CHAP. I.
GENESIS i. THE CREATION.

WE find by the first chapter of the book of Genesis, which is the be­ginning of the Holy Bible, that God Al­mighty made the world in six days. He made the day and the night, the heaven above, the dry land and the sea, the trees, and plants that grow upon the earth, the sun, moon, and stars, fish and fowl, and four footed beasts, and he also made the first man. He formed him out of dust, and called him Adam, and gave him power over every thing upon earth.

He commanded the seventh day to be kept holy for ever, which is one of the rea­sons why we go to church every Sunday, and make it a holy day.

[Page 2] Ques. Who has the greatest power?

Ans. God. For he made every thing, he can do what he pleases, and there is none can resist him.

Q. Who has the greatest goodness?

A. God. For he gave us life, and all we have. He keeps us from all harm, and loves us as long as we endeavour to be like him in goodness.

Q. What do we learn from the history of the creation?

A. We should learn to praise God for having made birds, and beasts, and fish useful to us; and we should not use any of them cruelly, or give them unnecessary pain.

CHAP. II.
GENESIS ii. iii. THE FALL OF ADAM.

GOD Almighty put Adam into a plea­sant garden, called Paradise, or the garden of Eden; and God said, man should not be alone, he would make a companion for him—he did so; and gave [Page 3] her to Adam to be his wife. Adam loved her exceedingly, and called her Eve.

Our kind Creator, who is all goodness, and desirous to make us happy, gave Adam and Eve every thing, except one tree which stood in the middle of the garden. He forbade them to eat the fruit of that tree, and told them if they did eat of it, they should die.

They lived very happily in that garden for some time, and had nothing to trouble them while they were good and innocent. But evil thoughts and desires crept into the mind of Eve, and tempted her to eat what was forbidden; when she had eaten of that forbidden fruit, she desired her hus­band to do the same, and he was persuaded, though he knew that it was wrong, to eat some too. But when they had done eating they were ashamed, and grew very uneasy, and went to hide themselves behind the trees in the garden.—All people who have done wrong are troubled in mind, it is only good people that are happy within their own breasts, and pleased with the rest of the world; because they know they have done well, and that God loves them, and that every body should speak well of them.

[Page 4] Adam and Eve, thought in their fright to hide themselves from God; but he knows every thing, and sees every where, even into our thoughts. He called to them and asked them, why they had eaten the fruit which he had commanded them not to eat? Eve answered, that the Ser­pent, meaning her own evil inclination, had persuaded her, and Adam said his wife had persuaded him.—God is not to be put off with excuses, what he commands, must be minded. So he directly turned them out of that happy place, and sent them to wander about in a wild country, overgrown with weeds and briars, where they could get nothing to eat but what they dug and ploughed, and laboured hard for. There they grew old, and sickly, and died.

Q. What should we do when we have done wrong.

A. Whenever we have done wrong, we should never make excuses, or endeavour to hide our faults, for that is a kind of falsehood; but we should at once confess that we are to blame, be sorry for our fault, and endeavour to do so no more, that we may be forgiven.

Q. How far can God see?

[Page 5] A. He can see every where, for he is not like us. He sees and hears from one part of the world to the other, and for that rea­son all wise people fear God more than man. It is impossible to hide any thing from him; and as he loves us, he will al­ways punish us one way or other when we do ill, in order to make us grow better.

Q. What else do we learn from this his­tory?

A. That we ought to be very careful not to do any thing that can be the least dis­pleasing to God, however trifling it may appear to us, as we cannot tell what evil may befal us in consequence. We see that Adam and Eve were turned out of Paradise for having once done wrong.

CHAP. III.
GENESIS IV. THE DEATH OF ABEL.

ADAM and Eve had two sons, Cain and Abel; Cain was a husbandman, and Abel a shepherd; Cain was ill-natured and ob­stinate, but Abel was very mild, and obe­dient [Page 6] to God and his parents. God there­fore loved him better than Cain, and this made Cain jealous of his brother Abel, and made him hate that good young man—He had much better have striven to have been like him, and then God would have loved him as well as he loved Abel. One day when the two brothers were abroad toge­ther in a field, Cain rose up against poor Abel and killed him. He thought they were alone, and that nobody would ever know it, but God is always present with us. He therefore was with Abel when he was so cruelly murdered, and called out to Cain and told him that he knew it. Cain was then ready to sink into the earth with fear, as well he might after such an action. God drove him away that moment, and put a frightful mark upon him, so that every bo­dy who saw him ran away. He was very unhappy all the rest of his life, and at last he died.

Q. Where is God?

A. God is in Heaven. It is there he has promised that good people shall be af­ter death, where they will be happy for ever: but he is likewise every where at once. He is here now, and knows all we [Page 7] are doing, and yet is in every other place we can think of, at the same time.

Q. How was God made, and at what time?

A. He was never made, for he was be­fore all time. He made all things, both in heaven and earth, and was always as he is now. When we go to him after death, we shall know him much better than we can do at present.

Q. What do we learn from the history of Cain and Abel?

A. We may learn from the history of Cain and Abel how wrong it is not to love one another, and whenever we are going to do any thing that is ill-natured, or to quarrel with one another, we should do well to remember, that by indulging these habits, Cain was tempted at last to murder his brother, and was driven away from his parents, into a strange country.

CHAP. IV.
GENESIS vi. THE FLOOD.

ADAM and Eve had another son, be­sides Cain and Abel, called Seth, and also several other children.

Cain too had a great many children, and those children, when they grew up to be men and women had several children of their own, so that the world became full of people. After the death of their fathers, these children grew very wicked, they were ill-natured and quarrelsome, gave way to their passions, neglected to think of God, or to say their prayers; and God was so offended with them, that he resolved to de­stroy the whole world.

There was however among them one good man called Noah, and God took care he should not suffer with the rest. He therefore taught him how to make a kind of covered boat, of prodigious bigness, called an Ark, and bade him to go into it with all his family, and take with him all sorts of beasts and birds, and then to shut himself up in it.

When he had done so, God sent so much rain for forty days and nights, that the wa­ters [Page 9] rose up to the tops of the houses and of the trees on the highest mountains, so that the men, women, and children, were every one of them drowned. All this while Noah's Ark floated safely upon the waters, and no mischief befel him, for God was pleased with him. At last the Ark rested upon a high mountain, which is called Mount Ararat; and at the end of seven months the rain being gone, God sent a strong wind to dry the ground. Noah then opened a window and let out a raven; this is a bird that feeds upon dead bodies, and he found so much to eat that he went back no more. After seven days Noah let out a dove, which is a bird like a pigeon, but it flew back to him very soon, because it could find no dry place to perch upon. In seven days more Noah let out the dove a­gain, and it came back with an olive branch in its bill. Noah knew by this that the waters were almost dried from off the earth, and when he let out the bird again, it came back to him no more. He soon after ven­tured to open the door and go out with all his family. The first thing they did was to kneel down and praise God, for having saved them; good people always praise God for every thing, because they know that all comes from him. God was so pleased with seeing Noah thankful, that he blessed [Page 10] him, and bade him look up and see a rain­bow, which he told him was for a token, that the world never would be drowned again. Noah lived a great while after this with his wife, his three sons, and their wives and children. When he grew very old and weak, he died in peace.

