The Lutheran visitor. (Columbia, S.C.) 1869-1904, December 01, 1869, Image 1
* • s'™*:
mm 1
nm
“ONE LORD, ONE FAITH, ONE
B APTIS M."~EPHESIANS IV: 5.
SERIES, YOL 2-NO. 14.
COLUMBIA, S. C., WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER I, 18G9.
OLD SERIES, YOL. IV.-NO. 67.
I
060^'°
* \i
|tributor*
who f*ai
» on Scj-
ffy £**!«»* ^isilor
iP# B FUBLIStlRD
fiVifiRY WEDNESDAY
»T
RUDE & MILLER.
ID1S:
I^tnuix Vwro* la tomUlwd to aob-
wlben *t $X» l>« J*"* If P*‘ d i“ *>l»»nw-
ft.I. ri»m th«r Widow*, and Student* of
du,r S 1-d * 5 00 ye * r ' ' f t * l<l ln
•dvjne*.
r»- ftiaM artK. do oo« pay wi‘hlu Mtra*
*&W* U*r jrr te*W. ..It, iu
„*«, be charged Hft.v mat* addtuooaL
, jt ks or iDVEHTtaixo:
lor ooa *4»* rv (“*• inch of ooion.u).
Fin* iaaertton. » <*
» 00
O. alTertaatwot. of three aqwres and np.
nrdi a diacount «l 10 per reot , of Bee «,oan-a
arf .mid*. 30 p*r cent., of ten *qu*re* and
mwarda. 40 per cent , andwf one Iretf «*•»■
xad upward*. SO per cent. wiU be deducted (cm
the «bo»e/»t«*-
Obiuuric*. »he« more titan 0»e line*, lee
creta for eigtit card* payable in adrance.
rootage—Pro cents per qoarwr
XSg~ PIoa.ee remombor *1 boeteeaa letttcr*
fo>uM bo etbireuod to
Kxv. A. B. BUCK,
CWtuaMo, S. C.
Black woe*
I Writer can
. Gomnnmicationa. •
Hi thorough
. For the Luilier.in Viator.
jvmhst utL
Dancing
■
-
109..
T1AK4LATED FROM TH* DKUninTM,
00p*MUK.
00 “ “
oo “ **■
Lithe Kirckeuztihtng: 1 can uot re
train from dropping you a few lines
00 “ “•
about the constantly increasing love
00 44 4 “
of dancing, which in our day is cap-
oo •* —
jivating the hearts and spreading to
such an extent, that it prevails uot
oo “ “
only among the children of this world.
oo - -
aud ill the city-halls, but also- in the
country, and even in the l.on.es of
those who are called Christians.
ill lie allowed’
Many atteud church every Sunday,
Thou four
uml waut to have the name 'of beiug
■tew, will te
true ami faithful followers of Jesus
trass.
-t effcctiTe
ter the etire
bin or Kup-
laa received
it Pbjoiciano
do not Iwnt-
IH< with Her
k wearer can
ledy that will
I hi j
|: u. far Cor
I as a support
«*. Ankieta,
Incase Ttdaa,
La and Cbil-
Irior article la
HectoaL In*
l a. Corratore
00,
■
. JH-f*
i:;, r .T» **
Christ; they also send their children
to the Sunday School, that they may
he taught the doctrines anti the
duties of the Christiau religion;
pains are taken to teach them the
eouin.aud.ne.ita, the creed, etc., ete.;
nail they are made to commit scrip
tural texts; hut at the same time no
means and efforts are left untried to
make these very children good dancer*.
They are carried to church on Sun
day, and sent to the dancing school
ou Monday. There they are taught
the steps and the figures, to tnni
about aud to jump ; and in vaiu does
the minister, in .vain do faithful
Christians raise their voice against it,
and declare that it does not become
Christians to engage in rjueh practices.
Its advocates assert that dancing is
not a sin, that it is only an amuse
ment, and an innocent recreation.
