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The religious things which were known to Cain, were the results of an internal perception peculiar to the most ancient church, answering the same use with them as the revelation, which has been subsequently vouchsafed, does with us: and those knowledges were retained though their virtues had been neglected.

In order that man may now know what divine truth is upon religious subjects, the Lord has mercifully provided him his holy Word, and endowed man with the ability for comprehending it. The Word and the human understanding are both God's good gifts, and, therefore, they cannot be designed to repel each other: if in any case, they are found to do so, we may rest assured, either that the understanding has been corrupted, or that the meaning of the Word has been perverted. The Word is given, for man, rationally and intellectually, to understand its teachings: the faith which is thus perceived is the faith of truth, and this is the characteristic which God has set upon it, and which he is wishful to preserve: and every one may see, that to destroy it with such a mark of its origin, utility, and importance, must needs be followed by that calamity, which is described as seven-fold vengeance.

These considerations lead us into a more intimate acquaintance with the nature of faith, as a means to good: they show us that the constitution of faith is truth, marked and characterized as such by God himself. If we see this mark upon any religious doctrine, which is propounded for the acceptance of mankind, we should be careful that we do not slay it. To do so, is to peril the safety and satisfaction of our intellect. Whensoever God permits us to see a religious truth, he designs that we should revere and cherish it. Such a sight is an act of his particular providence, intended for our especial good. Let us, then, endeavor to bring this subject home to our business and our bosoms. Does the reader see that these interpretations of the Word bear upon them the impress of truth? Do these views of the narrative affect him as being reasonable in themselves, in agreement with the teachings of the Word, the purposes of God, and the means to virtue? If so, it is the mark intended to distinguish them for his respect and preservation. This is the only mark of faith which can be given, and what other would a rational man desire? To extinguish it after the recognition of the evidence of its existence, is to destroy the dictate of man's rational nature, and evince the most criminal indifference concerning the particular providences of God!

THE LAND OF NOD

CHAPTER XVII.

CAIN'S SON THE BUILDING OF A CITY AND CALLING IT AFTER THE NAME OF HIS SON, ENOCH.

"The Hebrew narrative is more than human in its origin, and consequently, true in every substantial part of it, though possibly expressed in figurative language; as many learned and pious men have believed, and as the most pious may believe without injury, and, perhaps with advantage, to the cause of revealed religion.” — Sir W. JONES' Works, p. 137.

"And

MOSES Concludes his account of Cain in these words, Cain went out from the presence of the Lord, and dwelt in the land of Nod, on the east of Eden. And Cain knew his wife, and she conceived and bare Enoch: and he builded a city and called the name of the city, after the name of his son, Enoch." (Gen. iv. 16, 17.) The circumstances mentioned in those statements, have not engaged so much critical attention, as some other parts of the Antediluvian history which have been considered. They are, however, not the less interesting on that account. We shall find that they describe important events, in the moral history of a declining church. The histories in the Bible, are the special histories of the human mind, written under the superintendence of a particular providence, and designed to reveal some of its most remarkable activities and developments. Though they appear to have respect to particular times, and to relate, for the most part, to a privileged people, yet in reality, they belong to all periods, and are adapted for the instruction of all men. There is nothing obsolete in the Bible. Its truths are always fresh and powerful. Its histories, the rites and ceremonies which it commands, together with the idolatries and transgressions which it denounces, are such as may be realized over and over again, in the states of the affections and thoughts of men. This is the reason why the Lord has said that His "words are spirit and life:" they relate to the inner sensations and living principles of men: it is these which contributed to the outer histories of the Word. The visible aspect of society, or of a nation, is derived from the inner principles, opinions, and feelings of the people: and men who write these histories, describe chiefly, their visible events and consequences: but God, who has superintended the production of the written histories of his Word, has caused them to be so constructed, that they might also represent the spiritual motives, in which such

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effects originate. The histories of men regard outer things: the histories of God refer to inner things, and to those which are without, only as the means for representing them: the former relates, mostly, to the natural, the latter, principally, to the mental world.

The good which may be implanted in human nature, will ever present the same general phase to the world, allowing only for that peculiar distinctiveness which it must acquire, by coming into contact with our idiosyncrasies. The evil which men may cherish, will always exhibit the like distorted features to society, more or less modified in their enormity, by the personal fears or darings of the individual. Men of love, are amiable and benevolent: men of hate, are severe and wicked. The Bible is designed to encourage the former, to warn the latter, and thus to treat of both conditions, under their respective varieties. Observe, it treats of them, not so much in respect to their outward position, as to their inward condition. The Word always has been, and always will be, a powerful exhibition of the state of the church with men, under all possible circumstances. It is thus a revelation, informing us of the extent of the Divine presence and its blessings, together with the nature of the apparent Divine absence and its consequences. The exposition of the subjects which belong to this chapter, will, in some measure, serve as additional confirmations of these views of the holy Word. We do not, however, regard this Mosaic description in the light of merely external history; we receive it only as a portion of that grand allegory, under which the Antediluvian period is represented.

