affections towards him, which are essential to habitual piety, unless he had stated seasons for religious duties. The appropriation of some portion of time for these duties, is the dictate of natural religion. The observation of a sabbath in general has its foundation in the reason of things, though what proportion of time ought to be thus appropriated, may be matter of positive appointment.

With the general knowledge of religion, Adam received this appointment, and was commanded to keep holy the seventh day, as time belonging to God and his worship. Every day indeed is God's, the night also is his; but after allowing man six days for his ordinary pursuits, he claims the seventh to be spent in an immediate attendance upon him, not merely for his pleasure, but for man's good and happiness. It was judged necessary for man even in his best, primeval state, while yet recent and innocent from the hands of his Maker. In order to his preservation in that state, and continued improvement as a rational, moral being, he was required to sanctify the sabbath. This precept, in the order of the history, precedes that which was afterwards made the test of his obedience in the terrestrial paradise. How much more important and necessary to man, must the institution now be, in order to his recovery from his present state of degeneracy and guilt.

8

It is indeed true, that after the first institution, the sabbath is not again explicitly mentioned in the history of the patriarchs. From this omission, some learned men, fond of viewing it as a mere Jewish rite, have inferred that the original institution was subsequent to the departure of the Israelites from Egypt, and the record of it in the text, proleptical. But surely "the silence of history with respect to a rite or custom, well known to have been instituted or adopted, is no argument against such continuance, provided the reason on which the institution was originally grounded, remains the same." After the settlement of the Israelites in Canaan, no mention is made of the circumcision of a child through the whole duration of the Jewish economy down to the birth of John the Baptist. Will any infer from this omission, that circumcision was discontinued during that period? And is it not equally unreasonable to suppose, in contradiction to the natural order of events, and the literal connexion of history recording them, that God left mankind destitute of so useful and even necessary an institution as the sabbath during the patriarchal age? Had he no church on earth? Was there no religion in the world for the space of more than two thousand years after its creation? Neither church nor religion could have been supported without sabbaths. The supposition of their being wanting through those early ages, is most arbitrary and extravagant. For what purpose, or with what propriety, has inspired history record

ed the institution as commencing on the very day succeeding the creation?

If man was the chief and ultimate object of the Creator in the formation of the world; if to be subservient to him, the other creatures were evidently produced; if the tribute of praise for the whole was to be expected from him alone ;-is it not absurd to suppose that he should have been left ignorant of any fixed season for the payment of this tribute, for discharging the duties of religion? Must he not also have been left equally ignorant of the whole history of the creation? Or will it be pretended, that God communicated to Adam the knowledge of what had been done on each of the six days, until he came to the seventh, and there stopped without a hint or intimation of the rest and sanctification of that day, notwithstanding the latter most naturally and obviously appears to have been the great aim of the gradual process of all the preceding days?

Certain it is, that Adam, on his first creation, was, in some way or other, furnished with a degree of knowledge to which few of his posterity can pretend. "He gave names to all cattle, and to the fowl of the air, and to every beast of the field. The Lord God brought them to Adam to see what he would call them; and whatsoever Adam called every living creature, that was the name thereof." During the formation of Eve, he is said to have been in a deep sleep; yet he no sooner awaked, than he seems to have had a perfect knowledge of all that

had been done; and instantly exclaimed, "This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called woman, because she was taken out of man." Other circumstances might be adduced in proof of his superior intelligence. Was he then supernaturally informed of these smaller concerns; was he inspired with the knowledge of language, and with the knowledge of the nature of all creatures; and yet left ignorant of the creation, and of the duty which he owed to the Creator; ignorant of religion, and of the sabbath, the great instrument of religion?

On his apostacy and expulsion from Eden, he was doomed to labour and toil; to earn his bread in the sweat of his face; henceforward many wants and avocations pressed upon him, taking up his time and attention, and leaving him no power to perform religious duties, but in a way consistent with his present hard lot in the world. Religious duties however were then enjoined, and he was encouraged to the observance of them by the hope of being, through a mediator, restored to the lost favour of his Maker. He received a form of religion, adapted to strengthen his faith and hope in the promised Saviour. Besides moral precepts, he was directed to consecrate places of worship, build altars, distinguish animals into clean and unclean, bring oblations and offer sacrifices to God. In short, a great part of the law afterward published by Moses, seems to have been, at sundry times and in divers manners, before

"Abraham," says

made known to the patriarchs. God, "kept my charge, my commandments, my statutes, and my laws." By these several expressions, all the various branches of the Mosaic dispensation were afterward designated. There was, then, in the patriarchal age, a body of laws to direct the obedience, and a system of duties to guide the devotion of man. But in order to the performance of these duties, stated seasons were as necessary at first as they were afterward. "Such is the constitution of man, that he must have particular times set apart for particular services. If stated times for religious solemnities had not been enjoined, the consequence would have been that such solemnities would have been altogether neglected; for experience shows, that if mankind are left at liberty when and how often they should perform religious offices, these offices would not be performed at all. It is the observation of holy times that preserves the practice of holy services; and without the frequent and regular returns of hallowed days, man would quickly forget the duty which he owes to God, and in a short time no vestige of religion would be found in the world."

These consequences were distinctly foreseen by the all-wise Creator, and strongly guarded against in his very manner of rearing the fabrick of nature; with the foundations of the world, he laid a solid and rational foundation for our consecrating to him and his service a seventh part of our time. As often as we review this ample creation around us, and reflect