Sa.v, they even quote Scripture for
it, aud especially Ecclesiaste*, the third
rhapter ami the fourth verse. Many
m i that it is written iu the Bible,
that we should be gl».i aud rejoice.
So we should, bat mark : in the
lord-, for it is written, Phil, iv, 4:
u fiejoice in the Lord ^ways ; and
again 1 say: Rejoice.” And in
Cdossians Hi. 16-17 : HLet the word
of Christ dwell in you richly in all
wisdom; teaching and admouishing
one another,in psalms,and hymns,and
Spiritual songs, singing with grace in
your hearts to the Lord. And what
soever ye do in word or deed, do all
*B the name of the Lord Jesus, giving
thank* to God and the Father by
Him.* And also in Galatians v. 1<>:
*'Thig I say then, walk in the Spirit,
«xl ye shall'not fulfill the lust of the
24: “ And they that are
Chrisfs have crucified the flesh, with
the affection* and lusts.”
We leant from these declarations
■of the Won! of God, that to dance
m to do wrong; because it belongs
to the lusts of the flesh, aud we can
Hot belong to Christ, if we do not
***% the lust* of the flesh. L
John ii; 15,1(5,17: “Love not the
»orld, neither the things that are in
“* world. tf any man love tlicr
the love of the father is not
n> him. For all that is iin th* world,
he last of the flesh, and the Inst of
™* ‘“yea, and the pride of life, is not
w the Father, but is of the world.
And the world passeth away, and
fust thereof, but he that doetb
e will of God abideth forever.”
. H i* expressly forbidden to
* ^nfld, and the things that
in and of the world; bnt daucing
* <me of these things. L Corin-
»tan» t: 31: “ Whether therefore
drink, or whatsoever ye, do,
8,1 10 g>ory of God.” But,
reader, if you are to do what-
ct you do, that is all things, to
” "lory of. God, then should yonr
dancing also glorify Him. If you
do this, if yon dance to the honor of
God, then is it right for yon to
dance, for yon do not commit a sin.
Bnt if yon do not dance for this pur
pose, then is it sin; then do you
commit n sin, whenever yon dnnee.
Colossiuns iii: 17: “Aud whatso
ever ye do in word or deed, do n‘l in
the name of the Lord Jesus, giving
thanks to God and the Father by
Him.” Therefbre, dear reader, you
do well, if, before yon go to the ball
room, yon kneel down and pmy:
“GraciousGod, I am now going to a
bail, and I intend to take part in all
that is done there, and because Thou
requirest that ail things shall he
done to Thy honor and glory, let my
dancing be acceptable unto Thee.
Bless my every step and figure; ray
hops and my leap*; my turnings and
my twistings; that in so doing I
may honor and glorify Thy holy name.
Amen! “ Listen then to the voice of
conscience. If your prayer i» sin
cere, the answer and the right de
cision will most assuredly follow.
It is enstoinnry in ma-iy places to
have a band of music at weddings,
and the greater part of the pieces
played are dances of various kinds.
Mnny persons who have never been
at n dancing party or a ball imagine
that they do not. violate the dictates
of conscience and the reqntrmcnts of
the Word of God by conntenanring
this fashion by their presence; bnt
if is better by far to call on the Lord
to bless the wedding—to ask Tlim to
look down in mercy on the twain,
that hnve become one; to entreat
Him to guard them from the calami-
ties and evils of this present life; to
commit them and ourselves to Him,
and to place our confidence wholly
in Him. Parents ought, therefore,
when their sons nud daughters are
married, to silence the musicians
when they play dancing music, fa
it lends both young and old to for
get God; it degrades cliristians to
the level of stage-players and danc
ing 1 tears, and Imnishc* from many a
marriage frost the favor and Messing
* if God. The laird will, that all men
should honor and serve Him.
May these simple words prove a
blessing to all who read them.
DEB KI.\\SE”fF>EB.
Sermon.