Q. What do we learn from the history of Noah and the flood?

A. We should learn to be good and to trust entirely in God.

Whenever you see a rainbow, remember it was the sign which God gave of his for­giving mankind, and you should never look at it without thanking him in your mind for his goodness and his mercy.

Q. What is dying?

A. It is for the body to become senseless, so as not to stand, or to move, or see, or hear, or speak, or feel—in short, dying is like going to sleep.

Q. Is there an end of men when they die?

A. No; men are to live after death: they that have been good in this world, are to be raised again, and to be taken into Heaven, and to be with God, where no­body can hurt them: where they will feel no pain, nor sorrow, nor sickness, where they will be always good, and always glad and never die again. As for bad people [Page 11] when they have died, they cannot go to Heaven, but they must be shut out of that good and happy place. God will not have them near him, and they will be exceed­ingly miserable for the idle and wicked lives they have led in this world.

Q. What is the greatest misfortune that can befal us?

A. It is to offend or displease God, who always punishes those that are wicked.

Q. What is the greatest happiness we can enjoy?

A. It is to be in favour with God, who always loves those that are good, and blesses them.

CHAP. V.
GENESIS xi. THE CONFUSION OF BABEL.

NOAH left three sons, Shem, Ham, and Japhet, and they had a great many children, who, after their fathers were dead did many wrong things. They took a fancy to raise a high building, called a tower, that should reach up above the clouds, in order that they might get up [Page 12] there, and be out of the reach of a second flood, if God should determine to destroy the world again: but God seeing their pride, and their distrust of his promise, confounded them; so that they spake one in one language, and one in another, and they could not understand each other; for when one asked for a saw, another who did not understand him, perhaps would bring him a hatchet, or when he called for a stone, bring him mortar. In such con­fusion the building could not go on. So they left Babel, and all went and lived in different places, according as they could understand each others language; and to this day one language is spoke in one coun­try, and some other in the next country, all over the world.

Q. What is the most foolish thing any body can do?

A. The most foolish thing any persons can do is to try to follow their own fancy, without knowing whether it is agreeable to God; for if it is not agreeable to him, he can and will take care that it shall not prosper. We should therefore try to like what God likes; because it is in vain to [Page 13] wish for any thing without his liking, and he knows best what is good for us.

CHAP. VI.
GENESIS xix. THE DESTRUCTION OF SODOM.

SOME time after this there was a man who feared God, called Abraham; and God commanded him to leave his country where he had been born and had lived, and to go to another country which was called the land of Canaan; and God promised him, that if he obeyed him, that country should be given afterwards to his children. And Abraham did obey this command, and believed in the promise of God; and he took with him a nephew, his brother's son called Lot: and they had a great many cattle and servants, and there was not food enough in the country for them all to travel together, and their servants began to dispute with each other. And Abraham knew it was a great sin to dispute or quar­rel, especially among relations; he there­fore said to Lot, we had better part. Do [Page 14] you go where you like best, and I will stay in the land of Canaan, or wherever God pleases. Then Lot left his uncle, and went to live near Sodom and Gomorrah. The people of those two cities were very wicked, and God intended to punish them, as he does at one time or other, all wicked people; but he sent two angels to save Lot. When they came to his house, he took them for travellers, and received them very civilly; for good people are always obliging to strangers especially. After dinner the angels told him what they were, and that God had sent them to take him out of that wicked place, himself and his family, telling him they must leave it di­rectly, and not once look behind. Lot, his wife, and his two daughters, set out that moment with the angels; but Lot's wife disobeyed God, and looked behind her, and for so doing she lost her life in an extraordinary manner.

Q. What should we be the most mind­ful of.

A. Always to obey the commands of God as Abraham did, to whom, for this reason, a blessing was promised. But Lot's wife was a simple woman, and preferred [Page 15] the indulging of her own inclination, and so she lost her life.

Q. What more do we learn from the history of Lot?

A. That we should always be kind and civil to all men, even to strangers, and to avoid bad company, lest we should learn to be wicked like them, and be punished with them.

CHAP VII.
GENESIS xii. to xxv. 12. THE LIFE OF ABRAHAM.

ABRAHAM, after his nephew Lot had left him, lived in the land of Canaan, with his wife Sarah. He was so very good a man, that God loved him exceedingly, and told him Sarah should have a son, and that that son should have children, and those children would have a great many other children. That in this manner he would have a very large family, which should afterwards inherit the land of Ca­naan; and in that family would be born, after a great many years, Jesus Christ, our Saviour, who would teach men how they [Page 16] might be delivered from the ignorance and wickedness, and doubts and fears, into which the greater part of them would fall; and would tell them how to live well and die comfortably, and to get possession of a better life, and a better happiness than they can have in this world, neither of which will ever have an end: and that thus, in Abraham and his family, all the nations of the earth should be blessed.

After Abraham had been told this by God Almighty, he and his wife Sarah lived many years, till they were both grown old, and still she had no child: Abraham was very easy about this, for he knew that what God promises he always performs in his own good time; but Sarah being a silly woman, fretted and shewed great impa­tience. At last three angels came to him, and told him God remembered his promise, and Sarah should soon bring him a son. She was behind the door and heard them, but she did not believe God's word, but laughed at what they said, though she might have remembered that God Almighty can do what he pleases. And he, from whom nothing is hid, caused her to be asked why she laughed? upon which she began to be frightened, and said she did not laugh. So she was guilty of two great faults, the one [Page 17] was telling a falsehood, the other was not believing God's power.

Soon after she had a son, and he was called Isaac. When he was grown a great boy, and his father was very fond of him, and very thankful to God for his goodness in having bestowed him, God Almighty had a mind to shew the world that Abra­ham trusted him as much as he ought, and believed in the promises of God (that his descendants should possess the land of Ca­naan, and that of his family by Isaac, Jesus Christ should be born) God therefore bade him take his son up to a high mountain, and there sacrifice him; that is, kill him in a certain manner, and burn his dead body. Abraham knew that what Almighty God has promised he always performs, and that he never requires any thing which it is not right and best for us to do: they who love God as much as his goodness to us deserves, should be willing to give up their life, or any thing else to him when he calls for it; and although Abraham loved his son much, he loved God better, and was always ready to do whatever would please him. So with out saying one word, tho' grieved to the heart, he directly took his son with him to the mountain, and was just going to sacri­fice him, when God called out to him not to do it, for that he only meant to try him [Page 18] for an example to others. He then came down from the mountain again very joy­fully with his son, and God told Abraham, that since he had been so ready to obey him, he should see his son married, and have children; and that he would bless him in many ways. As for Sarah, God Almighty did not think fit that she should live to see her son married; but after her death, Abraham began to think of a wife for Isaac. He did not like any of the women of that country, because they were not well behaved; so he sent an old faithful servant into his own country among his cousins, to get a wife for his son. When the servant came near the city of Nachor in Mesopota­mia, he stopped at a well, and kneeled down to pray for God's blessing, for he knew no­thing could be done without that. And he prayed to God Almighty, to send to the well the woman he chose for his master's son Isaac; and that when he asked her to draw water for him, she might answer, I will give you water and to your camels too; by which he should know, that was the wo­man God had sent. God Almighty, though he does not always grant us the particular favours that we ask, because in our igno­rance we often ask for what would hurt ourselves or others, yet thought proper to hear this prayer of Abraham's servant, for [Page 19] soon after Rebekah, the cousin of Isaac, came. He asked her for water, and she said, I will give you water, and to your ca­mels too. Then he thanked God that he had found the woman he wanted, and he went with her home to her father's, and asked his consent to the marriage. The father consented, and so did she; after a few days he brought her to the land of Ca­naan; and Abraham saw her married to Isaac, and she made him a very good wife.

