go on, from the exhalations of the central waters, as they amalgamate with the inflamable combustibles in the earth, and manifest themselves in the form of volcanoes; which eruptions of the earth, when compared with its bulk, are only in proportion to an inflamed pimple upon the body of a large elephant.

same.

THE QUICKENING OF THE EARTH.

Verse 10. "And God called the dry land earth.' The word translated earth, implies to crumble to pieces, significant of the nature of the Now it is well known, that all the multifarious forms in which mineral, vegetable, and animal life manifest themselves, are so many portions of atoms of earth, which are by the infallible laws of nature, in an infinite variety of ways, constantly passing from one department to another, until they return to the earth again; and the innumerable, yea, infinite revolutions which those scattered atoms have to encounter before they become consolidated with their parent earth again, is only known to him who created them. "And the gathering together of the waters called he seas.' "The word translated seas, implies tumultuousness, agitation, circulation, motion or life and the sea, like the blood in living animals, is always in motion; it is the soul or life of the earth, as much as blood is the soul or life of animal bodies. Therefore, when the Almighty said, Let the waters be gathered together into one place," it was actually commanding the soul to take possession of the body; and thus was the earth quickened, and then commenced the mystery of generation, and by the same process (the

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mystery of which I cannot fathom) all generation is accomplished; for, although it is a fact, that the perfect fluid light is the article which infuseth its electric life into all nature, yet the way by which it accomplishes the same is a mystery only known to God, the fountain of light and life.

THE FRUCTIFICATION OF THE EARTH.

Verse 11. "And God said, let the earth bring forth grass, the herb yielding seed after his kind, and the fruit-tree yielding fruit after his kind, whose seed was in itself: and the earth brought forth grass, &C. And God saw that it was good. And the evening and the morning were the third day."

Thus we see that as soon as the earth received the quickened waters, according to the fiat of the Almighty Creator, it brought forth vegetation in abundance and thus is it the case with all nature, whether animal, vegetable, or mineral; no sooner does the principle of life enter into either of those kingdoms, than they receive the power of fructification, as likewise that of expansion, the principle from which the growth of all matter proceeds. And thus was the earth prepared as a garden well watered, for the reception of the various orders of creatures about to be created. And now commenceth the work of the fourth day.

THE GREAT LIGHTS APPOINTED.

Verse 14. "And God said, let there be lights in the firmament of the heaven, to divide the day from the night, and let them be for signs and for

seasons, and for days, and years. And let them be for lights in the firmament of the heaven, to give light upon the earth. And it was so."

This passage evidently refers to the sun, moon, and stars a general inclusion of them all together, without reference to their magnitude, but yet stating the purpose for which they were appointed, namely, for signs and for seasons, and for days, and years the very purposes for which they have most admirably answered ever since they were created and appointed to their offices; for (D) the solar orb, the central focus of light, has served to divide time into minutes, hours, days, and years; whilst the moon has not only served to cheer us in the midnight gloom, but has likewise divided the year into months; and the brave mariner, whilst ploughing through the ocean's briny billows, has by the stars been helped to steer his course. But having spoken of the heavenly lights generally, I now come to particularize them, which brings me to

Verse 16, which reads thus, "And God made two great lights, the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night. He made the stars also. And God set them in the firmament of the heaven to give light upon the earth, and to rule over the day and over the night, and to divide the light from the darkness and God saw that it was good. And the evening and the morning were the fourth day."

:

Here we have a special account of the two (DIN) great lights "the greater light to rule the day.' It appears that, until the sun

* Probably alluding to the other planets of the solar system, as likewise the stars beyond it.

was made, God did, by the direct operative power of his Spirit, cause the earth to revolve, and so produced the first, second, and third days. But when the elements were by his power perfectly organized, and set in motion, he appointed the sun, the greater light, as the main spring, to perpetuate that motion. Thus was the greater light constituted the instrument to rule the day; which brings me now to the place in which I may proceed to fulfil my promise in answering the absurd objection of the notorious Thomas Paine to this part of the history of the creation. He asks how there could be day and night without the sun, and ridicules the idea; but if he, and all fools like him, would but humbly search the word of God, with a view to find the truth, and try their principles by the same instead of trying to pervert it, because it condemns their wicked and useless lives they would find it a word of spirit and life to them, which would prove "a lamp to their feet, and a light to their path;" but "they stumble at the word, being disobedient thereto." That is the grand secret; their hearts are wrong, not their heads and the man who fights against the word of God, and wilfully blasphemes the same, against the light of his conscience that man sins against the Holy Ghost; the unpardonable sin which is never forgiven, neither in this world nor the world to come, because, by doing despite to the Spirit, he sins beyond repentance. And it is a fact well known, that Thomas Paine died a most awful death. But, notwithstanding the absurd objections of such men appear most plausible to a superficial observer, yet, to the honest and attentive reader, their objections, when

brought to the touchstone of truth, appear the very excrescence of folly, as I will proceed to shew.

THE MAIN-SPRING OF THE SOLAR SYSTEM,

THE SUN.

Having treated of the adaptation of the various elements composing the machine of nature, I now (in answer to Thomas Paine's objection) wish to direct my readers' attention to the main-spring of that machine.

For the elucidation of the subject, I will take for example a watch, which is a complicated piece of machinery, composed of plates, pillars, wheels, springs, &c.; which piece of mechanism is designed to be kept in motion by a main-spring, after its component parts have been properly adjusted; which, when accomplished, the artisan, to prove the accuracy of his work, places his thumb against the main wheel, and by that means gives motion to the rest of the works; and if he could keep his thumb there for the space of one hundred and eighty minutes, he would give the time appointed for three hours. But, having proved the accuracy of his work, he inserts the main-spring into the cylinder, which, by a chain, he attaches to a large conical wheel, and the elasticity of the spring being in proportion to the strength required by the other parts, it is exactly adapted to perpetuate the motion. And thus was the machine of nature set in order; not that God needed to try his work, like a finite watchmaker, for God's work is perfect from the beginningHe cannot err. But so did he arrange the elements, and perfectly balance all nature, and gave unto it certain laws of motion; and then ordained