Five Pebbles from the Brook

"Five Pebbles from the Brook" by George Bethune English is a theological argument from the 1800s that answers Edward Everett's "A Defence of Christianity." The book debates the importance of the Bible and the truthfulness of the New Testament compared to the Old Testament. English tries to protect the Old Testament from what he sees as problems and disagreements in the New Testament stories. At the beginning, English explains he will respond to Everett's points, saying that understanding the Old Testament is needed to judge the New Testament. He talks about his own thinking and why he disagrees with the New Testament, pointing out supposed errors in the Gospels, especially about Jesus's miracles and what they mean for his role as the messiah. English gives a detailed criticism of the biblical writings, working to show contradictions and problems with claims of the New Testament's divine power, while highlighting the perceived accuracy of the Old Testament as God's true message.