 1-1. (The data
Early uses of are from Data Set 9 “IQ and Brain Size” in Appendix B.) The data in Table 1-1 consist
statistics involved compilations of measured IQ scores and measured brain volumes from 10 different subjects. The
of data and graphs describing data are matched in the sense that each individual “IQ>brain volume” pair of values
various aspects of a state or is from the same person. The first subject had a measured IQ score of 96 and a brain
country. In 1662, John Graunt volume of 1005 cm3. The format of Table 1-1 suggests the following goal: Determine
published statistical information whether there is a relationship between IQ score and brain volume. This goal suggests
about births and deaths. Graunt’s a possible hypothesis: People with larger brains tend to have higher IQ scores.
work was followed by studies
of mortality and disease rates, Source of the Data The data in Table 1-1 were provided by M. J. Tramo, W. C.
population sizes, incomes, and Loftus, T. A. Stukel, J. B. Weaver, and M. S. Gazziniga, who discuss the data in the
unemployment rates. House- article “Brain Size, Head Size, and IQ in Monozygotic Twins,” Neurology, Vol. 50.
holds, governments, and busi- The researchers are from reputable medical schools and hospitals, and they would not
nesses rely heavily on statistical
gain by presenting the results in way that is misleading. In contrast, Kiwi Brands, a
data for guidance. For example,
maker of shoe polish, commissioned a study that resulted in this statement, which was
unemployment rates, inflation
rates, consumer indexes, and
printed in some newspapers: “According to a nationwide survey of 250 hiring profes-
birth and death rates are carefully
sionals, scuffed shoes was the most common reason for a male job seeker’s failure to
compiled on a regular basis, make a good first impression.”
and the resulting data are used When physicians who conduct clinical experiments on the efficacy of drugs re-
by business leaders to make ceive funding from drug companies, they have an incentive to obtain favorable results.
decisions affecting future hiring, Some professional journals, such as the Journal of the American Medical Association,
production levels, and expansion now require that physicians report sources of funding in journal articles. We should be
into new markets. skeptical of studies from sources that may be biased.

Sampling Method Figure 1-2 suggests that we conclude our preparation by consid-
ering the sampling method. The data in Table 1-1 were obtained from subjects whose
medical histories were reviewed in an effort to ensure that no subjects had neurologic
or psychiatric disease. In this case, the sampling method appears to be sound, but we
cannot be sure of that without knowing how the subjects were recruited and whether
any payments may have affected participation in the study.
Sampling methods and the use of randomization will be discussed in Section 1-3,
but for now, we stress that a sound sampling method is absolutely essential for good
results in a statistical study. It is generally a bad practice to use voluntary response (or
self-selected) samples, even though their use is common.

DEFINITION
A voluntary response sample (or self-selected sample) is one in which the
respondents themselves decide whether to be included.

The following types of polls are common examples of voluntary response samples.
By their very nature, all are seriously flawed because we should not make conclusions
about a population on the basis of samples with a strong possibility of bias:
■ Internet polls, in which people online can decide whether to respond
■ Mail-in polls, in which people decide whether to reply

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1-1 Statistical and Critical Thinking 7

■ Telephone call-in polls, in which newspaper, radio, or television announcements


ask that you voluntarily call a special number to register your opinion

The Chapter Problem involves a USA Today survey with a voluntary response sample.
See also the following Example 2.

EXAMPLE 2 Voluntary Response Sample


USA Today posted this question on the electronic edition of their newspaper: “Have
you ever been bitten by an animal?” Internet users who saw that question then de-
cided themselves whether to respond. Among the 2361 responses, 65% said “yes”
and 35% said “no.” Because the 2361 subjects themselves chose to respond, they
are a voluntary response sample and the results of the survey are highly question-
able. It would be much better to get results through a poll in which the pollster ran-
domly selects the subjects, instead of allowing the subjects to volunteer themselves.

Analyze
Figure 1-2 indicates that after completing our preparation by considering the context,
source, and sampling method, we begin to analyze the data.

Graph and Explore An analysis should begin with appropriate graphs and explora-
tions of the data. Graphs are discussed in Chapter 2, and important statistics are dis-
cussed in Chapter 3.

Apply Statistical Methods Later chapters describe important statistical methods,


but application of these methods is often made easy with technology (calculators
and>or statistical software packages). A good statistical analysis does not require
strong computational skills. A good statistical analysis does require using common
sense and paying careful attention to sound statistical methods.

Conclude
Figure 1-2 shows that the final step in our statistical process involves conclusions, and
we should develop an ability to distinguish between statistical significance and practi-
cal significance.

Statistical Significance Statistical significance is achieved in a study when we get


a result that is very unlikely to occur by chance. A common criterion is that we have
statistical significance if the likelihood of an event occurring by chance is 5% or less.
■ Getting 98 girls in 100 random births is statistically significant because such an
extreme outcome is not likely to result from random chance.
■ Getting 52 girls in 100 births is not statistically significant because that event
could easily occur with random chance.

Practical Significance It is possible that some treatment or finding is effective, but


common sense might suggest that the treatment or finding does not make enough of a
difference to justify its use or to be practical, as illustrated in Example 3 which follows.