Abraham lived after that some time, and continued with all his household to set an excellent example of worshipping and serv­ing the only true God; for which he is honoured with being called the friend of God, and will be rewarded by him in an­other world.

Q. What should we learn from the his­tory of Abraham?

A. Always to obey the will of God, how­ever disagreeable it may seem to us; and always to bear afflictions and disappoint­ments with patience. We may be sure that we are always doing right, when we obey the commands of God, and we should consider that the unhappiness he suffers to befal us, is intended for our good, and if [Page 20] we bear it with patience, it will make us wiser and better.

Q. What is most pleasing to God?

A. It is to obey him in all things, and trust to him in all things, as we see Abra­ham did. Sarah did not, and so she brought a great many vexations upon herself, both before Isaac was born, and afterwards.

Q. What were the particular promises made to Abraham?

A. That his descendants should possess the land of Canaan, and that of his family Jesus Christ should be born.

Q. When did Jesus live, and what is meant by the word Christ or Messiah?

A. Jesus was not born till about 1800 years after the death of Abraham, and he was called the Christ or the Messiah, which signify anointed, on account of the office to which he was appointed, and in allusion to the ancient manner in which the especial ministers of God were established in their office: and for this high employment he was most eminently fitted, by the very great wisdom and power which God gave to him, and by his piety and perfect goodness: but of this you shall hear more by and by.

Q. What are angels?

A. They are not men, but glorious be­ings, superior to men, whom God employs [Page 21] in whatever way he thinks fit. They are very wise, good, and holy.

CHAP. VIII.
GENESIS xxv. 19. to xxxv. 29. THE LIFE OF ISAAC.

ISAAC and Rebekah had two sons, the eldest was called Esau, and the youngest Jacob. Esau loved hunting, but Jacob staid at home with his father and mother. One day Jacob was making some pottage for himself, when Esau came home from the fields very hungry, and desired Jacob to give him his pottage; Jacob asked him if he would give him his birth-right for it, and Esau said he would. His birth-right was his father's particular blessing, which in those days always belonged to the elder son; and Esau sold it for a mess of pottage. This was foolishly done, because the mess of pottage was of no value in comparison of his birth-right, but after a bargain or promise is made, it ought to be observed. Isaac knew nothing of that bargain; so when he was very old and quite blind, thinking he was going to die, he called his [Page 22] son Esau to him, and desired him to get him some venison, and when it was dressed, to bring it to him, for he was very faint. And he told him that when he had eaten of it, he would give him his blessing before he died. Esau should then have told his fa­ther that he had sold his birth-right to Ja­cob; instead of that, he said nothing to any body, but made haste to get the venison. Rebekah overhearing this conversation, call­ed her younger son Jacob, and bade him go to his father before Esau came home, and take some kid with him, and he would think it was Esau with the venison, and would bless him. Jacob told her, he was afraid his father would know him when he felt his hands, for Jacob had smooth hands, and Esau's were hairy. Rebekah, who was an artful woman, immediately found a way to prevent that, for she made him gloves of the skin of the kid, with the rough part outward, and giving him the kid in a dish, she sent him to his father. When Isaac had felt his rough hands, he thought is was Esau, and gave him his blessing.

Q. Did Rebekah do well to teach her son Jacob to deceive his father?

A. Most undoubtedly she did not.

[Page 23] Q. Did Jacob do right in being persuad­ed by his mother so to do.

A. No, he did not; for we should not even obey our parents in any thing con­trary to the commands of God, and God has commanded that we should not use any deceit one with another, and that every body should speak the truth from his heart.

Q. Was not Jacob punished for taking the advantage of his brother, and deceiv­ing his father?

A. Yes, a little while before his father's death he went from home, and left his mother, for fear of Esau; and besides that, he was in his turn deceived by Laban, and he had many sorrows, as you will under­stand when you hear the history of his life.

CHAP. IX.
GENESIS XXV. 26. to xlix. 33. THE LIFE OF JACOB.

WHEN Esau came home with the venison, and had prepared it for his father, he brought it to him; but his father was much surprised, and told him he had been with him already, and had got [Page 24] his blessing, and asked him why he came for it again. Then when Isaac knew the truth, he trembled exceedingly, but he could not contradict what he had already done. But Esau was very angry, and he said that when his father was dead he would kill Jacob.

When Rebekah heard that, she advised Jacob to go away, for fear Esau should be tempted to do like Cain, that murdered his brother. Isaac gave Jacob leave to go, and desired he would take a wife among his own relations, as he himself had done. So Jacob went to his mother's brother Laban, who lived in the same place that Abraham's servant had taken Rebekah from, when he brought her to Isaac.

Jacob travelled on till it was dark, then he lay down in a field, and set his head upon a stone for a pillow, and fell asleep. He dreamed that he saw a great ladder, the top of it reaching to the heavens, and the angels of God ascending and descend­ing, that is, going up and down. He dreamed also that God Almighty called to him from the top of it, and told him he was the God of Abraham and of Isaac, and that he would bless him too, and he should have so many children, that they and their children should be like the stars in the heavens, or like grains of sand for num­ber, [Page 25] and that the promises made to Abra­ham should be fulfilled in his family.

The next morning after Jacob had pray­ed to God, as every body ought to do night and morning, he went on his jour­ney till he came to the well, where Abra­ham's servant met his mother Rebekah. Soon after he had stopped there, he saw a girl called Rachel, Rebekah's brother La­ban's daughter, coming with a pitcher to draw water: Jacob, who was a very civil young man, ran and drew the water for her: then he told her he was her cousin, and went home with her to Laban his un­cle. Laban was very glad to see his sister Rebekah's son, and desired Jacob to stay and live with him. Soon after Jacob de­sired Laban to let him marry Rachel, and Laban told him he should have her if he would serve him seven years. Jacob agreed to it; but at the end of the seven years, Laban was so bad a man, that he broke his promise, and, instead of Rachel, he gave him his eldest daughter Leah for a wife. Jacob was very sorry, because he did not love Leah so well as Rachel, and he asked Laban how he could serve him so. Laban said, he only did it because it was the custom of that country to marry the eldest daughter first, but if he would serve him seven years more he should have [Page 26] Rachel too. As for Jacob, he was so de­sirous to marry Rachel, that he consented to any terms; and he got her for seven years' service more. Jacob lived a long while with his father-in-law Laban, and was so careful, that God prospered every thing he undertook. He also gave him several children, twelve sons and one daughter, called Dinah, but there were only two of the sons that belonged to Ra­chel, and their names were Joseph and Ben­jamin. At last Jacob finding his family so large, had a mind to leave Laban, and go home to his own country, and his father's house. But Laban was a selfish man, he thought of nothing but his own interest; so because Jacob was very useful to him, he did not care to part with him, and wanted that he should remain his servant all his life. However, God is always the friend of the oppressed; that is, of those people who are not so well used as they ought to be, and so he was on the side of Jacob. He would not suffer Laban to use him ill; but thought fit that he should go away, and Jacob went. He took with him his wives and children, his servants, his cattle, and all his goods.