Christianity the only Belifioa tor
[A Sermon, preached bg request, before
the Graduating Classen of the Male and
Fmale Collet/e* at Due H7*f, A C., on
the Ilf* of July, 1869, by Her. It. G.
PkiUipn, of IrtuisTille, Georgia.]
coxcuuen.
In every avocation, circumstance,
and condition of life, iu every
clime, jungle and fastness, at every
period of life, from hoary age to the
trudging school boy, state answers to
state, clime to clime, and age- to age,
saying—let Jeans Christ be King to
the glory of God the Father. The
sire imbibed it when, alongside bis
mother's knee, his little upturned
confiding pye of faith was first point
ed away to Halem’s reigning King.
It grew with his growth, nnd strength
ened with his strength, and cheered
nnd unstained him throngli life. Aud
lie has left it at last as his last sacred
legacy to his son, far “richer than
Mammon’s for a single heir.” It has
adduced, formed nnd modeled, very
much of the best cultivated, most
active nnd efficient intellect on earth,
by simply throwing its sublime ideas
into contact with miml. These in
stantly wake op an interest every
where. They are discussed alike in
the sacred desk and around the
equally sacred liearth stone, where
they distil upon yonng opening mind
M Like Ilermon'* dew, (lie dew (list doth
On Zion's Hill descend.
For there the Moms* Ood command*—
Life that ititoll mew end."
This religion ha* its place and its
own legitimate part freely accorded
to it everyw here; in the bridal lull,
and in tbe chamber of death; at the
baptismal tout, and by the open
coffin; in the pnbKo forum where
mind clashes with mind, and by tbe
laborer at his daily toil; in the mar
ket place of the city where business
jostles business, anil mi the calm
couch of peaoeftil repose. It throws
a shield and a buckler around help
less infancy; it gives wisdom to the
simple, to the yonng man know ledge
and discretion; and it cheers, soothes
and gives music to the whispered
adieu of the worn-out veteran as, with
staff in band, he steps aboard for his
eternal voyage. Ubiquitous as the
air we breathe, and powerful less
than omnipotence alone, it has fixed
Its deep impress upon every eiviliied
esc.
—
government, law, art, science, home, out before you and Invite yonr gen
social relation nnd human condition crons rivalry and vh-toriona grasp,
on earth. Ita history lit a grand and ! And you can even sec away off in
brilliant wnrccaa. From that day
when Simon said: “land, to whom
shall we got tin mi host the word* of
eternal lift*," down to this day, It' has
thrown abroad a light of cheerfol
hope—a sweat, ealm, soothing halo,
which the world’s great throbbing,
toiling, laboring, grieving, bleeding
heart has seen, frit, enjoyed and
said—
•On Um paU ohsl ut dsb mwUm u4 roam
■re bfereMsg.
And beaut* knmun*) awake* (Wan lire hast’
And the mouth of the Lord lia*
promised that it shall still perns for
ward, sulxlue and conquer until a
redeemed world and a ransomed raee
shall all join in that song which
is “aa the voice of a great multitude,
and as the voice of many waters,
ami as the voice of aiight.v thun-
derings, saying. Halleluiah! for the
Lord God omnipotent reigneth.”
in the cin-timstalters of happiness
me most aflbetionatelv to root- which are have sketched, to the
My Hmr Yonng friends of the tm.
Grtutmating t’lnan; At yonr own re
quest these thoughts have been
arranged, aa wrell aa I could <lo it,
expressly for you. With them per
mit
mend to your earnest attention tbe
high and sacred ctaioi* of ltilde
Christianit y —a siaqile,child like faith
in the Lord Jreus (,’hnet as a mighty
Saviour God—that religion of the
heart aud life which looks away
lovingly and confidently to him
when* he reigns and says, “My
Lord end my God.”
Three powerful consideration* urge
yon to ij:
1st. Kuril of yon must am! win
have a religion of some sort. Ton
now. Yon may not he,
the dim, nlmost immeasurable dis
tance, honored old age sitting in
quiet iteace hi the midat of a happy
home, with life’s labors all well done,
or perhaps sitting aa ttta the morn
tug star. 1 grant that thia is no
dream of youth, but a sober reality.