M01_TRIO9015_02_SE_C01_001-039.indd 7 02/08/16 4:46 PM


Another random document with
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applied to the doctrines or conduct of the Lord Jesus Christ. He
never opposed the priests, never interfered with their office, never
diminished aught from their authority. In these most important
respects, the doctrine of Jesus of Nazareth is necessarily more
agreeable to the law of Moses than the traditions of the Pharisees,
who have forcibly altered that great institution of Moses, the Levitic
priesthood, and have themselves usurped the office and the rights of
the priests. Modern Judaism is directly in opposition to the Mosaic
law, and has at present no excuse for its opposition. The Jews of the
dispersion cannot possibly keep its requirements concerning the
promotion of rabbies; their adherence, therefore, to that system has
now the appearance of mere gratuitous and wilful hatred to the law
of Moses. They profess to know the family of the priests, and could
therefore restore them to their office, if they pleased. What is there to
prevent them? Nothing but the want of love for Moses and his
institutions. We are convinced that many of the Jews have never
considered this matter, or they would not act as they do. The habits
of thought induced by early education, the customs of their nation for
two thousand years, have drawn a sort of veil over their
understandings, so that they have not been able to see the palpable
inconsistency of professing a zeal for Moses, whilst they do homage
to principles which cut up his institutions by the roots. Until the
priests be reinstated in their functions and their rights, as the divinely
appointed teachers of religion, the Jews can have no ground
whatever to pretend that they are disciples of Moses. They are, at
present, nothing but partisans of the sect of the Rabbinists. And if
they choose to persevere in their attachment to this sect, they are
bound, as honest men, to renounce all profession of regard for the
law of Moses.
No. XLIII.
SANHEDRIN.