When they had gone a part of the way, some of his servants who went on before, came running back to him, and told him [Page 27] they had seen his brother Esau coming, and several people with him. Then Jacob was sadly affrighted, and did not know what to do, for he dreaded some harm to his tender family; but wise people always pray to God when they are in trouble, and if it is good for them, he relieves them. Jacob therefore prayed fervently, and God put it in his head what to do. He picked out some of the finest of his cattle, and of all the best things he had, and sent them on before him, desiring his servants, when Esau asked whose they were, to say they belonged to their master Jacob, and that he sent them as a present to his brother Esau. A soft answer turneth away wrath. Esau was so moved at Jacob's mild and obliging behaviour, that it drove away all his an­ger, and when Jacob came near and kneeled down to him, Esau took him up and kissed him, and they were very good friends. This made Jacob very happy, for he found that his brother had forgiven him, and a good-natured man loves peace and good humour, and hates to quarrel with any body. Then Esau went and lived in Mount Seir, and Jacob travelled on towards the land of Canaan, where Abraham and Isaac had lived. In his way there, he stopped at a place called Sichem, to rest his family. Then his daughter Dinah took it [Page 28] into her head to go and visit the girls of that country; and when she was abroad, one of the young men of the place, son to the king, took hold of her and ran away with her. When her brothers heard of it, they went after him and his companions: they fought, and there were several people killed; all which mischief Dinah was the cause of, because she did not stay at home, as sober modest girls all do, but went away from those who would have befriended and protected her. And it grieved poor Jacob very much to see how many had lost their lives by this accident. Afterwards he went on his journey, and came to the land of Canaan; but Rachel died by the way, and he buried her About this time God Al­mighty was pleased to signify to Jacob by an angel, that he should take the surname of Israel.

Q. Does God allow such near relations as brothers and sisters, or uncles and nieces, or aunts and nephews, to marry one ano­ther?

A. This was practised in those times, afterwards God expressly forbad it, and he allows no such near kindred to marry each other. To contract such a marriage would [Page 29] be a very great sin now, and is called the sin of incest.

CHAP. X.
GENESIS xxxvii. to the End. THE STORY OF JOSEPH.

JACOB was much grieved for his wife Rachel, and he was fonder of Joseph than of his other children, because he was her eldest son, and was a very good boy. But his brothers hated him, and were very jealous of him, because their father loved him so much: for bad people often hate good people out of jealousy; and are spite­ful to them, and try to hurt them, but God is their friend, and defends them from all mischief, and never forsakes them, as you will see by this story of Joseph. The young man dreamed one night that he was in the fields with his brothers binding sheaves of corn, and that his sheaf stood upright, and their sheaves bowed down to it. Joseph very innocently told his brothers this dream, and another dream that was like it; but they were quite angry when they heard them, and resolved to get rid of him at any rate.

[Page 30] One day they being out in the fields, a great way from home, taking care of the flock, Jacob sent Joseph to them to bring him word how they did. When they saw him coming, they cried out, here is the dreamer, let us kill him. But Reuben, the elder brother, said, no, we will not stain our hands with a brother's blood; but we will strip him and throw him into a pit. After they had done it, some merchants that were going into Egypt, passed by, and the brothers dragged him out of the pit, and sold him to them. Then they killed a kid, and dipped Joseph's clothes in the blood, and brought them to poor old Ja­cob, and made him believe that a wild beast had devoured Joseph; that is, had eaten him up. Jacob was in the greatest grief that could be for the loss of so good a child, and his wicked sons were so hard­hearted as to see him suffer, and yet not make his mind easier, by telling him the truth. But God Almighty directs every thing for the best, and his blessing went with Joseph into the land of Egypt; so that though he was among strangers, he was not friendless. The merchants sold him to one Potiphar; and he served him some time, and behaved so well, that Potiphar had a great regard for him. But Poti­phar's wife was a very bad woman, and [Page 31] wanted to persuade Joseph to be bad too! however he was too wise and good to yield, that is, to give way to temptation; so then out of spite and malice, she told a lie of him to her husband; and Potiphar be­lieved all she said, and was so angry with poor Joseph, that he sent him to prison. Joseph was always mild and patient, and civil, which made every body love him wherever he went; and the jailor, that is, the keeper of the prison, grew so fond of him, he did not put him in irons, or fasten him with chains like the other prisoners, nor keep him in one room, but let him go about the house. There were in the same prison two other prisoners; the chief baker of king Pharaoh, and his chief butler, whom they called his cup-bearer. The chief baker dreamed he had three baskets upon his head, full of baked meats for the king's table, and that the birds of the air came and devoured them. As for the butler, he dreamed that he held three branches of a vine-tree in his hand, that they were full of grapes, and that he squeezed them into a cup, for wine to serve up at the king's table. They were both very uneasy to know what these dreams could mean▪ and Joseph saw by their countenances that they were troubled; he asked them what ailed them, and they told him what strange [Page 32] dreams they had dreamed, and that they wished to know the meaning of them.

Dreams very seldom have any meaning at all, and it is foolish to be concerned about them; for when people sleep badly, their heads are disturbed, and rambling thoughts pass through their minds. But as for these two dreams, God Almighty directed them on purpose, for wise reasons of his own, as we shall see by and by. He also put it into Joseph's head to explain those dreams to them. So he told the baker, that his dream signified that in three days Pharaoh would order him to be hanged; but as to the cup-bearer, he told him, he would, in three days, fill out wine to the king; and then he begged he would speak for him, that he might be let out of prison. The cup-bearer promised him fair; but when he got out on the third day, his joy made him so ungrateful that he forgot poor Joseph, who remained in prison two years longer.

At the end of that time God sent a strange dream to king Pharaoh, who want­ed to have it interpreted or explained, and none of the wife people of that country could understand it, because God had not revealed, that is, had not made it known to them; for we know nothing but what God discovers to us.

