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he is conscious of the sin which he has committed, and he already begins to suffer its first consequences; but he does not yet acknowledge the moral nature of his action; he does not admit his guilt; he speaks of his fear and of his nakedness. Averting his regards from his own heart, he foolishly seeks the reasons of his present condition, out of himself. It is necessary, then, that he should be brought before the tribunal of his conscience, in order to be reminded of his responsibility, of the divine command which he has violated, of the holiness of the law which he has trampled under foot, of the moral evil which has defiled his heart, in a word, of the real cause of what he now feels in the presence of God. And such is the object of the two questions which his Judge addresses to him. "Who told thee that thou wast naked?" or how is it that this nakedness is now a cause of shame to thee? Wast thou not clothed with innocence, with light, and with glory? Didst thou not bear the image of thy God, in whom thou gloriedst? Didst thou not rejoice in all the faculties which He had given thee? Why, then, art thou despoiled, covered with shame, and miserable? Hast thou sullied the garment

of innocence and purity which I bestowed upon thee? Hast thou lost the crown with which I adorned thy brow? Who, then, hath reduced thee to this state? "Who told thee

that thou wast naked?"

Adam is confounded and speechless before his Judge. It is necessary, then, to deepen the conviction which he feels in his troubled conscience. It is necessary to give him a nearer view of the evil which he has com→ mitted, by putting to him a still more home question. It is necessary to set full before his eyes the mirror of the divine law. "Hast thou eaten of the tree whereof I commanded thee that thou shouldest not eat?" My brethren, what instructive lessons does this simple question contain! Let us pause here. for a moment, and direct our thoughts to this important subject.

And, first, remark that God, in order that "He might be justified even when He condemned," with a condescension which was intended to redound to His own glory, pronounces no curse, nor even a sentence of condemnation upon man, until He has first convicted him in his own conscience. In the day of great account there shall not be one

among the reprobate that shall not proclaim before the whole universe the justice and holiness of his Judge; not one cry which they shall utter, that shall not turn to the glory of the divine perfections. And you, too, my brethren, my fellow sinners, whom I am now addressing, however ungodly you may be, however deeply you may be sunk in depravity, in pride, and contempt of God, you, too, shall all eternally contribute to the glory of the Most High, either in spite of yourselves, by proclaiming the justice of your condemnation, if you continue in your impenitence, or by your everlasting felicity, if you turn to the Lord while there is yet time.

But this condescension of the Lord towards man was also intended to subserve the happiness of the creature, by leading him to repentance, and, through repentance, unto salvation. If the thunders of divine justice descend not upon the criminal to destroy him the moment he has sinned; if the earth opens not its mouth to swallow him up; if his Judge allows him time and speaks to him in a manner calculated to lead him to repentance, it is a miracle of grace, and a proof that God already has designs of mercy and purposes of

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redemption towards His creature. Ah! blessed be God, "the Lamb has been slain from the foundation of the world."

The Lord, by the questions which He puts to Adam, confronts him with His holy law. Man, the sinner, will then no longer be able to withhold the confession of his guilt, under the plea of ignorance. "I commanded thee,” saith his Judge, "thou knewest thy duty, the full extent of thy responsibility, even the tremendous sanction of the law and the penalty of its violation." If, then, Adam perish, it is his own fault. If he already hears the distant thunders of the malediction of his God, it is he himself that has called them down upon his own head. And is there one sinner among us of whom we may not say the same? Is there an action of our life, condemned by the law of God, of which we can affirm that we have committed it through ignorance-we, before whose eyes the light of divine revelation shines in all its splendour-we, who are more privileged than any other nation under hea ven by the clear and certain knowledge of our duty, our responsibility, and of the will and word of our God?

But the Almighty, in reminding man in so

solemn a manner of the command which He had given him, designed not merely to lead him to confess that he had sinned knowingly and willingly, and that he had made no account of his awful responsibility, but also to show him the real nature of his sin. In a preceding meditation, we endeavoured to point out wherein the sin of Adam consisted. To establish the explanation which we there gave of the subject, it would be sufficient merely to refer to the investigation which we are now considering: "Hast thou eaten of the tree whereof I commanded thee that thou shouldest not eat?" I gave thee a command, hast thou violated it? This is sin-the violation of the law of God, disobedience, rebellion. That sin would have been the same, in point of nature, whatever had been the object of the command. For us, as well as for Adam, for every responsible being, sin is simply that which is opposed to the divine law. Thus God himself has defined it by the mouth of the Apostle John: "Whosoever committeth sin, transgresseth also the law; for sin is the transgression of the law." The sinner, in violating and despising the Word of God, infringes upon the harmony of the moral

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