It is certain that the Jews cannot appeal to the law of the prophets to
defend their rejection of the old religion of Moses, and their
preference for the new religion of the rabbies. Neither Moses nor the
prophets knew anything about the rabbies. They are quite a new
order of men, never heard of until the Jewish polity was tottering to
its destruction. There is, however, another argument to which they
might appeal, in order to justify the reception of new religious
teachers, and that is, the existence of the Sanhedrin. It may be said,
that when the rabbies arose and taught, both they and their doctrines
were approved by this great council, and that this approval is
sufficient to establish the justice of their claims, and the truth of what
they taught. Indeed, the rabbinists do actually look upon the
Sanhedrin as the great foundation on which the oral law rests:—
‫בית דין הגדול שבירושלים הם עיקר תורה שבע׳׳פ והם עמודי ההוראת ומהם חוק‬
‫ ועליהי הבטיחה תורה שנאמר על פי התורה אשר יורוך‬, ‫ומשפט יוצא לכל ישראל‬
‫זו מצות עשה וכל המאמין במשה רבינו יבתורתו חייב לסמוך מעשה הדת עליהן‬
‫ולישען עליהן ׃‬
“The Great Council in Jerusalem is the foundation-stone of the oral
law, and the pillars of the doctrine: and from them the statute and the
judgment goes forth to all Israel. They have the warrant of the law,
for it is said, ‘According to the sentence of the law which they shall
teach thee,’ &c. (Deut. xvii. 11); which is an affirmative precept, and
every one who believes in Moses our master, and in his law, is
bound to rest the practice of the law on them, and to lean on them.”
(Hilchoth Mamrim, c. i. 1.) Here the indispensable duty of every
Israelite to follow the decisions of the Sanhedrin is plainly asserted: it
becomes, then, absolutely necessary for us to examine into the
nature of the foundation on which claims so unlimited are based.
One would suppose that, at the very least, the Sanhedrin was
infallible, and could never say or do anything wrong; for if this council
was liable to error, and yet undeviating obedience to its decisions
required, whenever they went wrong, all Israel must have gone
wrong also. But yet, strange to say, the infallibility of the Sanhedrin is
not only not asserted, but plainly denied—yea, the possibility of error
unequivocally intimated, and even provided for:—
‫בית דין גדול שדרשו באחת מן המדות כפי מה שנראה בעיניהם שהדין כך ודנו דין‬
‫ ועמד אחריהם בית דין אחר לסתור אותו הרי זה סותר ודן כפי מה שנראה בעיניו‬,
‫ שנאמר אל השופט אשר יהיה בימים ההם אינך חייב ללכת אלא אחר בית דין‬,
‫ בית דין שגזרו גזרה או תקנו תקנה והנהיגו מנהג ופשט הדבר בכל‬, ‫שבדורך‬
‫ ועמד אחריהם ב׳׳ד אחר ובקש לבטל דברים הראשונים ולעקור אותה‬, ‫ישראל‬
‫התקנה ואותה הגזרה ואותו המנהג אינו יכול עד שיהיה גדול מן הראשונים‬
‫בחכמה ובמנין וכו׳ ׃‬
“When a great council has decided by one of the rules, and
according to the best of their judgment, that the judgment is so and
so, and has passed sentence; if there arise after them another
council of a contrary opinion, the latter may reverse the sentence,
and pass another according to the best of their judgment, for it is
said, ‘Unto the judge that shall be in those days’ (Deut. xvii. 9); thou
art, therefore, not bound to follow any other but the existing council.
But if a council decree a decree, or ordain an ordinance, or sanction
a custom, and the thing has spread in all Israel; and there arise after
them another council, which wishes to abrogate the former things,
and to root out that ordinance, decree, or custom, it is not permitted,
unless they excel the former in wisdom and in number.” (Ibid. c. ii. 1,
2.) According to this doctrine the Sanhedrin in one generation may
teach one doctrine, and in the next generation another Sanhedrin
may abrogate all the legislative acts of the former, and teach another
doctrine, and yet, though one of the two must necessarily be in the
wrong, Israel is bound to obey both; and thus the law is made to
sanction disobedience to itself. Nay, more, the will of God is made
actually to depend upon the wit and the will of man. Instead of being
eternal and unchangeable truth, it must vary with each succeeding
generation, so that what was truth to a father, might be falsehood to
his son; and every new Sanhedrin would, in fact, have the power to
make a new law. How, then, can the Jews pretend that the Mosaic
law is unchangeable? Here it is asserted, that the Jews are to
receive, as the law of Moses, whatever the Sanhedrin may think right
to teach—and that every new Sanhedrin may overturn the doctrines
of their predecessors, and teach the very opposite; so that instead of
being eternal, the law would be one of the most changeable things in
the world, and might never last the same for even two generations.
But how can any man possibly believe, that a command so
preposterous should come from God, or that he would deliver over
his people Israel, bound hand and foot, into the power of seventy-
one persons, and require unconditional obedience, no matter
whether these persons were in the right or in the wrong? Pretensions
so extravagant justly excite suspicion, and entirely destroy the credit
of those that make them. They betray an inordinate lust of power,
and savour far more strongly of ambition than piety. It was no doubt
very convenient for the members of the Sanhedrin to be able to
reverse the decisions of their predecessors. On these terms, the law
could never stand in the way of their own schemes. No matter how it
had been explained or understood before, they had the power of
giving a new interpretation to suit their own purpose. It is truly
wonderful how the Jews can suffer themselves to be deluded by an
imposture so exceedingly coarse. A child ought to be able to see,
that God could never require a man to renounce his understanding,
and to receive two direct contradictions as true.
The manifest absurdity of this doctrine is sufficient to prove that the
passage cited from Deut. xvii. is misinterpreted and misapplied; and
a little consideration will show that it does not refer to the Sanhedrin
at all. In the first place there is no mention of that council, nor any
thing that even implies a reference to such a body. The command of
God is, “Thou shalt come unto the priests, the Levites, and unto the
judge that shall be in those days, and inquire.” It is not said to the
judges, but to the judge ‫השופט‬. To these, and not to the Sanhedrin,
Moses requires absolute obedience, and that for a just and sufficient
reason, because, as we have shown in Number 2, they had the
means of obtaining an infallible answer by means of the ‫אורים ותומים‬
Urim and Thummim. It was the privilege of Israel to be able to ask
counsel immediately of God; and it was therefore only rational to
expect unconditional obedience to the command of the Almighty.
Such decisions were absolutely unchangeable as God himself, for
“He is not a man that he should lie, nor the son of man that He
should repent;” and no man in his senses would have thought of
getting a sentence of this kind reversed. These words can therefore
by no means apply to a tribunal fallible in judgment, and as
changeable in its opinions as in the persons of which it was
composed: but if this passage does not apply, there is no other in the
Bible which requires us to receive the decision of the Sanhedrin as
of divine authority, nor in the oral law either, for it supposes that this
council was capable of mistake. Consequently, the Sanhedrin’s
approval of the new order and new religion of the rabbies is of no
weight whatever. The Bible does not command us to believe that
they were always in the right; and they themselves tell us that they
might be in the wrong, and therefore might be in the wrong in their
approval of the rabbies.
But the truth is, that neither the Bible nor history gives us any
warrant whatever for regarding the Sanhedrin as a Mosaic institution.
In the first place, it is never once mentioned either in the Law or in
the Prophets. The word Sanhedrin is Greek, and so far as it goes
would lead us to suppose that this tribunal was not instituted until
some time after the building of the second temple, and after the
Greek occupation of the land, when the Jews had become
acquainted with the Greek language. This Greek word would lead us
even to suppose that the Sanhedrin was instituted by the Greek
rulers, and that they gave the tribunal its name. If it had been an old
Mosaic institution, the Jews themselves, who hated the Greeks, and
that with good reason, would never have given it a Greek name: and
even if the Greeks had assigned this name to a Jewish tribunal,
which had previously existed, the Jews would not have adopted it. It
is true that there is also a Hebrew name for this tribunal, ‫בית דין‬
‫הגדול‬, “The great house of judgment,” but if this had been the original
name, it is not at all likely that the Greek name would have
supplanted it; whereas if it was a Greek institution, and therefore had
a Greek name, it is not to be wondered at that that name should
have obtained general currency, or that it should also be translated
into Hebrew. The Hebrew name will not do more than the Greek to
prove the antiquity of the tribunal, for it never once occurs in the
Bible, and it would be very strange, if this council had existed from
the time of Moses, that it should never once be mentioned. The High
Court of Parliament does not hold a more important place in the
history of this country, than the Sanhedrin must have done in the
history of Israel, if it had really existed: how then are we to account
for the fact, that neither the historians nor the prophets of Israel ever
make the most distant allusion to its being? If the rabbies speak
truth, the prophets, the high priests, and the kings of Israel, were
mere ciphers compared with the Sanhedrin, for it had supreme
power over them all, and could try, condemn, and execute them, and
yet they are mentioned again and again, and the Sanhedrin passed
