walkeft by the way, and when thou lieft down, and when thou rifeft up." Here was a life of domestic education; and, in addition to this, every city of the priests, of which there were feveral in each tribe, was a univerfity, inftructing them in divine truth. Behold the thepherd, David, with his family education, shine with an excellence almost fupernatural in the cabinet, in the temple, and in the field. It was education that taught the prophets, and in the moft degenerate days raised up men who reformed the manners, purified the worship, and reftored the government of Ifrael. It was education that preserved them, for ages, a great and mighty nation; and had education been properly attended to, according to the commands of Jehovah, would to this day have preserved them a mighty and a holy people. It is education moulds the man, and makes him an honor or difgrace to fociety.

T.

LETTERS ON WOMEN.

LETTER III.

DEAR SIR,

THE

HERE is another fociety of females in Wifbeach, and though its members are not numerous, its principle is. truly benevolent, and its utility confiderable: I will give you an outline thereof.

That which led to the formation of this fociety, was the confideration of the inconveniencies many females fuffer, for want of proper linen to accommodate themselves and their offspring, at a period when their minds should be kept free from every anxiety--when they fhould have every poffible attention paid them-when, in various inftances, not only the complete recovery of the mother, but the prefervation of the life, of both mother and child, depends much upon proper treatment, and fuitable accommodation. If females who enjoy all the comforts, and many of the luxuries of life, who at fuch times have many friends to footh and caress them, and who can command every accommodation their hearts can wifh, would explore the haunts of poverty and wretchednefs, and fuch the lowly habitations of the laborious part of the community will frequently be found, furely their bofoms would heave with commiferation, they would feel fympathy and compaffion :

"Their hands would not withhold the kind relief.
And tears of pity would not be repreft,"

while they beheld a modeft woman, pregnant with the fruit of virtuous love, and perceived that the utmost efforts of her hufband and herself could barely procure a feanty fubfiftence; that the procuring fuch things as decency and comfort would require, at what muft appear to them an important crifis, was out of the power of the humble pair. To fuppofe women who are only placed by divine Providence in better circumftances, could view fuch a scene without feeling any emotions of pity and benevolence, would be a libel upon the fair fex.

The above fociety is of courfe felf-formed, and all its regulations are of its own making. Each female who becomes a member of it, furnishes two complete fets of linen, each fet comprehending every thing of that kind neceffary for the bed, the woman and the child, during the first month after delivery.

The linen is all lodged at a convenient place, under the care of a fuitable perfon, who keeps it in proper order. When any of the linen wants either to be repaired, or replaced by others, it is done at the expence of the person who firft furnifhed it. The members of this fociety meet together when neceffary, at a convenient place, to regulate the concerns thereof.

A ftock of linen being thus formed, it is lent out in the following manner: When any poor woman is defirous of being accommodated with linen from the fociety, during her lying-in, the applies to any two of its members, and a note from them obtains for her a complete fet, from the perfon to whose care it is committed. This advantage has been enjoyed by many individuals, and has been of confiderable use.

This plan is not only calculated for the benefit of those who are in fuch poverty, as to be abfolutely incapable of procuring what would render them comfortable in their feelings and appearance in their lying-in, but is alfo found useful to those who would curtail their other comforts, and involve themselves in difficulties for a time, by procuring fuch articles of linen as they would not use at other times, in order that they might appear neat and comfortable when vifited by their friends in the chamber of their confinement. To relieve this latter class of females from the anxiety which would be an interruption to their happiness, and, perhaps, injurious both to their health and the conftitution of their offspring, and to prevent their involving themselves in expences which they cannot well bear, muft be very defirable, and truly benevolent.

It ought to be remembered, that poor women are frequently found the subjects of delicate feelings as well as those who are

in easy circumstances; and that many who are now poor have been formerly in better fituations, and were brought up with different expectations to what they have fince found realized; to think that they cannot enjoy those accommodations, and appear with that decency and neatnefs which they would wifh, in their confinement, muft create painful fenfations, which fhould, as much as poffible, be removed from virtuous love, and its confequences. The above fociety is calculated, at least in some measure, to alleviate thofe feelings.

Wishing that fuch benevolent focieties may be formed in every part of England, I recommend the confideration of the matter to all the female readers of the Univerfalift's Mifcellany, And remain, dear Sir, Affectionately yours,

WISBEACH,
July 20, 1799.

R. W.

On the Propriety of retaining the proper Name M JEHOVAH, in

the Bible.

HAVE often thought, that had the tranflators of our Bible

common name Lord, it would have added greatly to the force and beauty to the Sacred Volume in general.

It is fomewhat fingular, that though the Great Governor of the Universe has, in his word, declared to us what name is peculiar to himself, yet we boldly oppose our judgments to his, and give the preference to thofe names which are common to other governors, and which have neither the expreffion, or beauty, with that which is proper to him alone; and this is done by our tranflators, except in a few paffages where it would have been attended with the highest absurdity to have done otherwise.