Every one must see, that the description of Cain's going out from the presence of the Lord, is purely figurative; no one can be separated from the Omniscient in any real sense: for the Psalmist has said, "Whither shall I go from thy spirit? or whither shall I flee from thy presence? If I ascend into heaven, thou art there; if I make my bed in hell, behold thou art there. If I take the wings of the morning, and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea, even there, shall thy hand lead me, and thy right hand shall hold me. Yea, darkness hideth not from thee; but the night shineth as the day the darkness and the light are both alike to thee." (Psalm cxxxix. 7-12.) It has been considered, from the above statement concerning Cain, that the Lord had a special presence with Adam and his immediate posterity, somewhat resembling

what the Rabbins have expressed by the term Shekinah.* The circumstance of Adam and his wife having, directly after their fall, "hid themselves from the presence of the Lord amongst the trees of the garden," (Gen. iii. 8,) is thought to be the expression of that idea. This, however, cannot be well supported. The church, indeed, is the special dwelling place of the Almighty, that is to say, it is there, where his presence is more distinctly recognized: hence, he may be said to have had such a presence with Adam, as has not been experienced by any other people. In this sense, he has, also, had a presence with the Jews, unlike that which existed with the Gentiles: and likewise with Christians, different from that which has prevailed with those who are not so. Under this aspect, we at once see, that to go out from the Divine presence, must denote the cessation, in man, of those sentiments, by which the Lord can be alone perceived: and this furnishes us with a rational interpretation of Cain's going out from the presence of the Lord.

It is, however, to be observed, that the original does not really speak of the presence, but of the face of the Lord: it was from the face of the Lord that he went out; and consequently, it was the fulfilment of his own declaration unto the Lord, "from thy face shall I be hid." (Gen. iv. 14.) The Scriptures do frequently speak of the Lord's presence, and also, of His face; but each term is intended to set forth its own idea. The Lord's presence is perceived by means of truth, but His face is known only by means of love. Now Cain yet retained many knowledges of the divine truth; and consequently, he could not yet have actually departed from the Lord's presence, but he had relinquished the sentiments of divine love, and therefore, he really did go out from the divine face.

The face of man indicates every emotion of the human heart: he may prevent his thoughts from appearing in his conversation ; but the most consummate dissimulation cannot prevent his face, from disclosing any real and earnest affection he may possess. Offend modesty, and it will blush: accuse the guilty, and they become pale. Thus, love and anger, fear and hatred, joy and sadness; and, in short, every passion which may seize the heart, will be seen to impress itself, with more or less distinctness, upon

* By the Shekinah, is understood the visible symbol of the Divine presence, which rested over the propitiatory, in the shape of a cloud, and from which God gave forth his oracles when consulted by the high Priest.

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the face. Hence, the face of the Lord is mentioned, to represent His love; that is, His essential and never-varying character. "God is love." They who are in faith, observe His presence; but they who are in love, perceive his face. They who give up that love, as we have seen was the case with Cain, necessarily depart from that face, and, in consequence of this, they dwelt in the land of Nod, on the east of Eden.

What, then, is the land of Nod? Was it a geographical locality? We think not. The Septuagint, and Josephus, call it Naid, and they seem to have regarded it as a place. But, where was Naid? An altered reading of the Hebrew term offers no explanation; nor does any one know any thing more about the one than the other. Regarded as a place, it could not have received the name, Nod, until after Cain had entered it; because, by that term, is meant, a vagabond: it is the untranslated Hebrew word for that idea; and we can hardly conceive, that society had, as yet, set apart any particular land for the especial residence of its vagabonds. There are no grounds for supposing, that wickedness and jurisprudence had then been raised to such a height, as to require a land for the transportation of criminals. Surely, there was no penal settlement, in those early times, at all answering to the "Hulks " or "Botany Bay" of modern history. Why, then, is it said, that there was a land whose name was significant of this idea? St. Jerome, and the Chaldee interpreters, are said* to have taken a view of this subject, by which this inquiry is, in some measure, met. They thought, that Nod ought to be understood only as the appellation of Cain; and that his being said to dwell in the land of Nod, merely meant, that he dwelt in the land, a vagabond. This, indeed, removes part of the difficulty contemplated; nor, do we see that it is any essential departure from the Hebrew text: but still, it explains no more of the circumstances, in which Cain stood after he went out from the face of the Lord, than what is included in the fact of his having been declared a vagabond, before that departure took place: and surely, something more was intended to be conveyed by the statement.

But it is useless criticism, to endeavor to attach a geographical idea to a name that is, plainly, the appellation of a state, which had overtaken the faith of a degenerate people. Cain, having become vagabond, in respect to the sentiments of faith, are said to have dwelt in the land of Nod, in order to describe that they had lost all * Rev. J. Wood's Dictionary of the Bible, Art. Nod.