by in mysterious silence! There are two books of Kings, and two of
Chronicles, relating the history of the Royal rulers of Israel, but the
Supreme Council of the nation, the rulers of kings and priests, the
foundation-stone of the law, the pillar of religion, have never obtained
even a casual notice! Is this at all probable? Would it be possible to
write a history of the British Constitution without ever once
mentioning the existence of the Parliament? And yet this is what has
happened, according to the rabbies to the essential feature of the
Constitution of Israel. Neither the lawgiver, nor the historians, nor the
prophets, have said one word about it.
The rabbies have felt the necessity of finding something or other in
the written law, that would look like the recognition of the Sanhedrin,
and have therefore fixed on two passages which they think will serve
their cause. One is that to which we have already alluded, “Thou
shalt come unto the priests the Levites, and unto the judge that shall
be in those days.” (Deut. xvii. 9.) We have already said sufficient to
show that this passage is totally irrelevant, and now add one remark
more, which is in itself decisive, and that is, that the constitution of
the Sanhedrin, as described in the oral law, is altogether at variance
with the conditions laid down in this passage. The oral law says—
‫ומצוה להיות בסנהדרין גדולה כהנים ולוים שנאמר שנאמר ובאת אל הכהנים‬
‫הלוים ואם לא מצאו אפילו היו כולם ישראלים דרי זה מותר ׃‬
“The command is, that there should be in the great Sanhedrin,
priests and Levites, for it is said, ‘Thou shalt come to the priests, the
Levites.’ But if they find none, yea, though they be all mere Israelites,
this is lawful.” (Hilchoth Sanhedrin, c. ii. 2.) According to this the
Sanhedrin was to consist of three distinct classes, priests, Levites,
and Israelites; but Moses does not say one word of the Levites, as
distinguished from the priests. His words are, “Thou shalt come to
the priests, the Levites.” He does not say, “The priests and the
Levites;” but simply, “The priests, the Levites;” from which it is plain
that he was speaking only of that one class of the sons of Levi, who
had the office of the priesthood; but not of that other class, whose
only title was “The Levites.” This is the first difference. The second is
like it, inasmuch as it is also an unauthorized addition, and that is,
that there should be Israelites members of this council, of whom
Moses does not say one word more than he does of the Levites.
Besides the priests, Moses mentions none but the judge ‫השופט‬, not
the judges, so that if the judge was an Israelite, there could at the
very most be only one Israelite amongst those whom Moses
appoints as the highest court of appeal in Israel. But if the judge
‫ השופט‬was himself a priest, then there was not even one Israelite;
but the court was composed exclusively of priests. This court cannot,
therefore, be the same as the Sanhedrin, which was to be composed
of all the three classes. Thirdly, the oral law says, That though the
Sanhedrin should not reckon one priest amongst its members, but
should consist entirely of Israelites, that still it is lawful; this court
can, therefore, never be the same as that of which Moses says,
“Thou shalt come to the priests, the Levites, and to the judge.” The
court which the rabbies have appointed might not have even one
priest, and yet they ask us to believe that this is identical with that,
which, according to the appointment of Moses, could never have
more than one Israelite, but might, and in the days of Eli actually did,
consist exclusively of priests. Truly the rabbies must have calculated
upon disciples with a most inordinate measure of credulity. The man
that would believe this, would believe that black is white; or as Rashi
says, that his right hand is the left, and his left hand the right. And
this is really what modern Judaism expects, and absolutely
commands in so many words. In Rashi’s commentary on the words
“Thou shalt not decline from the sentence which they shall show
thee, to the right nor to the left” (Deut. xvii. 11); which words, as we
have seen, the rabbies apply to the Sanhedrin, he says—
‫אפילו אומר לך על ימין שהוא שמאל ועל שמאל שהוא ימין ׃‬
“Yea, though they should tell thee of the right hand, that it is the left,
and of the left hand, that it is the right.” Of course men that expected
from their followers this perfect renunciation of reason, might say any
thing they liked, and might therefore ask them to believe that a court
consisting of all priests was identical with one from which priests
were altogether excluded. But as we are not willing to give up that
reason, which we consider a noble gift of God, we cannot help
thinking that these two courts are as different as day and night, and
that the appointment of Moses does not in the remotest degree
serve as a warrant for the appointment of the Sanhedrin. Indeed, the
sad perplexity of the rabbies to find out some passage or other on
which to father their own inventions, and the desperate necessity
which they felt of appealing to this passage, proves to us most
satisfactorily, that the Sanhedrin is not a Mosaic institution at all. It is
as impossible that there could be two supreme courts, as that a man
can have two heads. Moses did appoint a supreme court, from which
there was no appeal, as is plain from the words, “Thou shalt come to
the priests, the Levites, and to the judge,” and we have proved that
this court is not identical with the Sanhedrin. But according to the
rabbies, the Sanhedrin was a supreme court; if, therefore, it had
existed, there would have been two supreme courts, perfectly
independent of each other, which is plainly impossible. It never
entered into the head even of human lawgivers to be guilty of such
absurdity, and it would be an affront to the wisdom of the Almighty to
suppose that he had sanctioned it in his own law. This one argument
is in itself sufficient to overthrow the doctrine of a Sanhedrin as
taught in the oral law. It was not only unknown to Moses, but is
directly opposed to his own institution.
This portion of the oral law is, however, most important for proving
the total disregard, or rather contempt, which the rabbies had for the
institutions of Moses, and the motives by which they were actuated.
Moses ordained a supreme court of judicature, to consist exclusively
of priests, together with the chief civil governor for the time being.
The rabbies not only did not choose to obey the command of Moses,
but actually abrogated his institution, and set up another instead of it.
They were probably enabled to do this in the time of confusion which
followed the Greek conquest. The Greeks, who cared nothing for
Moses or his laws, naturally disregarded the priests and the lawful
civil governor; and therefore when they conquered the land, set up a
tribunal of their own, composed not of those whom Moses had
appointed, but of any whom they could find. Indeed, to secure their
own dominion, their natural policy was to exclude those who had
previously held the reins of government. To this new tribunal they of
course gave a Greek name, and called it in their own language,
συνέδριον, or, as the Talmud pronounces it, Sanhedrin. The Jews,
whom they appointed members, liked the power which it gave them,
and therefore, when the Greeks were gone, endeavoured to
perpetuate it; and as they could not find a warrant for it in the written
law, declared that the institution was a part of the oral law: and thus,
to gratify their own ambition, trampled upon the law of Moses. This is
the probable history of the rise of the Sanhedrin; but however that
be, it is certain that it is directly opposed to that supreme court
appointed by Moses, and that it was love of power which induced the
rabbies to sanction it. They thereby depressed the authority of the
priests and the civil governor, and in fact became the dictators of the
Jewish commonwealth. A tribunal supported from such motives, and
so directly subversive of the commands of Moses, cannot prove to
any lover of the old religion the authority of the rabbies. Indeed, the
approval of such a body would go far to prove that the oral law and
the rabbies were Moses’s enemies. The Mosaic law was first pulled
down before the Sanhedrin could be built up, and it was founded on
the ruins of the Mosaic institutions.
We have not space at present to enter into the other passage which
the rabbies cite in proof of the authority of the Sanhedrin, but hope to
do so in our next number—not that it is necessary to the argument,
but simply because it is our earnest wish that the people of Israel
should see how the rabbies are in difficulty to find even a semblance
of proof for the foundation-stone of their whole fabric. That one
passage from Deuteronomy—“Thou shalt come unto the priests, the
Levites, and unto the judge,” is quite sufficient to prove that Moses
did not institute the Sanhedrin but that, on the contrary, it must have
been established by some determined enemies of the Mosaic law;
and that it was perpetuated by those whose ambition led them to
usurp power, which Moses had committed unto others. We have
thus another proof that modern Judaism has demolished even the
external form of the Mosaic constitution. The rabbies were not
content with rejecting the religion of Moses, and casting out the
religious teachers whom he had appointed, but have also
revolutionized the national polity. Moses ordained a supreme council,
consisting of the priests, the Levites, together with the judge, the
chief civil governor; but the rabbies have preferred a tribunal
established by idolatrous Greeks, because this Greek institution
gave the power into their own hands. No wonder that the God of
Moses destroyed their city, and put an end to that delusion with
which ambitious and wicked men deceived his people Israel.
No. XLIV.
SANHEDRIN CONTINUED.