[Page 33] So then the chief butler thought of Jo­seph, and told the king of him; and the king sent for him out of prison, and said to him, I hear that you can explain dreams. I have had a strange one that I wish to know the meaning of. I thought I saw seven fat oxen come out of a river, and seven lean ones come after them, who eat up the fat ones. Then Joseph told him, that it was only by the power of God that dreams could be explained, and that the seven fat oxen meant seven years of great plenty, and after them would come seven years of famine, that is, the weather would be so bad that the corn would be all spoil­ed, and there would be none to make bread of for seven years; and this was the meaning of the seven lean oxen that de­voured the fat ones. Then Joseph advised him, when the seven years of great plenty came, to build granaries or store-houses, and lay up a great deal of corn in them, so that, in the time of famine, the king might sell the corn to the people for mo­ney, and they would have bread enough. When the king found that God had made Joseph so wise, he set him over every body, and commanded all the people to obey him. Joseph, who was then become a great man, took care in the seven years of plenty, to build granaries, and provide corn [Page 34] sufficient to feed the people when the fa­mine came; and the king had such de­pendence on him, that when any persons came to him, he sent them all to Joseph. The famine was all over Egypt, and in the land of Canaan, where old Jacob lived. He was told there was bread in Egypt, but little thought his son Joseph had the disposing of it. However, he sent all his other sons, except Benjamin, into Egypt, with money to buy corn for bread. When they were brought before Joseph, they bowed them­selves down before him, with their faces to the earth; they did not know him, but he knew them, and he asked them if their fa­ther was alive, and if they had any more brothers. They told him they never had but two more; one called Joseph, who had been devoured by wild beasts, and the other, called Benjamin, was at home with their father. Then Joseph ordered their sacks to be filled with corn, and bade his servants put in the money too, which they had brought to pay for it. When they in­tended going away, he put them into con­finement for three days; and when he re­leased them, he told them, that when they wanted more they must bring Benjamin with them, or they should have none; and he kept Simeon, one of their brothers, to make sure of their coming back. They were all [Page 35] much affrighted at this, and they said one to another, We are verily guilty concern­ing our brother, in that we saw the anguish of his soul, when he besought us, and we would not hear; therefore behold also his blood is required. Thus we see▪ when bad men meet with any misfortune, their consciences always accuse them, and their sufferings are much harder to bear, when they consider that they have deserved them by their wickedness. When they went home, and found the money with the corn in their sacks, they were both surprized and afraid. Jacob said, that might be a mistake of the servants, but bade them remember to carry it back, when they went again; for an honest man would not cheat another, though he was sure of being never found out; because God sees all we do, and never fails to punish us one time or other. At last, when all the corn was eaten up, Jacob desired his sons to go and buy more. This made them very uneasy, for they durst not go without Benjamin, and they knew it would grieve Jacob to part with him. At last they ventured to put him in mind, that the great man who sold them the corn, said they should have no more unless Benjamin came with them. When poor Jacob heard this, he cried, and said, he was already deprived of two of his sons, Joseph and [Page 36] Simeon, and if he lost Benjamin too, it would break his heart. Then Judah, the eldest son, begged he would not be uneasy, and promised to take all the care he could of the boy, and all the other said the same. So Jacob gave them money to buy more wheat, and did not forget to send back the other money that was the price of the corn they had bought before. He then suffered Benjamin to go with them, and prayed earnestly to God to bless them all.

When they came to Egypt, they were brought directly to Joseph, who, when he saw his brother Benjamin, his mother Ra­chel's child, he was so moved he could not help crying with joy, and turned away, that they should not see him. He then invited them to dinner, and put five times more meat upon Benjamin's plate than upon the others, which they all wondered at. When they took leave, he privately or­dered his servants, after they had filled their sacks with corn, to put his silver cup into the mouth of Benjamin's sack. He also desired them to follow his brothers, and ask them how they could be so un­grateful to their master, who had been so civil to them, and why they stole his silver cup, and were carrying it away. They all said, indeed they had not stolen any thing; that all their sacks might be opened, and if [Page 37] it was found among them, they were willing to go to prison. So all the sacks were opened, and it was found in Benjamin's sack. Poor Benjamin, who knew nothing of the matter, was very much ashamed, and grieved when he saw it; and the servants said, he must go directly to prison. Then all his brothers went back with him to beg him off; for they were not wicked now, as they had been when they sold Joseph, but were grown very good, and had rather have gone to prison themselves, than leave Benjamin behind; because it would grieve their father to lose him. So they went back lamenting, and when they came to Joseph, they kneeled down before him; and Judah begged he would put him in prison instead of Benjamin, and let the boy go back to his old father; but Joseph ap­peared to be very angry, and said he would not let him go. This gave all the bro­thers the greatest concern. Then Joseph was so moved at finding they were peni­tent, that is, sorry for their past fault, that he could hold out no longer, but threw his arms about their necks, and said, I am your brother Joseph: Doth my father yet live? Be ye not grieved, or angry with your­selves, that ye sold me hither; for God, who orders every thing for the best, sent me here before you to preserve life. Then [Page 38] he desired them to go back to Canaan, and tell their father that Joseph was alive, and in favor with God and man; and that he must come down to Egypt, with his whole family, where they should all be taken care of.

When Jacob heard the joyful news, he made haste to go and see his son; and as soon as king Pharaoh heard that Joseph's father was come, he sent for him, and spoke very civilly to him, and gave him a place to live in, called the land of Goshen.

And after some time, when Jacob was a very old man, he died in Egypt, but his sons carried him to the land of Canaan to be buried. Before he died, he called all his sons together, and blessed them, and foretold many things that afterwards befel them.

Jacob, we see, in his life had many trou­bles. He was in fear of his brother Esau, and had reason so to be. He was deceived by Laban, and was afterwards oppressed by him; his daughter behaved very impru­dently, and his sons were very revengeful; and then he lost his beloved wife Rachel. Afterwards the evil dispositions of some of his sons, and the loss (as for many years he apprehended) of his good son Joseph, were indeed very heavy afflictions. But on the other hand he had many blessings.

[Page 39] Q. Were these sorrows any of them oc­casioned by his having deceived his father?

A. Yes; some of them were, but he was afterwards very obedient to the commands of God, and Almighty God knew that he would be so, and was therefore so very good as never to forsake him.

Q. Does God punish wicked people the minute they commit a fault?

A. He is sure to punish them one time or other. Sometimes it is that moment, like Lot's wife, but, very often not till a good while after, and sometimes he does not punish us in this world, but in another. And this is the worst of all punishments.

Q. Does Almighty God ever pardon people that have done ill?

A. Never, if they do not repent.

Q. What is repenting?

A. It is acknowledging; that is, con­fessing our faults, and being very sorry for them, praying earnestly to God to forgive us, and if we have done harm to any per­sons, making it up to them every way in our power; and taking care never to offend again. This is true repentance, or peni­tence; but if we are penitent to day, and sin again to-morrow, our penitence is of no use. Nothing but growing very good, can make up for our past sins.

Q. What is it to sin?

[Page 40] A. It is doing any thing that we believe to be wrong, and that God does not like, and he does not like any thing that can hurt ourselves or other people, or that shews disrespect to him. He has com­manded us never to tell as lie, or do any sort of mischief, to be very modest and civil, and to do every thing we are bid by those who are set over us, if it is not con­trary to the commands of God. Then they will love us, and God will love us too, and we shall be happy in this world and in the next.

You see that the brothers of Joseph, who had been so cruel and wicked towards him, were afterwards very sorry for it, and re­pented heartily; and when God found they were become very penitent, he forgave them, and blessed them, and they were very happy. Joseph forgave them too; for good people are always ready to for­give offences, as God is ready to forgive us.

Q. What were the names of Jacob's twelve sons?

A. Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Dan, Naphthali, Gad, Asher, Issachar, Zebulon, Joseph, and Benjamin.

Q. May we learn any other lesson from the history of Joseph?

[Page 41] A. We may learn that Almighty God often serves himself of the evil bad passions of men to bring about his own good pur­poses.

