names thirty-four times, and his spirit once; while in the second he ascribes all to the Lord God, and names him twenty times.

Olympas. Have you extended your observations beyond the third chapter on this point?

Edward. The fourth chapter contains a different narrative; and Moses used the name of the Lord alone nine times. Thus the first section of the history ascribes every thing to God-the second every thing to the Lord God, while the third acknowledges only the Lord. Afterwards these titles appear to he used indiscriminately.*

Olympas. Names always represent persons, actions, things, or relations. Different names applied to God represent the various relations in which he stands to himself, and to the universe of which he is the author. But, Eliza, will you tell us all you know about the origin of woman?

Lord and God are both Saxon words. The former denotes a dispenser of bread; the latter denotes good. Elohim is the original for God, and Jehovah for Lord, which for the first time, is found in the fourth verse of the second chapter.

Our English word Lord, while it uniformly represents the Hebrew Jehovah, does not give the particular meaning of it, but simply denotes the being who is Jehovah. The reason of the difference in the style of these three sections seems to be that in the first God appears as Creator simply; in the second, as provider, dispenser, and governor as well as God; and is therefore always called the Lord God. In the third section he appears more in the character of Lord, and' generally throughout the book of Genesis. But after these titles are thus clearly introduced and defined in the first three sections, they are frequently used without any apparent regard to their particular meaning. We have, indeed, a very clear representation of God, the Lord, and the Spirit of God, as co-operating in the great work of creation,

Eliza. Woman's creation is found not in the first, but in the second section of the history; after Eden was planted and all things arranged for her comfort, the Lord God caused a deep or death-like sleep to fall on Adam. Meanwhile he extracted a rib from his side, healed up the wound and out of that rib made a woman, a help meet, or companion for Adam. Adam on recovering his senses, and on receiving this present from the Lord God, exclaimed, "Bone of my bone, flesh of my flesh; thou shalt be called woman, and for thee henceforth shall a man forsake father and mother, sister aud brother, and to thee shall he adhere as his own flesh."

Olympas. And what now was to be the future destiny of this happy pair?

Eliza. They were to live in that delightful garden and partake of all its pleasures-to eat of the Tree of Life, and be for ever young, beautiful, and happy, while they obeyed one single precept. Olympas. What, Reuben, do you call that precept—a positive or a moral precept?

Reuben. A positive precept-a guarantee of liberty and life, requiring only abstinence from

one tree.

Olympas. Why was it positive and not moral, think you?

Reuben. Positive precepts are explicit demands from a sovereign in demonstration of his own rights, and of the attachment and allegiance of his subjects. Moral precepts have respect to our fellows, and regulate our duties to them.

Olympas. To test obedience, and to secure privileges, positive precepts are, then, more wise and safe than moral precepts; inasmuch as they

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simply assert the rights of the sovereign-furnish one argument only-appeal to but one motiveand make the tenure or condition of enjoyment to depend upon a single, clear, unequivocal action of the subject and in this case the charter of privileges was so rich and extensive, the restriction so small, the temptation so trivial, that more could not be given nor less required on any principle at all adapted to prove the loyalty and devotion of man to his Creator and Father. What, then, was the result, Mary?

Mary. They were subdued by the serpent, and disobeyed God.

Olympas. To what passion, feeling, or desire in them did this serpent address himself?

You

Mary. To their desire of knowledge. shall be as gods, knowing both good and evil! Olympas. And what, Mary, have you learned of the author of this temptation?

to man.

Mary. The serpent was the most ingenious and companionable of all the creatures that ministered The adversary, who was a liar and a murderer from the begining," entered into this animal, as he entered into Judas and into many other persons and animals, and made it the instrument of his machinations, and thus deceived our Mother, who, believing a lie rather than the truth of God, obeyed her enemy, and involved her husband with her in the catastrophe.

Olympas. Whence did you learn this?

Mary. Moses describes the Serpent as the most intellectual or subtle of all brutal creations; and had it not been accustomed to speak to man in some way before the hour of temptation, Eve would have been startled and would not have

listened to it. But that it was the Old Serpent, the Devil and Satan, that operated by it on the ear and imagination of Eve, we cannot doubt, because of the allusions to it in the New Testament; indeed he is called "the Tempter," because of his constant assaults upon mankind, and is denominated a liar and a murderer from the beginning."

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Olympas. Enough now on this subject. They both fell and were expelled from the garden; but not until they were judged and condemned to death. Tell me, Reuben, have we any documentary proof of how long they had lived in Eden?

Reuben. I could not learn from the Bible; but there is an ancient and universal tradition, as I have read somewhere, that they continued only forty days in the garden of delights. The Asiatics say that the reason why the number forty, like the number seven, has been consecrated, is because of its allusion to this fact. The seventh day celebrates the rest of the creation week, and the many mysterious forties in both Testaments celebrate or commemorate man's continuance in bliss.

Olympas. I will ask the junior class in rotation, the forties. Each of you mention some event that required forty days.

Susan. It rained forty days and nights in the beginning of the flood of Noah.

James. Moses was forty days in the Mount with God in receiving the Law.

Henry. He was a second time forty days in getting a second edition of the Law.

Olympas. We shall extend it to the second class:

:

William. They were forty days in spying out the promised land.

Mary. The Prophet Elijah fasted forty days. Edward. Jesus fasted forty days and forty nights.

Eliza. And he was tempted forty days and nights.

Olympas. We must advance into the senior class:

Thomas Dilworth. Our Saviour abode on earth forty days and nights after his resurrection from the dead.

Reuben Thom. Ezekiel was to lay on his side forty days to bear the iniquity of Judah. "I have," says the Lord, "appointed thee a year for a day."

Olympas. Francis Cush, can you recall any other remarkable incident of forty day's continuance ?

Francis. Forty days were spent in embalming that Joseph who had been a slave, but who died governor of Egypt.

Olympas. There is yet remaining another forty days not mentioned. Rufus, can you think of it ? Rufus. Yes, master. Jonah the preacher said, "Yet forty days and Nineveh shall be destroyed.” But it was not, because they repented during forty days.

Olympas. But it is not only in respect of days, but of years also, that this number is celebrated. Israel eat manna forty years, wandered in the wilderness forty years, bore their iniquities forty years, were sustained by miracle forty years, &c. Besides this, we have this numeral distinguished in its application to other subjects, Can you recollect any of these subject, Sarah Black?