I pray God It may so prove to each.
And yet nil this is not enough now,
and when realised will net be enough.
The religions nature will assert its
da Ibis, and like the daughters of tbe
llorar leerii cry, “giveI give!P It is
that naan- demand which has agi
tatod ami revolution!sad the aural
world for sixty centuries ami made
it like the troubled ocean, which can
not real, whose waters cast np mire
ami dirt. It has proceeded to this
extreme >n yonr own day and com try.
And although it may net proceed to
all t bis wthl extreme la your individual
cases, yet It most amt wiH produce a
fretiog of disquiet, of seed, of uareat,
hw ehccrlessncas, and make yon sigh
for more when most ’• enjoyed. Ho
that the very innate demand* of
Voar own nature will force yon, even
have one
swan* of it possildy, for its form
may uot lie hilly dfvelo|>e«L And
yoo mm now vary that form at
plea.Hnn<. Bnt its element* are al
ready in the heart, abont to take'
form. What sluill it be t Will yon
go sway from rrvmled Christianity T !
Win you reject the Raring of the
I saver scion of a religion of some sort.
None ran meet those demand* but
Bible christlauity.
Bnt possibly this pictnre of ha|r
pineaa which err have drawn for yon
may be over wrought. I wrve dr
serving of severest upwlnuidou. It,
at this yonr moment (f joyous tri
umph. I cnnhl find in my heart with
foul fratricidal hand to mingle one
single hitter ingredient in yonr foil
of pleasure. No! Be happy
i while yon may. There are painters,
however, who eonld throw oar stroke
I of a master’s brush •mas that pic
I tmv of ha|>pine«s which yoo have
| drown and change its every line
1 from light to shade, nnd yet leave it
i eqnnlly trw to life. It seem* to mi
lint a few days, yot it was twenty
three years ago, when I was rifling
where voa ass, aad as pan ant listen
I ing. not to a tyro, twit to the won I*
Bible t Your education sad rending „ , ,
have necessarily Im.ught yot. mto ! ^ “ ^ *»! from tho lips
contact with a multitude of religion*,
both of the olden and moih-ni time.
Some of them are beuutifnl—many
of them fueciantiug—and to you they
all have the charm of novelty. I
There is danger of yonr Iwing de
reived by their hollow piamuMlity,
enptivateil by tbeir sparkling beau
ties, or rcndenwl iufldel to tbe Hilde
by thrusts at it aud their wrangle
among themnelves. Your education
may guard ytm against all these
evil*, or render you more liable to j
any of them. It is certainly a pain
fol truth that the teudency of tbe
great public mind of the country-
even educated mind—is not to tbe
impossibility' of atheism, but worm*,
to infidelity and pantheism. And
tlie inflections and development* of
I of one who is not here today. He
baa long since gone on tA join the
general aaermhly and efiarrh of the
i first lots whose mimes see written
in heoven. The levy bonne in wkieb
| we were then assembled is
I yielded to the nmiie power of
| time. That honss was then.
I now, densely crowded with bi|
! hopes and Idand exportation*. TVv
; day my eye wanders anxiously round
' (or ohl familiar faces, ami find* bnt
one Imre and another there, and they
| no deeply indented with time w
I and smiMith tear-riiannel* aa to
scarcely recognized. My mind i
ri.nna-.illy ask*, where are all those
young, buoyant associates of y
day! And get this answer: “One
went ap 1 wight in intellect aa the
society for the lost scon* of year, are *’ “ ,d '"‘T**/"* ,,M *
swiftly displaying the character of ~ *** tha fortmma rf
tlie religious from w hich they cma- W * r ’ BO * ae aatong fnetal*
uatc. You will need pure Bible
Christianity which has stotsl the storm
of ages, to shield you against that
insidious infidelity which, Uan>>e like,
is slavering over and trying to sw al |
low up every thing «a<-red, lovely and
valuable fn society. * '
2d. You will nwd it to make you
tranquil aud li.vppy in this life. I
know many of you think it strange
of his gisalnesa multiply them a
thousand fold ! And then they were
not enough without Christianity.