Q. Do we sometimes see that what we have thought our greatest sorrows, are in the end very great blessings?

A. Yes. Jacob thought the loss of his son Joseph the greatest misfortune, yet Jacob lived to see that his beloved son was by this means made an instrument of great good to many nations, and that the persons of Jacob's own family in particular were preserved alive, when they would otherwise have died for want of food; and if Joseph had not been sold into Egypt, he would not have enjoyed the happiness of saving his father, and forgiving his brothers.

Q. What should we learn from this?

A. To acquiesce patiently in, and to sub­mit willingly to, all the events of God's providence, and to believe, that if we bear them properly, they will in the end make us happy.

Q. Does Almighty God see things as we see them?

A. No. For we see but a very little way; but Almighty God knows every thing that will happen.

Q. Would Jacob have wept so, and have been so very sorry to have parted with Ben­jamin, [Page 42] if he had known that Benjamin should go to the land of Egypt in safety, that Jo­seph was alive and a great man there, and that he should see all his children again?

A. No, he would not: his sorrow was caused in part by his ignorance of these cir­cumstances. Almighty God wisely hides from us the things that are to befal us in this present world, for our trial and disci­pline, and to exercise our faith and trust in his government and direction of all things for the best.

CHAP. XI.
EXODUS ii. to iv. ver. 18. THE BIRTH OF MOSES, AND THE PLAGUES OF EGYPT.

AFTER Jacob's death, his sons had several more children, and then they died. And they left so many behind them that they were like the stars in the sky, or the grains of sand upon the sea shore, which cannot be numbered, they are so many. They were called the children of Israel, or Israelites, because of Jacob having been surnamed Israel. A great while after Jo­seph [Page 43] was dead, and Pharaoh the king was dead, there came another king Pharaoh in his place, who never knew Joseph. He was a very bad man, followed his own proud cruel thoughts, instead of hearken­ing to the commands of God, and used the Hebrews very ill. He made them labor very hard, in hopes it would kill them, but when he found that would not do, he or­dered his servants, whenever a Hebrew wo­man was brought to bed of a son, to take the child and destroy it. There was a He­brew woman called Jochabed, who was de­livered of a son, The poor woman being very desirous to save him, but afraid of the king's anger, put him in a basket, and car­ried it to the river Nile, and set it among the rushes; then went a little way off, and left her daughter Miriam to see what would become of it.

Soon after the king's daughter came with her maids to bathe in the river, and when she heard the child cry, she pitied him, and said she would take care of him. Then little Miriam was sent to look for a nurse, and she brought Jochabed. So the child was nursed by its own mother; and when he was n [...]sed [...]he brought him back to Pharaoh's daughter, and the king's daughter called him Moses, and gave him a very good education.

[Page 44] After he was grown up to be a man, he one day saw an Egyptian; that is, a man of the kingdom of Egypt, using a Hebrew very ill; Moses was provoked to see his countryman oppressed, and in his defence struck the Egyptian, so that he fell down and died. Then Moses was afraid the king would put him to death, so he ran away to the land of Midian. The prince or priest of that country was called Jethro; he married his daughter to Moses, and let him live with him, and take care of his sheep. One day as Moses was in the fields feeding his father-in law's flocks, he saw a bush flaming with fire, and yet the bush was not burnt; that is, was not consumed by the fire. He thought this very strange, and drew near to see how it could be, when a voice called out of it and said, I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob; take off thy shoes, for the place thou standest upon is holy ground. I have seen the oppression of my people, and I will send thee to the king of Egypt, to command him to let my people go back to the land of Canaan, from whence they came, and which was promised to be given to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob. Moses was the meekest man in the world. He was struck with rever­ence and awe. He fell upon the ground, [Page 45] and said, he feared Pharaoh would not mind what such a man as he should say; but God answered, that he would make Pharaoh to mind him, and that Moses's brother Aaron should meet him on the way, and go with him.

After this, God bade Moses throw his stick or wand upon the ground, and when he had done so, it became a serpent. Mo­ses was so startled at this that he ran away, but God called him back, and desired him not to be afraid, but to take hold of the serpent by the tail; he did so, and imme­diately it became a wand again.

Q. May we be sure, that the promises of God will be fulfilled, whatever appearances there may be to the contrary?

A. We may be sure of it. The children of Israel were at that time poor and op­pressed; the Egyptians were great and powerful; yet we shall see that Almighty God helped and delivered the Israelites, and severely punished the Egyptians.

CHAP. XII.
EXODUS v. to xv. OF THE PLAGUES OF EGYPT.

MOSES then, in obedience to the com­mand of God, went into Egypt with Aaron his brother, and when they saw Pha­raoh, they told him, that God had sent them to desire he would let the Hebrews go. But the king was so wicked, as not to mind what they said; for he did not know that there is but one God, who is the Maker of heaven and earth, and who is all-powerful: and therefore God, to punish him, as also to teach him this great truth, turned all their waters into blood, and all the fish died. This soon humbled Pharaoh, and he begged of Moses to pray to God to cure the waters. Moses did pray, and they were cured, and yet he would not let the people of Israel go. Then God sent a great quantity of frogs to torment him. They over-ran all the country, and hopped about in the very rooms where the king lived. Then he begged of Moses to pray to God to deliver him from them, and he promised to let [Page 47] the Hebrews go. Immediately Moses prayed, and God was pleased to send them away; but when they were gone, the king still refused to keep his promise. As God Almighty can never be at a loss how to punish perverse and obstinate people, he sent such a number of lice, that the very dust seemed to be all turned into lice, which crawled about them, and gave them no rest. Then the king applied again to Moses, and they were sent away, but still his heart was hardened. Afterwards God sent such swarms of flies, they looked at a distance like black clouds, and buzzed about them so intolerably, they were not able to bear it. Upon which the king again desired Moses to pray for him; Mo­ses did, and immediately the flies were re­moved. But still Pharaoh's heart was hardened, and he would not let the chil­dren of Israel go. So then God sent a sickness among the cattle, that they almost all died: and when that would not do, he sent such sickness among the people, that they were all covered with sores and biles, and ulcers. After that he sent storms of hail which killed all those it fell upon, beat down the roofs of the houses, and destroyed all the buildings; yet still Pharaoh's heart was hardened, and he would not let the children of Israel go. [Page 48] So then God sent a strong wind, that brought with it a number of locusts, which eat up all the fruits of the earth, and every thing that grows for the use of man and beast. But still Pharaoh was only frighted for the time. God then sent darkness all over that part of the land where the Egyptians were, but the Israelites had light at the same time; yet as soon as the plague was gone, Pharaoh forgot the goodness of God in giving him relief; and also forgot the power of God to send a worse plague, if he provoked him. Wick­ed people are always foolish. If he had had any sense at all, he would have con­sidered, that what God had done once he could do again, or a great deal worse, if he pleased, and that there is no escaping him. At last, however, God Almighty obliged Pharaoh to submit to him. He sent an angel through the land, command­ing him to kill the first-born, that is, the eldest child in every family; except among the Israelites, where none of the first-born died. And God commanded Moses to institute (that is, to appoint) a fast, which was to be observed by the children of Israel every year, in remem­brance of this event, and which was to be called the passover; because when the an­gel slew the first-born of the children of [Page 49] the Egyptians, the Israelites were passed over, i. e. were preserved alive When Pharaoh had lost his own first-born, he found God was not to be resisted, and so at last he let the children of Israel go. And the Egyptians were so glad of it, be­cause of the plagues God had sent upon their account, that they let them have a great deal of gold and silver, and several ear-rings and bracelets to carry away. So they went away very rich; and as they travelled along, God went before them by day in a cloud, and by night in a pillar of fire. At last they came to the Red Sea, but before they got there, Pharaoh's ob­stinacy had got the better of his fears, and he repented that he had let them go. So he called together his army, and followed them. Then the Israelites saw nothing but the Red Sea before them, and the wicked king and his army behind them. They were so terrified, they were ready to die with fear, for they forgot that the Al­mighty was their friend. Moses prayed to God, and he immediately bade him strike the sea with his wand. When he had done so, the waters divided on both sides, and there was a path between for them to walk through. After they had passed over to the other side, Pharaoh thought to follow them the same way with his army, but the [Page 50] waters closed over them, and they were all drowned.

