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any idea of imperfection; but now "they knew that they were naked." Their perfect trust in their great Creator and Almighty friend was gone. "They made themselves aprons." They strove to conceal their imperfections, by works of their own hands. The voice of the Lord was no longer the cheering sound. of a gracious and approving master. "They hid themselves from his presence, amongst the trees of the garden." "I heard thy voice in the garden; and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself." "And God said, who told thee that thou wast naked?" How came you by the fatal knowledge of evil?-But they had not only learned their lesson of shame. They had attempted to cover it by works of their own contrivance. They had made themselves aprons." Their shame, however, was to be clothed by far different hands than their own; their clothing was to be provided by One, far superior to any human power: it was to be of materials which should typify an event, with which the foliage of the fig-tree had no connection. They were clothed by one, who in after times should "clothe" them and their posterity with "the garments of salvation." (Is. Ixi. 10.) The material of their covering was to be taken, not from the trees of the earth, but from those living creatures destined to be, in future years, offered up as sacrifices to the most Holy; as emblems of one great and final sacrifice.." Unto Adam and his wife did the Lord God make coats of skins, and clothed them."

The prescience of the Almighty, like all his other attributes, is perfect. "Known unto God are all his works from the beginning of the world." (Acts xv. 18.) The destiny of Adam and his posterity, though contingent on his obedience or disobedience to the divine injunction, was fore-known by his Creator, and, in his councils, the gracious remedy was pre-ordained. Thus, the names, which our first parents were permitted to assume, had a striking signification as to the ultimate purpose, of which each of them was the origin. "Adam means that which relates to earth. His sentence was, "In the sweat of thy face thou shalt eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken : for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return." The interpretation of "Eve" is "living." "Adam called his wife's name Eve, because she was the mother of all living." The name of her husband constituted a perpetual memorial of that temporal dissolution, which their mutual transgression had brought on themselves, and on all their descendants. Her own designation was one of a better hope. It referred not to death, but to life. She was the "Mother of all living." In her name we perceive a perpetual sign, not of all those, who, (sprung from her,) should live, only to die; but of those, who, by virtue of the gracious promise of God made to her, should die, to live. God declared that in her seed exclusively, the Serpent's head should be finally

bruised.

"I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed: it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel." The seed, which should accomplish the victory over the serpent, should be the seed of the woman, her seed, without the intervention of man. "The Lord hath created a new thing in the earth, and a woman shall compass a man." (Jer. xxxi. 22.) "Behold! a Virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel." (Is. vii. 14.) Therefore," The birth of Jesus Christ was in this wise; when as his Mother Mary was espoused to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Ghost." "The Angel of the Lord appeared unto Joseph in a dream, saying Joseph, thou son of David, fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife; for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost." "And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name Jesus, for he shall save his people from their sins." (Matt. i. 18-21.) This was the seed of the woman, who was mercifully pre-ordained in the councils of infinite goodness, to crush the serpent's head.

Here then we have, at the first period of creation, a full view of Almighty God's revelation to man. That revelation, from its early dawn to its present full and bright effulgence, has exhibited no change, but has progressively increased in the intensity of its light. It has "shined more and more unto the perfect day."

In his state of innocence, Adam possessed that righteousness which God imputed to a perfect faith working a perfect obedience by love. In this happy condition the tree of Life was in the midst of his garden. It required no sacrifice to bring its fruits to maturity. All was perfect, nothing remained to be accomplished. God had effected his own intention. "Let us make man in our image, after our likeness." "So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him, male and female created he them." "And God saw every thing that he had made, and behold! it was very good." (Gen. i.) But the perfect obedience of Adam's original righteousness became imperfect. He yielded to the temptation of Satan, and a knowledge of sin accompanied the act of sin. The penalty followed. The perfect and blessed state of the human race became changed into one of transgression and death. The way to the tree of Life in the first Eden was closed, and man had no access to it in his own right. But to this otherwise hopeless captivity to sin and death there was a way of redemption opened through the seed of the woman, who should bruise the serpent's head. The tree of Life was not destroyed. A way to it was still preserved-a way which offered an avenue of future approach to every part of the world. "Cherubims turned every way, to keep the way of the tree of life." It was not to be profaned by unauthorized intrusion, but the way to it was

still kept. It was preserved in all its vigour until that day, when, instead of "Pison," and "Gihon," and" Hiddekel," and "Euphrates," "a pure river of water, clear as crystal, should proceed out of the throne of God and of the Lamb." And in the midst of the street of it the tree of Life should again appear, bearing twelve manner of fruits, whose "leaves should be for the healing of the nations." Then shall there be "no more curse; but the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it:" and, as Adam and Eve once did, "his servants shall serve him, and they shall see his face; and his name shall be in their foreheads." (Rev. xxii. 1-3.)

"Why callest thou me good?" said our blessed Lord, speaking in his human nature. "There is none good but One, that is God." (Matt. xix. 17.) God only then can possess the knowledge of good and evil without any transgression. Sin was the necessary accompaniment of this knowledge on the part of

The obedience of faith, therefore, which was perfect in Adam, before he yielded to the tempter, became imperfect afterwards; and so it also descended to his posterity. But, however imperfect in its execution, the obligation still remained. It is the only avenue by which the tree of Life can be regained. It is the necessary preparation for those leaves which shall be for the healing of the nations; which shall mollify" and anoint, the wounds and bruises, and putrifying sores of human imperfection. (Is. i. 6.)

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