The Sanhedrin is, as we said in our last number, the foundation-


stone on which the authority of the rabbies, and the whole fabric of
tradition rests. Take away this, and not the shadow of an argument
remains to justify the Jews in their rejection of the Mosaic religion,
and their demolition of the Mosaic constitution. But this we have
done. Enough has already been said to make it probable that the
Sanhedrin, with its Greek name, was invented and established by
the idolatrous Greeks; and to make it certain that it is subversive of
the Supreme Council established by Moses, and that, for that
reason, it was not one of his institutions. We have already disposed
of one of the passages which the rabbies quote from the Pentateuch,
to prove the Divine authority of the Sanhedrin; but, as they have,
with much difficulty, found two, we now proceed to consider the
second. It is quoted in the following manner:—
‫ קובעין בתחלה בית דין‬, ‫כמה בתי דינין קבועין יהיו בישראל וכמה יהיה מנינן‬
‫ שנאמר אספה לי‬, ‫ והוא הנקרא סנהדרי גדולה ומנינם ע׳׳א‬, ‫הגדול במקדש‬
‫ שנאמר והתיצבו שם עמך הרי ע׳׳א ׃‬, ‫שבעים איש מזקני ישראל ומשה על גביהן‬
“How many councils (or tribunals) ought to be established in Israel,
and of how many members ought they to consist? Ans. The Great
Council in the temple called the Great Sanhedrin, ought to be
established first, and the number of its members ought to be
seventy-one; for it is said, ‘Gather unto me seventy men of the elders
of Israel;’ and to them Moses is to be added, and as it is said, ‘And
they shall stand there with thee.’ (Numb. xi. 16.) This makes
seventy-one.” (Hilchoth Sanhedrin, c. i. 2.) Here the rabbies have
certainly found the number seventy-one; but to prove that this was
the Sanhedrin, they ought first, to show, that these seventy-one
persons were not to be scattered through the tribes, but always to
remain together as one council; and, secondly, that this council was
to be permanent; and, thirdly, that this council did really exist from
the time of Moses to the destruction of Jerusalem; and, fourthly, and
most important of all, that this was the Supreme Council; for even if
the other three points could be made out, they would be insufficient
without this. The Sanhedrin claims to be the Supreme Council, and,
therefore, if it cannot be shown, that the assembly of the seventy
elders is identical with the Supreme Council appointed by Moses,
this passage is of no more use than the former one. Now, respecting
the three first points, nothing whatever is said, either in the Law or
the Prophets. And respecting the fourth; even if we grant the three
first, we can shew that these seventy elders did not constitute the
Supreme Council of the nation. We have proved in our last paper,
that the supreme power was vested in an exclusive council
composed of the priests, together with the judge ‫השופט‬, but the
seventy elders, here spoken of, were to be chosen promiscuously
from the tribes of Israel, and therefore cannot be identical with that
exclusive assembly; and therefore did not compose the Supreme
Council; and therefore had nothing of the nature of the Sanhedrin,
which pretended to be supreme over all. Thus it appears on
examination, that there is not one text in the whole law of Moses,
which authorizes the establishment of such a council as the
Sanhedrin; but that on the contrary, it stands in direct opposition to
that order of things prescribed by Moses.
We can, however, go farther, and show that all the particulars which
the rabbies detail concerning it are manifest falsehoods; and that, if
the Jews choose to believe what the oral law says concerning the
Sanhedrin they most not only give up Moses, but renounce all the
other inspired writers of the Old Testament. The particular and
exclusive duties of the Sanhedrin are thus detailed:—
‫ ואין עושין סנהדרי קטנה לכל שבט‬, ‫אין מעמידין מלך אלא על פי בית דין של ע׳׳א‬
‫ ואין דנין לא את השבט שהודח‬, ‫ושבט ולכל עיר ועיר אלא על פי בית דין של ע׳׳א‬
, ‫כולו ולא את נביא השקר ולא את כהן הגדול בדיני נפשות אלא בבית דין הגדול‬
‫ וכן אין עושין זקן ממרא ולא עושין עיר הנדחת ולא‬, ‫אבל דיני ממונות בשלשה‬
‫ ואין מוסיפין על העיר ועל העזרות ולא‬, ‫משקין את הסוטה אלא בבית דין הגדול‬
‫ שנאמר כל‬, ‫מוציאין למלחמת הרשות ולמדידת החלל אלא על פי בית דין הגדול‬
‫הדבר הגדול יביאו אליך ׃‬
“A king is not to be appointed except by the decision of the Great
Council of Seventy-one. The minor councils through the tribes and
towns are not to be established except by the Council of Seventy-
one. Judgment is not to be passed on a tribe that has been entirely
seduced, nor upon a false prophet, nor upon a high priest in capital
cases, except by the Great Council, (In mere money matters the
tribunal of three is competent.) In like manner an elder is not
declared rebellious, nor a city dealt with as seduced,[35] nor the bitter
waters administered to the suspected adulteress, except by the
Great Council. Neither is an addition made to the city nor to the
courts. Neither are armies led forth to the wars of permission; nor the
elders led forth to measure in the case of a slain person (Deut. xxi. 1,
&c.), except by command of the Great Council, for it is said, ‘Every
great matter they shall bring to thee.’ (Exod. xviii. 22.)” (Hilchoth
Sanhedrin, c. v. 1.) Such is the power and jurisdiction attributed by
the rabbies to the Sanhedrin, and which we have now to consider.
The mere reading over of these details is sufficient to convince any
reasonable man that the whole affair is a waking dream of some
man or men, intoxicated with the love of dominion. No man in his
senses can believe that God could be the author of a despotism so
dreadful over the minds and bodies of men. In the first place, here is
an aristocracy of seventy persons, described as having supreme
jurisdiction over the King, the High Priest, the Prophets, and the
people—possessing the power not only to judge individuals, but to
pass sentence on whole cities and tribes, and utterly to destroy them
if they pleased—and this without any other law or precedent to guide
them than their own will—and, inasmuch as they were self-elective,
subject to no control whatever, either of the king or the people. We
have heard much of corrupt corporations lately, but any thing at all
equal to the self-elective corporation of the Sanhedrin we never
heard of, excepting another college of seventy-one, the grand
council of another oral law of later date. It is vain to say that this
body was controlled by the law of Moses. When the Sanhedrin
existed there was no law of Moses, but their own will. They
expounded the law as they liked; and as we saw in our last, were not
bound even by the decisions of their predecessors: and if any man
dared to think for himself or to dispute their interpretation, he was
strangled:—
‫כל חכם שמורה על דבריהם מיתתו בחנק ׃‬
“Strangulation was the mode of execution for any learned man, who
rebelled against their words.” (Hilchoth Mamrim, c. i 2.) They had