When the Israelites saw this they praised God, and Moses made a psalm of thanks­giving, which they all sung, and they danced and were very joyful.^*

Q. What may we learn from the sad end of Pharaoh?

A. We may learn that it is a very dread­ful thing to be of an obstinate proud tem­per; and that after these bad dispositions have been long indulged, they gain such power over the mind, as to lead persons forward, even to their destruction.

Q. Is it any proof of a person's being in favor with God, that he is great, and rich, and powerful?

A. No. Pharaoh was not only rich and powerful, but a great king.

Q. But may there not be other ends of God's providence answered, by raising a wicked person to a high station?

A. Yes. The pride and obstinacy of Pharaoh gave occasion for that striking display of the power of God, which would [Page 51] in its consequences be a blessing both to the Israelites and the Egyptians, as we shall see by and by.

CHAP. XIII.
EXODUS xvi. &c. THE WANDERING IN THE DESERT.

GOD conducted, that is, led the chil­dren of Israel in their journey through the wilderness. A pillar of a cloud went before them by day, and a pillar of fire by night. They were fed miraculously; for God caused manna (of which they made a kind of bread) and quails, to fall about their camp. When they could find no springs of water, he caused water to come out of a rock; and their clothes did not wear out all the time they were in the wil­derness.

But notwithstanding the great things which God did for them, they often sinned against him, and were often punished.

As they travelled along they met with a king called Amalek, and he came out against them with a great army; but God gave the Israelites power over their ene­mies, [Page 52] and they got the better of them, and vanquished them; that is, beat them in battle.

One day Almighty God called Moses up to a high mountain, called Mount Sinai, and covered him with a cloud from the sight of the people. Then God was pleas­ed to reveal his will to him, and gave him Ten Commandments written upon two tables of stone, that he might teach them to the people. These are the Ten Com­mandments which are frequently read in places of public worship, and which we must all learn and observe, because they were given by God himself, and they teach us our duty to him and to all the world.

Q. What is the first commandment?

A. Thou shalt have no other gods before me.

Q. What is the second?

A. Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the wa­ter under the earth; thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, or serve them, for I the Lord thy God am a jealous God, vi­siting the iniquity of the fathers upon the [Page 53] children, unto the third and fourth gene­ration of them that hate me, and shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments.

Q. What do we learn from these com­mandments?

A. From the first and second command­ments we learn that there is but one God, that he only is to be worshipped, and that idolatry, which is adoring any other being, or worshipping any image, or the likeness of any thing; is a very great sin.

Q. Were there ever any people guilty of idolatry, or worshipping images?

A. Yes. The Israelites themselves fre­quently bowed down to idols, for which they were severely punished; and so did most of the nations near them; for which, and for other wicked things that they did, many of them were destroyed.

Q. Why are we to worship God?

A. Because he has all power, wisdom, and goodness; and because he has be­stowed upon us all that we possess that makes us happy in our present life; he made the sun, which gives us light and heat; he sends rain upon the earth, that it may bring forth corn and plants to feed us, and grass for cattle: he has likewise blessed us with an understanding, that we [Page 54] may learn the proper use of every thing which he has given us.

Q. If God be so good, how can he pu­nish us?

A. The wicked certainly deserve punish­ment. But he generally punishes them in or­der that they may repent and become good, or that their example may prevent others from being wicked. The Jews, notwith­standing God had been so good to them, grew forgetful of him, and worshipped idols, and committed sins, for which rea­sons they were carried away by their ene­mies, and are now scattered abroad in every part of the world, and generally de­spised and ill-treated.

Q. What further do we learn from the first and second commandments?

A. We should learn to love God above all things, and always to obey his com­mandments. For if we prefer our own inclinations, or any thing in the world, to our duty to God, we shall be serving and pleasing ourselves, instead of serving and pleasing him; and this is a kind of ido­latry.

Q. By what means shall we learn to serve God only?

A. We must never neglect saying our prayers, attending his worship, or any re­ligious duty, for the sake of our friends, [Page 55] our business, or our pleasure; and at all times give up every advantage, and con­quer any wish, that is contrary to his will, and to what we believe to be right.

Q. What is the third commandment?

A. Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain, for the Lord will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain.

Q. What is the meaning of taking the name of the Lord in vain?

A. To mention the name of God with­out reverence (that is, great respect) or upon any other than a serious occasion, is certainly taking his name in vain; but to call upon it to witness a falsehood, or in profane cursing or swearing, is still more wicked.

Q. Is it then unlawful to swear?

A. Profane swearing is certainly forbid­den by this commandment; and besides, we are told by Jesus Christ, and by the apostle James, not to swear at all, but al­ways carefully to speak truth.

Q. How shall we learn to avoid this sin, which so many people are committing every day?

A. By never keeping company with those who are in the wicked practice of break­ing this commandment—We should also avoid reading plays, or ballads, or ro­mances, [Page 56] or any other books, where the name of God is frequently mentioned without proper respect; for it is not enough that we guard against speaking lightly of God, we must learn too never to think of him, but with awe and rever­ence.

Q. Is there any other rule for us to ob­serve, in order that we may keep this com­mandment?

A. It is absolutely necessary that we al­ways perform our religious duties with se­riousness and attention; never thinking of our worldly business, or our amusements, when we hear or read good books, or whilst we are offering up our prayers: for if we read of God with indifference, or speak to him in prayer, without earnestly wishing that he should hear, and attend to our pe­titions; then we shall prove disobedient to him, by breaking this commandment; and let us remember, that God will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain.

Q. What is the fourth commandment?

A. Remember the sabbath-day to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labor and do all thy work, but the seventh day is the sabbath of the Lord thy God; in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy man servant, nor thy maid servant, nor thy cattle, nor the [Page 57] stranger that is within thy gates. For the Lord blessed the sabbath day, and hal­lowed it.

Q. What must we do in order to keep the sabbath-day holy?

A. We must spend it in the most useful and serious manner; thinking upon good things, reading the holy scriptures and good books, and praying to God.

