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to dissuade him from his purpose. They would, in all probability, remind him of the stability of nature; how every thing, from the most antiquated records of time, had gone on just as they at that time saw them. The rising and setting of the sun, the changes of the moon, the regular appearances of the stars, the return of the seasons, summer and winter, seed-time and harvest; and in fact every known and obvious operation of nature would be pointed out to give strength to their own wisdom, to remove the unnecessary fears of Noah, and to show the uselessness of his project. The multitude would deride, and the philosophers of that day would reason, till the lightnings began to quiver, the thunders to roll, and the waters to descend; then the horror and dismay which we may well suppose would seize their minds, would just allow them time to throw a momentary glance at the total insufficiency of mere human reason, when opposed to the simple commands and authoritative declarations of Heaven.

In Abraham's offering up his son Isaac upon the altar, we find another remarkable instance of faith; and it shows us in a clear and singularly forcible manner, how a command or order becomes invested with a moral power and sacredness, from the

mere circumstance of its being commanded. Abraham's situation, as to his paying implicit obedience to the commands of God, was somewhat dif ferent from that of Noah's. The latter was fully informed of the earth's inundation, and of the terrible effects and calamities which would befal all those who had no place of refuge to fly to; and it is but reasonable to suppose, that self-interest would have a considerable influence in prompting him to pay more attention to the divine injunction, than he might otherwise have done, had that injunction not been coupled with a promise of a gracious and merciful deliverance to himself and his family. But in Abraham's case the matter assumes a different aspect. Here the command was not coupled with any good to be obtained, nor any evil to be averted. It was a simple and naked command, issued forth for no visible end or purpose. The language of Scripture is strikingly authoritative on this occasion. In the 22d chapter of Genesis we find that God commanded Abraham, saying, "Take now thy son, thine only son Isaac, whom thou lovest, and get thee into the land of Moriah; and offer him there for a burnt-offering upon one of the mountains which I will tell thee of." The ready and implicit obedience which this order called forth on the part of

Abraham is not less pointedly shown in the following words," And Abraham rose up early in the morning, and saddled his ass, and took two of his young men with him, and Isaac his son; and clave the wood for the burnt-offering, and rose up, and went into the place of which God had told him. Then, on the third day, Abraham lifted up his eyes, and saw the place afar off. And Abraham said unto his young men, Abide ye here with the ass; and I and the lad will go yonder and worship, and come again to you. And Abraham took the wood of the burnt-offering, and laid it upon Isaac his son ; and he took the fire in his hand, and a knife; and they went both of them together. And Isaac spake unto Abraham his father, and said, My father; and he said, Here am I, my son. And he said, Behold the fire and the wood; but where is the lamb for burnt-offering? And Abraham said, My son, God will provide himself a lamb for a burnt-offering; so they went both of them together. And they came to the place which God told them of; and Abraham built an altar there, and laid the wood in order; and bound Isaac his son, and laid him on the altar upon the wood. And Abraham stretched forth his hand, and took the knife to slay his son."

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It will not, I think, be pretended that this divine

order was clothed with any thing like moral fitness or propriety; nay, the very contrary was the case; for we may truly say, that the command in itself, or abstractly considered, was improper, and morally unfit, in the very highest degree. And it is on this account, and this alone, that Abraham is placed in so imposing an attitude, and commands so large a portion of our admiration and esteem. This remarkable devotedness to the will of God has attained for him the appropriate appellation of "the Father of the faithful."

Many similar instances to those mentioned, though less striking, might be brought forward from the Scriptures, all tending to exemplify that spirit and frame of mind with which we should receive the intimations of events and commands, which may be sent to us from above. But we will here just mention another which occurs in the beginning of the first chapter of St. Luke's Gospel. This lesson relates to the birth of John the Baptist. The angel Gabriel intimates to Zacharias, that his wife should conceive and bear a son, who should be a great and holy man, and the forerunner of one still more holy and mighty than himself. But the old man wanted to know how these things could be, seeing that he could not exactly perceive the

reason for them, and also that their accomplishment seemed, in his eyes, to be in opposition to the established order of nature. And what more natural than his question to the angel? and how modestly and humbly was that question put? yet how severe the rebuke! "And behold thou shalt be dumb, and not able to speak, until the day that these things shall be performed, because thou believest not my words, which shall be fulfilled in their season."

The authoritative manner in which the tables of the law were promulgated from Mount Sinai, is quite in unison with the doctrine taught in Scripture, as to the implicit obedience we should yield to the rules and commands found therein. All the external circumstances mentioned in Exodus, relative to this important event, were calculated to excite, in the minds of the Jews, the most profound awe and reverence; and to repress in their minds every feeling or suggestion of speculative curiosity, as to the reasons, or suitableness, or fitness, of the law so given to them. The people and the priests were commanded to stand at the outskirts of the mountain, on pain of instant death; Moses and Aaron being alone chosen as the channels of communication between the Deity and people, and the

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