The First Cause is in our Bibles called God; but we find, that the judges under the law are called Gods; angels are called Gods; and even thofe which are the reprefentatives of devils are called by that name. He is there likewife called the Lord; but angels are called Lords, kings are called Lords; and every one who is another's governor is Lord, or mafter, to him whom he governs. Thus we perceive that neither of these names is peculiar to any one, much less to him who was before all things, and who is eternal; these then are only common

names.

But first I should obferve, that grammarians diftinguifh names into proper and common: a proper name is that which is pecu

Jiar to one---a common name, that which is confined to no one, but given to a species: and it would be attended with the highest abfurdity to give a name to Deity which is common to many of his creatures; nay, as proportionate a degree of abfurdity would attach to this nomination, as the creature is above the Creator in point of comparison.

But to return:-God fays to Mofes, (Exod. vi. 3.) " I appeared unto Abraham, unto Ifaac, and unto Jacob, by (the name of) God Almighty; but by my name Jehovah was I not known unto them." If we take the word known here in the ftrictest fenfe, it contradicts the fenfe in many places; and to fet up one text against an hundred, would be a very hazardous way of interpreting Scripture. But what then can be the meaning of this laft claufe "By my name Jehovah was I not known unto them?"---Plainly this :---"By my name Jehovah was I not DISTINGUISHED by them.

It is evident, from the foregoing hiftory, that the true God was known, to his true worshippers, by this and many other names: fuch as El Elohim, Adoniah, Jehovah, Jehovah Elohim, El Gnelion, (the High God), El Gnolam, and, as here in this text, El Shaddai. But by none of these was he known as his one peculiar name---a name which he had appropriated to himself in preference to the others, and by which he now declares he would be diftinguifhed for the time to come. "Wherefore, (v. 6.) fay unto the children of Ifrael, I am JEHOVAH, and I will bring you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians; and I will rid you out of their bondage; and I will redeem you with a stretched-out arm, and with great judgments; and I will take you to me for a people, and I will be to you a God; and ye fhall know that I Jehovah am your God, which bringeth you out of the burdens of the Egyptians; and I will bring you in unto the land concerning which I did fwear to give it to Abraham, to Ifaac, and to Jacob; and I will give it you for an heritage: I am JEHOVAH.

Grammarians obferve, that of all the names of God, this feems to be the moft expreffive of his effence, as it denotes the one eternal, felf-exiftent being. And no time could be more feasonable for God to give himself fuch a name as this, than when he was about to take this little nation for his own peculiar people, and to plant, and to preferve amongst them, the worship of himself alone, in oppofition to the polytheism and idolatry of the nations all around them. For if any thing could prevent them from worshipping the little fubordinate deities of the Heathen nations, it must be the confideration of what this VOL. III.

I i

name

name imported---that the God they were to worship, and wha had chofen them for his peculiar people, was eternal, and confequently felf-exiftent; who had no equal, nor would fuffer any rival.

This then was that great name, known to their fathers amongst other names, but by which, having delivered them from the Egyptian bondage, the God of the Hebrews was to be diftinguished for the future. And therefore the first laws that were given from Mount Sinai, are prefaced with this name, to give them their proper weight and authority, Ani Jehovah Elabecâ, I am Jehovah thy God. And we find several particular laws afterwards, especially enforced by the fame authority---You fhall obferve to do fo and fo, I am Jehovah,

If any one doubt whether the veil y, to know, be every ufed in Scripture, in the sense of a distinguishing knowledge, I need only point out to him, Amos iii. 2. where God fays, "You only have I KNOWN of all the families of the earth”---that is, "You only have I DISTINGUISHED, " &c.

We find the fame ftyle ufed in the New Teftament, "If any man love God, (faith St. Paul, 1 Cor. viii. 3.) the fame is KNOWN of him" known, fo as to be diftinguifhed and rewarded; and in this fenfe, perhaps, Paul fpeaks when he fays, "I am determined to know nothing among you, but Jefus Christ, and him crucified:" this was to be his diftinguilhed topic. And fo in the paffage before us: "By my name Jehovah was I not DISTINGUISHED;" I was not known by it as my proper and peculiar name, as I now intend to be for the future--"This fhall be my name for ever, and this my memorial unto all generations." Exod. iii. 15.

This gives fo apt and eafy a fenfe to the text, and at the fame time, establishes the propriety, and even the neceffity of inferting the name wherever it is to be found in the Hebrew Bible, rather than fubftituting any other, that it is a wonder it fhould be over-looked.

The meaning of the word Lord, used in our tranflation, has no analogy with that of the Hebrew ', which Hebrarians affirm, contains in it the past, prefent, and future tenfes, and is properly fignificative of eternity; accordingly the French have, in their Bible, preferved the meaning of the word, and tranflated it L'Eternel; but this, though it gives the fignification, does not preferve the name in its form, as a proper name, any more than the Greek Kup, the Latin Dominus, or the English word Lord.

Now,