street females provided for, and sheltered from insult and wretchedness. See Adultery.

WINE. It is written in John ii., that there was a marriage in Cana of Galilee, and that Jesus, his mother, and his disciples were at it: and that, "they wanted wine." (Verse 31, 32, 33.) There is nothing in the original to warrant the introduction of the word "when," which would necessarily imply, that they had wine, but that it was all used. Neither do I conceive the original word itself for "wanted" invariably implies (although it is often so used) a deficiency; but sometimes a total absence of that which they never had; and thus it occurs in Rom. iii. 23, where it is erroneously translated “come short," as if all mankind once possessed the glory of God, and not, as in truth, they always have been destitute of it; which is the very essence of the Apostolic argument in that chapter. We read further that, "there were six waterpots of stone-containing two or three firkins a-piece." The original word translated "firkin" means nothing more than “measure:" so that this measure may be only equivalent to our ounce or pint for all we can tell to the contrary. (verse 6.) The water in these, the Lord converted into wine. The words of verse 10, have led many to suppose that there had been wine at this marriage previous to the miracle, and that it had been all used. But it should be recollected that these words constitute only the observations of the governor of the feast on the usual practice on such occasions; but "thou" (says he) "hast kept the good wine until now:" which would imply, if the general opinion, that there had previously been wine, were correct, that the governor had given them nothing but bad wine;

which is what few hosts. would be willing to tell his guests! See Woman. Marriage.

WITCH. A person who pretended to be inspired by the Almighty; hence a public mocker of the Deity, and of his servants, the prophets; living on the credulity of the people, and thus bringing into contempt the authorised ambassadors of God; a class of systematic and audacious plunderers and deceivers hence the order, that such should not be permitted to live. The Witch of Endor performed no miracle: hence her astonishment, and fright on beholding Samuel, whom God permitted for many important reasons (although unknown to us) to appear to Saul. Had she the least idea of Samuel's appearance-had she ever performed a single miracle-or lastly, had this circumstance not occurred, there would have been no account of her fright and of her astonishment. And be it observed the passage no where states that SHE brought up Samuel; but merely that "when she saw Samuel, &c." (1 Sam. xxviii. 12.) See Miracle. Magicians.

WOMAN. Anciently a term of great respect. Cyrus addresses the Queen of the Armenians with a similar appellation: and Sophocles represents the maids or servants, speaking in the same terms to their mistresses. Herodotus informs us, that Pausanias, the king of Sparta, addressed the daughter of Hegetorides, (on descending from her chariot, herself and her female attendants, gorgeously decked with gold, and wearing the most sumptuous attire,)" WOMAN," be of good heart-as the daughter of my friend Hegetorides of Coos!

Augustus says to CLEOPATRA, "Be of good courage, O woman!" Dionysius lib. 51; Zen. cap. v. 24; Ho

mer's Il. iii. 204. Notwithstanding this fact, well known to every scholar, a modern well educated infidel writer has attempted to cast an imputation on the Lord Jesus, because he addressed his mother, by the name of woman!

WORKS. Where the Apostle Paul teaches, that no man is justified by works (Rom. iii. 19. 31; iv. 1.7) he emphatically adds, "in His (i. e. God's) sight." (v. 20.) That is, no man can be justified in the sight of God, by his works, or deeds; for every act of man is more or less contaminated by sin. (Hag. iii. 11—14.) But where the Apostle James says, "by works a man is justified," (James ii. 14—26,) he does not even insinuate, that it is in God's sight, but on the contrary distinctly shows by his whole reasoning that it is in man's sight he is justified by works. So that, so far from the Apostles contradicting each other, they both speak the same language. In the sight of God, that which alone justifies the sinner, is the perfect righteousness, and atonement of the Lord Jesus Christ, the substitute of sinners. In the sight of man, that which justifies him, or in other words proves that he really believes what he says he believes, is his works; for if a man says he believes the Gospel, and that Gospel does not so alter his actions and his course of life, so as in fact to be a new creature, (2 Cor. v. 17,) he either lies, in saying be believes that which he actually does not believe, or he is believing what he thinks is the Gospel, but what must be some lie in the place of the truth, some other Gospel, than that which the Apostles preached; for their Gospel, wherever it was believed, invariably made alive. See Gospel. Faith.

WORLD, age of, is proved to be what the Scriptures say it is. 1. By the paucity of mankind. 2. By the great quantities of uninhabited land. 3. By the late invention and progress of the arts and sciences. And 4. By the universal tradition respecting the Deluge. The pretences which the Egyptians and the Chaldeans made to antiquity have been thoroughly refuted, and their absurdity made manifest. The former made their calculations by lunar years, that is by months, and reckoned the dynasties of their kings in succession, which were contemporary! This gave origin to the vain opinion of some enemies of truth, that they could trace back before the days of Moses. Herodotus mentions twelve Egyptian kings reigning at one time! Their chronological accounts so differed from each other, that some computed THIRTEEN THOUSAND YEARS more than others! See Antiquity.

WORLD. The original word translated world in the New Testament, was often applied by the Jews, not only to the Roman empire; but even to the land of Canaan. For instance, Luke says, (ii. 1.) "There went out a decree from Cæsar Augustus, that all the world should be taxed;" here is meant evidently only the Roman empire. In the Old Testament the sacred writers often give Judea the name of the whole earth. John xi. 23; Jeremiah i. 18, &c.

WORLD. The fact that six strata of lava or burnt matter with veins of good soil betwixt them, have been discovered over the stratum which covers the ancient town of Herculaneum, that was swallowed up with Pompeii by an eruption from Mount Vesuvius, about seventeen hundred years ago, at once demonstrates the

absurdity of the statement that it requires two thousand years to convert a stratum of lava into a fertile field. For thus we find only about two hundred and fifty years, instead of two thousand years, are necessary to cover a stratum of lava with vegetable soil. See Creation. Philos. Trans. vol. lxi. p. 7.

WORLD. Job (xxvi. 7) says, "God hangeth the earth upon nothing." In Psal. xxiv. 2, it is said, that Jehovah hath founded the earth upon the seas, and established it upon the floods; both of which are philosophically correct. For, 1. The foundation of a pendulous globe can be nothing but its centre, upon which all the parts lean, and by which they are all supported. 2. The waters continually flowing through the bowels and concavities of the earth from the depths of the sea by a constant course and circulation, constitute an abyss in the lowermost parts of the earth; so that truly it may be said, “the earth hangs upon nothing, and yet is founded upon the seas, and established upon the floods.” (Ps. cxxxvi. 6.) Whence did these sacred writers learn this philosophy, and knowledge? Answer: from HIM whose servants they were, and who had in the creation of all things, only, “to speak and it was done—to command, and it stood fast!"

ZACHARIAS. It is written, in Matth. xxiii. 35, “the blood of Zacharias, son of Barachias, whom ye slew between the temple and the altar." The individual here alluded to by the Lord may be either, 1st., The Zachariah mentioned in 2 Chronicles, xxiv. 20, 21, who was actually slain in the temple. His father being called Jehoiada matters nothing: for every one at all acquainted with the Bible well knows that nothing was more com