Entered according to the act of Congress, in the year 1835, by KEY & BIDDLE, in the clerk's office of the district court of the eastern district of Pennsylvania.

STEREOTYPED BY JOHN FAGAN,
PHILADELPHIA.

Line of distinction between the religious and irreligious early
drawn.-Causes of the distinction.-Elements of the first
Church. The cementing influence of a common name
wanting. This name given.-Sense of the expression,
"Sons of God and daughters of Men.”—Fitness of the
appellation.—Similar event under the Christian Dispensa-
tion.-Disciples first called Christians at Antioch.-The
term "Sons of God and daughters of Men" has its origin
in the genius of Oriental poetry.-Echo called the "daugh-
ter of the voice.”—Sons of God shouted for joy.—Jeru-
salem called the daughter of Zion.—Sons of Belial.—Chil-
dren of the world.—Children of the light.-Son of the
Morning. Marriage alliances of the "Sons of God with
the daughters of Men" calculated to obliterate the know.
ledge of the true God.-Effect upon human society.—
Experiment of living without God made in modern times.
-Sense of the words, "My Spirit shall not always strive
with man."-Sense of the word "Flesh," in this connexion.
-One hundred and twenty years respite granted.-Pro-
bability of the history.-Antediluvian condition of society.
-Longevity.-Moral cause for it.-Not fabulous.-Fa-
vourable to the development of evil.-Its growth unre-
strained. By frequent death.-By examples of Divine
judgments. Some examples, however, recorded.-Expul-
sion of Adam.-Punishment of Cain.-Annals of Divine
Providence meagre compared with ours.-Deluge itself.-
Patriarchal History.-Of Jewish nation.-Of Christian

Dispensation. Moral effect of such history.-Imperfec-

tion of civil institutions.-Cain's fear of private resent-

ment. Similar apprehension of Lamech.-Character of

the giants. Their violence.-Children of the "Sons of

God" imitate their example.-Mighty men.-Era of Phy-

sical predominance.-Infancy of Society analogous to that

of the individual.-Earliest Poetry and Mythology of all

nations point to a similar age of sensual dominion.—Their

theme physical excellence.—Conflicts of Heroes with Gods

and with Monsters.-Feats of Herculean Strength.-Moun-

tains piled on Mountains.—Attempt to dethrone the Gods.

-Universal corruption of the world.—Anticipated crisis

is come.-Light of the Church extinct.—Cup of human

depravity full.

31

CHAPTER II.

Recapitulation. The History apparently composed of tradi-
tions. They exhibit only the general features of the pic-
ture; but indicate the colouring.—Species of hieroglyphic
representation of the dominion of the physical man.—Pe-
riod of destruction come.-The Creator repents of his
work. Change in man's moral image.-Explanation of
the repentance and grief of Jehovah.—Origin of such lan-
guage. The operations of an Infinite Spirit necessarily
described to finite minds, by finite Analogies.-This mode
of speaking called the Anthropopathic.-Employed even
in affecting the imagination.-Destruction of the world
designed in mercy.-Fate of the world without reforma-
tion.-Noah an exception to the general depravity.-His
character-his justice-his perfection-illustrated.—Ex-
planation of the qualifying words, "in his generations."-
Perfection of the savage, with the mere light of nature.—
Of the civilized and cultivated man, with the mere light
of nature. Of man, with the light of divine revelation
made in the Scriptures.-Sense of the expression, "walk-
ed with God."-History of Noah a monument of the per-
petuity of virtue.-History at the 9th verse assumes the

form of a history of Noah.-Continued in that form to the
end.-Universal corruption of man repeated.-Destruction
announced to Noah, now declared to include the earth
itself.-Reason of this declaration.-Destruction of the
earth. Its import-nature-and extent.-Model of the
Ark.-Frivolous and vain inquiries respecting the particu-
lars of its structure.-Its adaptation to its object.-Flood
announced.-Emphasis of the language.-Covenant of
safety with Noah

CHAPTER III.

42

Time between the announcement of the Divine purpose to
Noah, and its accomplishment, not known.-One hun-
dred and twenty years' respite almost expired.-Ark ready.
-Order given to enter it.-Divine Testimony to Noah's vir-
tue.-Number of animals specified.-More clean than un-
clean.-Reason of it.-Animals enter the Ark under the
influence of a miraculous impulse.-Patriarch's faith be-
gins to be realized.-Feelings of the little family in bid-
ding farewell to the old world.—Door of the Ark closed
by God himself.—A seal to his promise of protection.—
Flood begins. Its date.-Description of its commence-
ment.-Windows of Heaven.-Significance of the Figure.
-Construction of Oriental windows.-Fountains of the
great deep.—What they were.—Speculations of men upon
the agency by which the deluge was caused.-Supposed
agency of earthquakes. Of internal fire.-Of a comet.—
Futility of such theories.-Impossibility of ascertaining the
mode of operation.-Progress and abatement of the wa-
ters. At their height in forty days.-Meaning and mea-
sure of their prevalence.—The universal destruction com-
plete.-Moral purpose of the deluge.-Means of Reforma-
tion.-Standing Example.-Allusion to it in Job.-In Isaiah.
-Indiscriminate ruin of young and old-man and brutes.
-Its justice.-Deluge not an act of judicial retribution.—
Waters assuaged.-Sense of the term.-Date.-Action of
the wind.-Abatement of the waters.-Sense of the term.

-Date.-Ark grounded.--Mountains visible.--What moun-
tains.-Date.-Raven sent out.-Seven days after, Dove
sent out.-Date.—Moral analogy of the flight of the Dove.
-Experiment repeated at intervals.-Returns with an
olive-leaf.-Does not return.-Noah concludes it safe to
remove the covering of the Ark.-Waters dried up from
off the earth.-Date.-Earth itself dry.-Date.-Interval
between the two events.—Noah commanded to go forth.—
Whole time of his confinement in the Ark.-Sacrifice
offered.-Resolution of Jehovah not again to destroy the
Earth.-Dramatic form of the narrative.-No more curse
upon the Earth.-Spirit of the Resolution

CHAPTER IV.

-

56

Man reinvested with the dominion of the earth as a new cre-
ation.-Change in its condition.-Perhaps, subjected to
new laws.-Human life shortened.-Benediction of Jeho-
vah upon the new colony.-Tenure of the possession.-
Animals granted for food.-Regard to life enjoined.—In-
vestiture of Noah different from that of Adam.-Possible
reason of the difference.—Spirit of the prohibition against
eating the blood.-Uninterrupted possession of the earth
secured by covenant.-Spirit of this transaction.-Sign of
the covenant.-Its appropriateness.-Rain-bow in the vi-
sion of Ezekiel.-In the Apocalypse of St. John.—A tran-
sient phenomenon the memorial of a perpetual covenant.
-Allusion of Isaiah to its unchangeable nature.-Of Jere-
miah.-Objection to the narrative answered.-Perhaps no
rain before the flood.-Perhaps the bow never seen by
Noah. Perhaps not the first appearance of the bow.-
Such a supposition not indispensable.—Concluding events
of Noah's life.-Not incompatible with his character as
before described.-Qualifications of a Student of History.
-Requisites for understanding aright the Story of the Pa-
triarchs. Explanation of Noah's drunkenness.-Nature of
Ham's offence.-Patriarchal dignity required vindication.