thus the power to make the law say what they liked: and there was
no power on earth to control them. If they had been appointed by the
king, or elected by the people, they would have been responsible for
the abuse of their power; but they elected their members, and could
be deposed by none but themselves. A despotism so complete and
so dreadful, so inimical to personal security, and so subversive of all
liberty of conscience, could never have been created by God, but
must necessarily be the offspring of the distempered brain of man.
We can hardly believe that many Jews, except the Talmudistic
zealots, who might hope to be made members wish for the
restoration of the Sanhedrin; and yet, if they do not, they do not
believe in the Jewish religion, for the re-establishment of that Great
Council is the consummation of Judaism: and if they do not believe
in this religion, can they consider themselves honest men in
professing it?
But we must proceed to consider on what authority the rabbies make
these claims to such extensive jurisdiction. One would expect to find
some distinct command of God, expressly addressed to the council;
but no, their only authority is the words of Jethro to Moses, “Every
great matter they shall bring to thee;” a plain confession that there is
in the whole Bible nothing to warrant their pretensions, or they never
would have taken refuge in words so totally irrelevant. Indeed, we
are rather surprised that they appealed to the Bible at all, for such an
appeal is fatal to all their pretensions. Just let us examine some of
the particulars detailed above, by the light of God’s word. The first
pretension is, that “A king is not to be appointed except by the
decision of the Great Council of Seventy-one.” Now is this true? Is it
possible to show that any one of the Kings of Israel was appointed
by the Sanhedrin? Not one; but it is possible to prove of many that
they were appointed without any reference whatever to any such
council. Take, for instance, Saul, the first king of Israel; what had the
Sanhedrin to do with his election to the kingly office? Nothing at all.
So far as man was concerned, Samuel, and Samuel alone, was the
instrument of his election. When the people wished a king, they did
not go to the Sanhedrin, but to Samuel. He dissuaded them,
“Nevertheless, the people refused to obey the voice of Samuel.”
Would they have ventured to do so if he had been president of so
dreadful a council as the Sanhedrin? When Saul was anointed, it
was not by the Sanhedrin, nor by their command. No man was
present but the king elect and the prophet. “Then Samuel took a vial
of oil, and poured it upon his head, and kissed him, and said, Is it not
because the Lord hath anointed thee to be captain over his
inheritance?” (1 Sam. x. 1.) And when Saul was solemnly confirmed
before the people, Samuel was still the sole agent. “Samuel called
the people together unto the Lord to Mizpeh, and said, Now
therefore present yourselves before the Lord by your tribes and by
your thousands; and Saul the son of Kish was taken.” (xi. 17-21.) It
cannot be pretended that the Sanhedrin had anything whatever to do
with the matter. But let us try another instance. Let us look at the
election of David; was he chosen by the voice of the Sanhedrin? Just
as little as Saul. Samuel was again the sole agent. “The Lord said
unto Samuel, How long wilt thou mourn for Saul, seeing I have
rejected him from reigning over Israel? Fill thine horn with oil and go;
I will send thee to Jesse, the Bethlehemite; for I have provided me a
king among his sons.” And so Samuel went and anointed him,
without any intervention whatever of the Sanhedrin, or any one else.
These two cases are sufficient to prove the falsehood of the rabbinic
pretensions; but there is one more decisive still, and that is the case
of Solomon. Adonijah had made himself king, and Bathsheba, by the
advice of Nathan the prophet, took measures to make her son
Solomon king. But to whom did Nathan advise her to go? Did he tell
her to go to the Sanhedrin and to seek justice? No, but to go to
David the king, and to him she accordingly went, and found him not
in council, or surrounded by the members of the Sanhedrin, but with
Abishag, the Shunammite, ministering to him; and David, without
asking any advice, sware unto her, “Assuredly Solomon, thy Son,
shall reign after me.” The Sanhedrin had nothing whatever to do with
the matter. The assertion, then, that “Nothing was appointed except
by the authority of the Sanhedrin,” is a gross falsehood, and very
evidently made by ambitious men, grasping after power to which
they had no right.
In like manner, we might appeal to history to show, that the tribe of
Dan was judged, and that Saul, David, and the other kings of Israel,
waged wars without once consulting the Sanhedrin; but there is one
of these pretensions so directly opposed to the plain letter of the
Mosaic law, that we prefer noticing it. The oral law says, that the
waters of jealousy were not administered except by the authority of
the Sanhedrin. But what says Moses? When the spirit of jealousy
comes upon a man, does he tell him to bring his wife to the
Sanhedrin? No, but to the priest. “Then shall the man bring his wife
unto the priest,” &c. (Numb. v. 15.) What then is the priest to do? Is
he to go first to the Sanhedrin, and get its sanction? No; as soon as
the man has brought his wife, and the offering of jealousy, the
priest’s business is to bring her before the Lord—“And the priest
shall bring her near, and set her before the Lord,”—and is then to
proceed with all the prescribed rites; and the whole ends with these
plain words, “And the priest shall execute upon her all this law.”
There is not only no mention of the Sanhedrin, but immediate power
is unequivocally given to the priest, yea, he is commanded to
proceed without awaiting the decision of any other tribunal. Here
again, then, the pretenders of rabbinic tradition are in direct
opposition to the plain commands of Moses, and are therefore
unfounded. It is unnecessary to enter into more of these particulars.
The two which we have examined are contrary to truth; and two
falsehoods are quite enough to shake the credit of any claims. The
only possible way of establishing the authority of the Sanhedrin, in
answer to this argument, is, to deny the authority of the Bible. There
is no other alternative—either the authors of the Pentateuch, the
books of Samuel and Kings, are mistaken, or the jurisdiction of the
Sanhedrin is a mere fiction. Moses commands a very different
institution, and the historical books represent a very different form of
government. He who receives these books as inspired, must
renounce the authority of the Sanhedrin, whilst he who maintains it
must give up the sacred books.
There is, however, another tribunal mentioned in the above-quoted
passage of the oral law which it is necessary to notice, and that is
