Reu

Serug

32 years to Serug.

30 years to Nahor.

On the first reading, it appears strange that all these patriarchs should be nearly of the same age at the birth of their first-born son, and Deists have often brought this forward as an argument against the Bible. But if we attend to the manners, customs, and usages of those ancient people, as mentioned in the sacred scriptures, we shall be satisfied that it was consistent with the order which was established at that day.

It was a custom among the ancient Athenians, not to enter into the marriage-state till they were thirty years of age; and since this custom was derived from the ancient Hebrews, every objection to the patriarchs being of the same age when they married must vanish. The number thirty seems to have been particularly attended to by these ancient people, for it appears that they were not allowed to officiate in the priestly office under thirty years of age. This we find to have been the custom in after-ages: Numb. iv. 3. From thirty years old and upward, even unto fifty years old, all that enter into the host, to do the work of the tabernacle of the congregation. This custom was observed by Christ, when he began to preach. Matt. iii. 23. Neither does it appear that the

F

patriarchs married more than once, and that was at the time when they entered into the ministry, which custom is observed in the Greek church to this day.

meaning of the

Reu succeeded Peleg. The word Reu is to break, break off, or to break the long-established order of things. From this we learn, that as this church departed more and more from the true worship of God, to the time of Nahor, who was an idolater; so we are authorised to conclude that in the time of Reu, the long established order, which had existed from the time of Noah, was broken; and that many opinions were introduced, inconsistent with the doctrine and practice of the church in his time, and in the time of those who succeeded him. Until this remarkable period, the true worship of God, as established in the time of Noah, was observed, and from the time of Peleg and Reu, the established order of worship was broken. From this period, we are authorised to date the beginning of idolatry in the line of Shem.

Serug, his son, confirmed this change. The word Serug means to wrap together, to be wreathed or twisted together, like the tender branches of a vine, Gen. x. 12.-Joel, i. 7. which, in conformity with the preceding state, shows that the church in the

time of Serug continued the separation or division. Thus, when the church had fallen into gross errors, the professors united themselves together with those, who had joined the popular idol-worship.

This appears to have been the very last stage of this ancient patriarchal church, when the true worship of God was not known as a national, or public worship: but instead thereof, idols, and visible representations under the delusive idea of a personification of the attributes and infinite excellences of a Supreme, were at length worshipped.

Nahor, the son of Serug, was an idolater of the same cast as his predecessors, who appear to have gradually declined from the true worship of God, to that of figures, which represented the passions and affections. This worship was finally received among the descendants of Shem, who like the posterity of Ham, the builders of Babel, and the founders of the Babylonish empire, worshipped the same idols. The state of things at this period was similar to that at the conclusion of the first patriarchal church; nothing remained of the true worship, by which it could be known what was its origin in the time of Noah. So universally did idolatrous worship prevail throughout all the nations of the east, that Nahor, the immediate successor

of Serug and the grandfather of Abraham, had joined in the idolatrous worship, as before mention

This ancient Noahotic church had now come to its final consummation. Nahor and Terah his son, the father of Abraham, alone remained to fill up the lineal descent; but being idolaters, nothing can be said concerning them respecting the true church. We shall therefore pursue the order of the sacred history, which will lead us to

THE COVENANT WITH ABRAHAM.'

The covenant, which was established with Abraham, was not new. It related to the comin

of

An opinion seems to have been entertained by most people, that Abraham was a person of little consequence, a private individual; and if we were to be guided by many commentators, we should conclude that he was a farmer, a grazier, a kind of itinerant wanderer. But the historical vestiges of antiquity, which are preserved to the present day, give us a very different account of the patriarch. Some writers have been bold enough to affirm, that no particulars of the epoch of Abraham are to be found in ancient profane history. Such, however, may be convinced of their error by turning to Josephus, Antiq. c. 8. where he quotes the statement of Berosus, the Chaldean historian. And in Justin. lib. xxxvi. c. 2. we have the testimony of Trogus Pompeius, who says, the Jews derive their origin from Damascus, a famous city of Syria; their kings were Abraham and Israel.' See also Clemens Alexandrinus, Strom. V. and Eusebius, lib. xiii. c. 12...This is also perfectly consistent with scripture, for we find it there stated, that he was a mighty prince, Gen. c. xxxIII. 2. And even the sons of Ishmael, were twelve princes according to their nations. Gen. c. xxv.

16.