Your minds have been trained
long to habits of systematic thought.
In it you will flud much happiness.
You have, been brought, at least-, into
contact with the learning of the past
and tlie sublime lessons of nature.
All this will furnish food for thought,
and so a rich fund of happiness.
lieir to, we know nothing. God in
kindness conceals them tor the reve
lation* of the great coming day.”
Much is real life, nud I know this
picture is not over drawn, for I have
tried.it. Life may iMMwibly be such
with yon. And to sustaiu and buoy
np, to clteer and make happy, strong,
faithful iu such a life, God ha* made
You have formed associations and ] no nura provision except the hope#
friendships here to be as sweet and and consolations, the power and proa
lasting us life. You will now re-viait pacts of the ebriatiau religion,
long absent homes where iufaney ;vl Ton will n«cd it to fit you to
was dandled, childhood sported nnd ' oo-o|terate in that great struggle of
youth bounded free, joyous and elas- Hf e which is going an around you,
tie aa the morning air, and where ; am] in which yon are compelled to
many sweet cares*es await you by j take a port, whether willing or not.
those who are dearer to you and You came unto tbe stage of active
to whom you are dearer than life : life at a most nnspicioos, yet a most
itself. fearful period. There is a Wide-
Many of yon uow begin immediate j spread, wild fanaticism aud infl-
preparation for the eventful career; delity, very superficial in learning,
of life—almost ready to burst upon • but very - powerful In numbers, which
its busy stage of action. O, how ' by open war and Joab thrusts, are
the yonng and generous heart tkroba ! trying to supplant Bible Christianity,
and flutters with delight at tbe and with it tear down all law and
thought! All the honors, profits 1 order, all morals and established
nnd renl pleasures of life He sprend ! customs, all that has been considered
valuable and lovely in society, and
substitute tor them a uow order of
things. It is must fearfully like the
ouud.tion of things which ushered in
the French Revolution, and fed it iu
the last century. We have aeeu and
frit much of its social effects, aud
even today rioiMl neck-deep in the
sweeping tide of ita muddy, putrid
waters. Nothing ever lias been able
to arrest it in tbe past—nothing ever
can arrest it but Bible Christianity.
We need soldiers to stand up for
Christ aud kin crown. You have
educated u.ind*. male pnd female,
which give you very greet advantage
iu the field “Gaothai Heautou.” You
will exert a very powerful influence
for good or evil—tor good, if you
arrange yourselves (inmiptly on the
side of para Bible christiauity—for
evil, if against it, or neutral. Then
let each of you abide in hi* calling,
whatever calling he or she may
choose. But there let each our stand
up with armor on and face the field
—let each one stand np aa expert, an
educated witness for God aud for
truth. And If you have no country j
now, male one. As you would Honor '
your young, getx-ron* minds, which '
have been trained for useful»<■** by
miu-li parental aolleitudc—aa you
would see your country rise from her
ashes—aa you would see |M>nr suffer j
ing humanity raised up and made
happy—a* you would bear au honor
able |*trt In the noble work—os you
* mi Id glorify God and be ba(>py—lie '
lliblr christ iana.
Muy God give you each a happy, i
useful life, and at last cluster >..u
as two unbroken classes around bis
throoe in Heaven. A men.
Selections.
Pry* Ore A. R. hubpanu.
Tbs fisrpssL.
In tbg Old Testament the tenn
Serpent on-ura about thirty-three
time*. In Ilebraw there are four
word* rendered serpent : Nahaah.