the minor Sanhedrin, or council of twenty-three. It is said, “The minor
councils through the tribes and towns are not to be established
except by the council of seventy-one;” and elsewhere we read:—
‫ וכמה יהיה‬, ‫ימעמידין בכל עיר ועיר בישראל שיש בה ק׳׳כ או יותר סנהדרי קטנה‬
‫מנינם כ׳׳ג דיינים ׃‬
“In every city of Israel that contains one hundred and twenty
Israelites or more, a minor Sanhedrin ought to be appointed, and of
how many members ought it to consist? Of twenty-three judges.”
(Hilchoth Sanhedrin, i. 3.) Now this is another innovation for which
there is no warrant whatever in the law of Moses. “Moses chose able
men out of all Israel, and made them heads over the people, rulers
of thousands, rulers of hundreds, rulers of fifties, and rulers of tens.
And they judged the people at all times.” (Exod. xviii. 25, 26.) This is
the provision which Moses made for the administration of justice, but
he says not a syllable about the appointment of minor Sanhedrins of
twenty-three, so that in this we have another instance of the effort,
which the rabbies made, to get rid of all the Mosaic institutions, and
to substitute their own. And also another proof that the laws of the
Sanhedrin were not given by Moses, for they require this Council to
appoint minor courts, contrary to his ordinances. It appears, then,
from what has been said in these two papers, that the Sanhedrin
was altogether an unlawful tribunal, and that therefore the oral law
can receive no support from its approval: and it appears, further, that
modern Judaism has entirely subverted that order of things
established by Moses. He ordained the priests, the Levites, as the
teachers of Israel. Modern Judaism has turned them out of their
office, and substituted the rabbies. Moses ordained a Supreme
Council, consisting of the priests and the judge. Modern Judaism has
destroyed that Council, and established the Sanhedrin in its place.
Moses appointed rulers over thousands, hundreds, fifties, and tens.
Modern Judaism has put an end to that order, and erected new
tribunals of twenty-three. In fact, if it were possible for the Jews to
realize all the commands of the oral law in their own land, and
Moses were to come amongst them again, he could never recognize
them as his disciples. He would not find one of his institutions
remaining as he left it. It is quite absurd, and if the subject were not
so grave, it would be ludicrous to hear the Rabbinists exclaiming that
the law of Moses is unchangeable, when they themselves have
changed all its main provisions, and made an entirely new religion.
But to the Jews it ought to be a matter of very serious enquiry,
whether the Mosaic law is unchangeable or not. If the law be
unchangeable, then no rabbinical Jew can entertain a reasonable
hope of salvation, for he professes a religion which has effected the
most extensive changes. In his creed he denies the lawfulness of
change, and in his practice he changes without scruple. If the law be
unchangeable, it is the bounden duty of every Jew to give up at once
the new religion of the rabbies, and to return with all haste to the
institutions of Moses. But if he believe that the law is changeable at
pleasure, then he ought to renounce that article of his creed which
teaches its immutability. In so serious a matter as religion, he ought
to endeavour to be consistent, and not halt between two opinions. If
Moses be his lawgiver, then let him serve him. But if he be
determined to continue in the new religion of the rabbies, he ought to
inquire into their character, and the authority and motives which led
them to overturn the religion of their forefathers. Is the religion of
Moses a bad religion, which it was necessary to renounce? Or, was
it only given for a certain period, and when that period had expired,
exchanged for a new one? Had the rabbies Divine authority for the
changes which they made, or did they change it for their own
convenience and interest? The nature of the changes looks very
suspicious, they all added to their influence and power. As long as
the law of Moses was observed, the rabbies had no power either in
Church or State. But by the changes which they made, they became
absolute despots over the bodies and souls of all Israel. They had,
thus, every possible temptation to reject the one and adopt the other.
But is this a reason why the Jewish people should also reject the law
of Moses? They gain nothing, and loose everything, both for time
and eternity, by the change. By adopting the new religion of the
rabbies, they give up the use of that most precious gift, their reason,
in all that regards the law and service of God. A Jew, who receives
the oral law, can have nothing but a blind faith. He has lost the
privilege of considering what God requires of him, and must simply
receive what the rabbies choose to prescribe as his duty: and if they
should even go so far as to tell him that his left hand is his right, and
his right hand his left, he must believe in the decision, and reject the
evidences of his senses. Or, if he should dare to doubt, where
Judaism reigns triumphant, he must be strangled. There is certainly
nothing very inviting in this system, nothing that should tempt a man
to prefer it to the just, and equitable, and rational religion of Moses.
He gives the law of God into the hands of the Israelite, and says,
“Behold I have set life and death before you, choose ye.” He deals
with men as rational beings, and requires implicit obedience, not to
the word of man, but to the oracles of God. He established a
supreme council, but did not permit that council to pass off their own
opinions as infallible, but commanded them to inquire of Him who
alone is free from error. It is truly astonishing that so large a portion
of the Jewish people should still prefer the religious despotism of the
oral law; and it is more astonishing still, that they should be deluded
to believe, that a system, which has subverted all the institutions of
Moses, is the Mosaic religion. But the most astonishing circumstance
of all is, that those Jews who have detected the grossness of the
delusion and have themselves renounced the practice of the oral
law, should feel so indifferent about the welfare of their brethren, and
so reckless of the interests of truth, as to look on in silence; or even
appear to countenance error by joining in the rights and ceremonies
of tradition. Even the tribe of Levi itself has lost its zeal, and
abdicated the sacred office committed to it by God. For eighteen
hundred years there has not appeared in Israel one single person
zealous for the law of Moses. All have been content with calling
Moses their master, and there the matter ends. The priests and the
people all unite in violating his laws, and trampling upon the ruins of
his institutions, and then expect other people to believe that they are
the faithful disciples of Moses.
No. XLV.
SANHEDRIN CONTINUED.