Anrapli. Zili«l aud Taunin. Tbe lust,
when retah red serpent, utx-tir* only in
ommexion with the rod of Aaron and
thirer of the magiriaiuL It is sup-
lareed to have been a Urge wator
arqwnt, aa it is the same that in
Geo. it 21, is translated wluilea
Nabaah iwcun* about twenty-right
time*. The form of the reruture so
n.tmeil, i* nowhere dmerilird. It ia
purely a matter of ittfervuce. The
nahaoh into which Moara* rod was
changed, had a “tail.” Xabash would
bite and *tlny. was poisonom, did bisa,
was doomed to go u|irai his bt*Uy,
and was cursed above all cuttle.
Sew, looking through all patnnd
history, we find nothing except the
arrpeut, that emliudie* oil these at
tribute*. Hence there is a good
rraaun tor liriieving that the \ahash
of the* Old Testament was the same
a* the serpent now, as there is for
believing that the I*h of tbe Old
Teat* me ut was the same as the man
t now.
home; but they are tagrtlier gone
from the stage of actioo. Home
I went to foreign countries to solve the
| problem of lift-, and MI*there; others
still remained amid tli« aUruetiona
of borne, and toll them. Some
wasted away under the power of
diacuar eoiitraeted" at scImsi! “and
some were worn out with early toil
) and the heavy burden of lito. Horae
,, , ,, - , remain, though scattered and lost to
that I should say so. It is neverthe ,
. ’ * * j a T mrh other, and each are aay.ng,
lea* true, as you will find ,t I am <thr , |mrt knoweU , |u . Jrr ,, wis
we 1 aware yot. have a multitude of 1 , |d a ^ ^ Ilot
full channels oT happineas open la-ton* ^ xhf , 1<wl nclips Uld hmtUtti son,
yon without chritjmrt^. My God | ^ ^ ^
crosses, aud sorrows, the bitteme**
of life, aud tbe ills'that each waa
Suppose now, we should say with
dfrtain exiMwitors, that Nahaah, the
tempter of Ere, waa the onu.g-nutang,
Ikiw then would certain Scripture*
read f Pausing the first examine,
which ia the one in dispute, let ns
try tbe next three :
Gen. xllx, 17: “Dan shall he an
orang-ontang by tbe wqy—on adder
in the |iath, that Mteth tbe home’s
heels, so that his rider fiftieth back
ward*.’
Ex. ir, S, 4: “Ami he (Moses) cast
it (his rod) upon the ground, and it
became an onuigfoatang; and Most*
fled from before it. Ami the Lard
said unto Moses, pnt forth thy band,
ami take it by the taiL Ami he put
forth Ids band anil caught it; and it
became a rod fit his hand.”
Nnm. xxi, fi-ft: “And the Lord
sent firry orangoutangs among the
people, and they bit the people; aad
much people of Israel died. There
fore the people came to Mom**, and
said, We have nil.noil; for we have
s|K>ken against the Lord and ngainst
thee: pray the Lord that He take
away the orang-outang* from ns.
Ami Moses prayed foe the people.
And tbe Lord said unto Moses, Make
thee a fiery (serpent—is supplied here
by the translators), aud set it upon a
pole; and it shall come to pas* thsl
every one that is bitten, when be
looketh upon it, shall live. And
Moses made an orangoutang of brass,
and put it upon a i>ole; and it came
to pass, if an orang outang had
bitten any man, when be beheld tbe
orangoutang of brass, he lived."
Reader, do you know whether to
laugh, or weep! The barbarous clang
of such a rendering is supremely
ladicrous; but suck a mangling of
the Holy Scriptures ia lamentable
aud horrible. And yet, In each, of
the remaining places, in which sakask
occurs, the substitution of orang
ontang, or any other real or snppoeed
Mped, would be as bad as in the
above quotations.