How a nation, so acute and so fond of learning as the Jews, should


ever have been imposed upon by so clumsy an imposture as that of
the oral law, is truly astonishing. The exceeding folly of some of its
ordinances, the incredibility of the legends with which it abounds, the
extravagant pretensions of its doctors, the grinding tyranny of its
despotic tribunals, all seem calculated to awaken doubt in the mind
of the most credulous, and the most ignorant. But the utter want of
evidence to support its claims ought to be sufficient to open the eyes
of even superstition itself. To establish the genuineness of an oral
tradition, an unbroken chain of witnesses, from the rise of the
tradition to the present time, is indispensably necessary. The
succession of persons who received it from their predecessors, and
transmitted it to their followers, must be clearly and accurately made
out; and the want of a single link, or the existence of a single chasm
in the chain of transmission is quite sufficient to discredit the whole,
and to invalidate the claims to genuineness. To prove the
genuineness of the ‫תורה שבעל פה‬, oral law, it is necessary not only to
point out a succession of persons, but a succession of Sanhedrins,
for, as we have seen, the Sanhedrin was regarded as the foundation
and pillar of tradition. If a single chasm in history exists, where a
Sanhedrin cannot be pointed out, or if the assigned succession be
inconsistent with the written and inspired records of the people, the
claims of the oral law are invalidated, and the Jewish nation
convicted as the abettors of a pious fraud, or the unwitting dupes of
an imposture. Now we have already shown that the Sanhedrin was
not instituted by Moses, and was never heard of until after the Greek
conquest of the land of Israel; and hence it inevitably follows, that the

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