Nor in the difficulty at all obviated
by tbe supjiorition that sakask in the
third chapter of Getiesis, has a moan
ing altogether different from that
which mast necessarily attach to It
in all otlier places throughout the
BiMe. To assert this, ia to asaut
the very point in debate. But let It
be granted, for a moment Thtfs
Mtsa-s aud all aubaniuept writeta,
have written in a manner ada;ited to
lead their readers to the conclusion
that they were not different, lint the
same. Mirer* knew the difference, or
he did not If he knew it, why did
lie not guard against the mistake t
If he did uot know, where waa tbe
Iu*|drotion guiding his pen so that
be coaid make no mistake f Or was
it a matter of indifference f Shall
ae conclude that aabash was really
m. orang-outang, or some other biped,
hut that it suited well enough for
Cod’* |miple. from the days of Muses
till now, to think that it was really
the si-rjM-.it t And that the Hcrijitu-
ral use of the term, should, by all
fair rule* of criticism, have an adap
tation to lead them into this error I
From the days of Jacob to those
of the prophet Isaiah, sakask
■scil to deuotr tbe setpest. The lat
ter, to the close of his prophecy,
use* thia phrase: “And dost sluill
he the aer;ient's meat.” He
bark, and evidently refers to the
curre- on nahask. IHtl he know that
sakask WO* the orang-outang, or
someth >ug else, but not the serpent f
Haul, too, in the rimplieity of
hw heart, joined to to perpetuate
the error. Hence be wrote to the
Corinthians: “But I fear, lest by
soy means, os tbe arrpent beguiled
Eve through his subtility, so
minds should he corrupted from the
*iui|ilirity that ia in Christ.” Had
h«- written thia to Hebrew, it might
have been plead that He used
hash, not to the sense of serpent,
hut ef orang-outang, or of what
cmt rise any wild imagination mar
conjure np. But he wrote in Greek,
nnd was under the necessity of
translating nnha*h into Greek. But
he used no term that denotes any
ape or gorilla, quadruped or twpcil.
He want the Greek Opkia—snake.
Poor I*iml! How mnch in the dark!
Had yon lived till the light of tbe
Binotocnth century, you would have
learned heHcr/fiSj
Nor did John, the last inspired
man an earth, have any other under
standing of this matter. He, too,
has written about the “old serpent,’
Optus—snake.
It is conceded hv all tbe “orthodox”
that the real tempter of Kve was tbe
Devil, Hatan. the father of lies, the
“murderer from tlie beginning.” And
to is easy to believe that then, as
now, be worked with some instrument.
That instnnneut was not likely to be
forpittci., I nit would, almost of neces
sity, become to man a constant and
impressive symbol of evil. We do
uot find in Hie Hrriptnre*, or in
mythology, ancient or modern, any
allusion to tlie ape, or any bifted, as
a symbol of evil; but tbe serpent
lias, universally, been so regarded.
Venomous reptiles, uo doubt, have a
natural adaptation to symbolixe evil.
Between them and mankind there
is enmity, and a literal bruising of
heels and head*. Dn( originally it
w as not so. When man had the
domiuton, and all things to him, at
least, wore very good, there was no
occasion for such enmity. But when
ii..... trai.sgreaaed, the serpeut be
came to lilm very bail—a fearfol
thing. This change of relation,
though natural now, was judicially
made, just as death in the human
family, though natural now, is also a
judicial infliction. Aud it is as easy
to believe the former as tlie latter.
As death in tie human family, though
natural now, is the constant symbol
of siu (see the Mosaic law respecting
the touching of a dead body); so the
attitude in which the serpent race
now stands towards mankind, though
natural, constitutes it, especially
when considered as the instrument
of the temptation, the fittest symbol
of the tempter, the old adversary,
the Devil. Henco, New Testament
writers have not hesitated to call tbe
great enemy of God aud man “tbe
senieut” and the “old serpent.”
If the instrument of the tempta
tion was tlie orang-outang, or any
other Edenic biped, is it not very
strange, that aucient mythology con
tains no trace of snch a tradition,
the “sacred tree,” the “grove*” of*
the her. p tun-*, would grow very natu
rally out of a tradition respecting
the “tree of life;” tbe “fire-worship
of the East,” out of one respecting
the “ flaming sword and the wor
ship of composite figures, out of one
respecting tbe cherubim. In like man
ner,the V isbnoo of the ancient Hindoo
encoded by a serpent which bites his
heel, and the serpent crushed by
Vishnoo, presents a translation of
Gen. iii: 14,15, as correct as could
have been made in the language of
statuary, or painting. The fitbulous
dragons and hydras of tbe ancients
also all look in the same direction.
It ia, therefore, a question which
ought to be auswered, why myths,
and symbols, and Scripture, refer so
often to the serpent, as the represen
tative of evil, but never to any of
the bqieds, set forward in modern
times as tbe instrument of tbe temp
tation. On tbe eappoaitiou that the
serpent was that instrument, all is
natural enough; but on the supposi
tion that it was some animal, shaped
like man, it follows that the fact waa
early lost by tradition, foiled toenter
into any anrient symbolism, was
overlooked by inspired writers, and
mankind early adopted, as tbe repre-
aeutative of evil, an auirnal that Had
no connexion with the introduction
of evil. Let those who are able, be
lieve aU this.
That sa hash must have bad the
hands of a man, in order to take the
fruit of the “ tree of life” to give it
to Eve, makes a very good argument
for those who are simple enough to
receive this “ taking and giving,” as
a tact. But it is badly spoiled by tbe
discovery, that tbe record contains
nothing at all of this. Tbe writer
was napping, or presuming, then.
Nor is it certain that sakask required
the human organs.of speech, to con
verae with Eve. There is a language
of symbols. God himself lias often
used It to convey thoughts to man
kind. And David writes: “ The
transgression “of the wricked saith
within my heart, there Is no fear of
God before his eyes.”
Many readers, doubtless, will feel
do interest in this exposition, because
they never have had any other
thought than that “arrpeut” is the
correct rendering of nakask. But
some bare adopted adifferent render- .
ing for it, in the third chapter of
Genesis, tort, sre requested to eon
aider tbe difficulties surrounding the
new translation before they finafly
adopt it. Feeble mind? may bold
both troth and error, without per
ceiving their conflict; but one error,
held pertinaciously by a logical mind,
requires not ofl.v the immediate
abandonment of its antagonistic truth
but also a gradual abandonment of
many related truths. If not cast
out, it becomes a leaven that will,
eventually, leaven the whole lump.
EXPOSITOR.
A Death-Bed Sermon.
A gentleman died last week at bis
residence, in one of our up-town fash
ionable streets, leaving 111,000,000.
He was a member of the Presbyterian
Church, in excellent standing, a gdcsl
l.usbaml and father, and a thrifty
citizen. On his death-bed, lingering
long, be suffered with great agony of
mind, and gave continual expression
to his remorse for what his conscience
told liim had been an ill-spent life.
“Oh I" he exclaimed, as his weep
ing friends and relations gathered
about his bed. “ Oh! if I could only
live my years over again. Oh! if I
could only be spared, for a tow years,
I would give sit the wealth I have
amassed in a life time. It is a life
devoted to money-getting that I re
gret. It ia this which weighs me
down and makes me despair of the
Hfe hereafter!” His clergyman en
deavored to soothe him, but he tamed
his face to the wall. “Yon have
never reproved my avaricious spirit,”
he said to the minister. “ You have
colled it a wise economy and fore
thonght, but I now know that riches
have been only a snare for my poor
soul. I would gir« all I josses* to
have Hojio for my poo* soul!” In
this state of mind, refusing to be con
soled, this poor rich man bewailed a
life devoted to the mere acquisition ot
riches. All knew him to be a pro
fessing Christian and a good man, as
the world goes; but tbe terror and
remorse of bis death-bed administer
ed a lesson not to be lightly dismissed
from memory. He would have given
all his wealth for a single hope of
Heaven.—New York Star.
Employment is so essential to hu
man happiness, that indolence is
and ancient symbolism no represen- justly considered as tbe mother of
tationof the fact! The worship of misery;