Q. Ought we not to be good every other day in the week, as well as on a Sunday?

A. We should always remember God, and keep his commandments. Every morning we should pray to him, and re­solve to be as good as we can during the day; and every night repent of any thing that we may have done that is wrong, and determine with the assistance of God to do so no more.

Q. How then are we to keep the sab­bath more holy than other days?

A. On other days the cares of life, and our proper business, take up much of our time, and therefore we have less time for reading and thinking. For this reason we should not consider the sabbath as a day of amusement and rest, but as a day appoint­ed for going to worship, to read good books, to think of God, and of another world after death.

[Page 58] Q. But we see that many persons do not regularly go to worship, but amuse them­selves on a Sunday. Do these all do wrong?

A. It is certainly a great crime not to keep the sabbath holy, and we may suppose that those who do not remember their duty to God, to whom they owe their life, and every comfort, we may naturally suppose that such in time should be guilty of many sins. Indeed we find that most of the unhappy men who are condemned to death for their wickedness, have generally begun by breaking the sabbath, and keeping bad company.

Q. What is worshipping God?

A. To worship God, is to reverence him as our Sovereign and Creator, to love him as our constant and kindest friend, and to thank him in the most grateful manner, for the favors which he is continually be­stowing, and earnestly to desire that he would teach us how to deserve them, to lament our sins, to resolve with his assist­ance to sin no more, and to be resigned to his holy will. These dispositions sincerely felt, and humbly offered up to heaven, is that worship which is acceptable to God.

Q. But may we not serve God in this manner at home?

[Page 59] A. It is very possible we may, and it is to be hoped that we frequently do; but we should remember, that at home a thou­sand things may break in upon us, and in­terrupt the discharge of this duty; it is therefore very right, that a day should be set apart for it, and by attending a place of public worship on that day, we are set­ting a good example to others.

Q. But are we sure that our example will be followed;

A. We know that men in general are much led by example, but if our example should not be followed, at least we are doing our duty; let us therefore always attend our different places of worship, since it will afford us the best opportunity of thanking God, and learning how to obey him, and in order that we may fulfil this commandment of keeping the sabbath-day holy.

Q. What is the fifth commandment?

A. Honor thy father and mother.

Q. How must we behave to our parents, in order to honor them?

A. We must treat them upon every oc­casion with the greatest respect and affec­tion, attend to their advice, receive with patience their reproofs, and obey them in every thing, which is not wrong, because God has placed them over us, that we may [Page 60] improve by their good advice, and good example.

Q. How must those behave, whose pa­rents are cruel and unkind?

A. They must still endeavour to serve, and to obey them, and return their ill usage with gentleness and good humour.

Q. If our parents should be wicked, and set us a bad example?

A. That indeed would be a great mis­fortune; yet perhaps by seeing the vex­ation and misery, which they suffer from their idleness, drunkenness, or their dis­honesty; we may learn the necessity of becoming industrious, sober, and just; we should be still more watchful over our own conduct, steadily refusing to obey, even our parents, whenever they would per­suade us to do wrong.

Q. Will not this offend God, who has commanded us to honor our parents?

A. When God commanded us to ho­nor our parents, he likewise required that our parents should teach us how to be good, and to obey him. To submit then to the advice of a good parent, is to obey God; but to refuse to follow the example of bad parents, or their advice, when they advise any thing wrong, that is to honor God, who is the father of us all.

[Page 61] Besides, by doing right in such cases, we set a good example to our parents, we respect their happiness, which is honoring them in the best sense of the command­ment.

Q. What is the sixth commandment?

A. Thou shalt not kill.

Q. Will God punish those who destroy the life of another?

A. Undoubtedly he will. It is one of the greatest crimes we can commit, in the sight both of God and of men. In this world it is punished with death, for it is one of those injuries we never can repair, and what God (as we see in the example of Cain) punished even in this life, in a very exemplary manner.

Q. May we not kill ourselves when we become tired of living?

A. No. That is almost, perhaps quite as great a sin. God, who gave us life, ought only to put an end to it. He gave it us for wise and good purposes, that we might conquer every wrong disposition, and acquire every disposition and principle that is good, so as to make ourselves wor­thy to enjoy eternal happiness in the life to come. Therefore by putting an end to our lives whilst we are in an unprepared state, we may deprive ourselves for ever [Page 62] of that happiness which our future good conduct might have procured us.

Q. By killing another, may we not en­danger his future happiness?

A. By taking away the life of another, we do not know what injury we may have done him in this respect. It is certain that we unjustly deprive his relations and friends of the comforts he might have pro­cured them, and by such a crime we for­feit our own lives, at a time when, instead of being prepared, we have deserved the severest displeasure of God.

Q. What is the seventh commandment?

A. Thou shalt not commit adultery.

Q. What is the meaning of this com­mandment?

A. It is not necessary to say much upon this subject at present. It may be suffi­cient to observe, that it is a sin in which perhaps the happiness of an innocent fa­mily, and the character of one who ought to be an example of virtue, is wantonly destroyed. It is a sin, the consequences of which are highly disgraceful and infa­mous among men, and it will be right to impress our minds with a persuasion, that it is so wicked in the sight of God, that those who are in the practice of it, cannot be admitted into the kingdom of heaven, as we are assured in the holy scriptures.

[Page 63] Q. What is the eighth commandment?

A. Thou shalt not steal.

As this is a crime to which too many are liable, you will do well to be very much upon your guard against it. A thief, you know, is always despised; he brings dis­honor on his family, and infamy upon himself: he is liable to be confined in a jail, and to perish in a shameful manner at the gallows. This is the punishment to which he is exposed in this world; and as it is a crime so strictly forbidden by God, we may be sure it will not go unpunished in the world to come.

Q. What are the best methods we can observe in order to be kept from this vice?

A. Men are often led to steal from ne­cessity, or want; and as idleness and squan­dering are the common causes of want, we should endeavour, whilst we are young, to get habits both of industry and of saving. For it is not always those who can get the most, unless they are careful to save, and prudent in making a proper use of what they get, that are the most comfortable. When parents who can get money spend it in alehouses, and are drunken, and some­times in consequence idle, we see their children, and themselves dirty and ragged, and frequently guilty of thieving.

[Page 64] Q. Is there any thing else that we can observe the better to keep us from this sin?

A. If you are sober, industrious, and saving, you will have no temptation to steal: if you are serious and mindful of your duty to God, and consider that your happiness in a future life depends very much on your keeping his commandments here, you will be shocked at the idea of every thing that is dishonest; and you will not take any thing, however trifling, lest you get a habit of stealing. For the worst and wickedest of thieves most likely began with stealing things of little value.

Q. What is the ninth commandment?

A. Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbour.

All kind of falsehood whatever is highly displeasing to God, who is the God of truth:—and a liar is a character which all mankind abhor. Indeed it is easy to con­ceive, that if the practice of lying was com­mon amongst men, they could put no trust in one another, and consequently could not live together. The good would not know what poor to relieve, if they could not be­lieve their distress.

Q. How do we know that lying is so displeasing to God?

A. God has strictly forbidden it, and as soon as you can read the new Testament, [Page 65] you may find there a very remarkable ac­count of a man and his wife, called Ana­nias and Sapphira, who were both struck dead for telling a falsehood.

Q. Pray what is the meaning of bearing false witness against our neighbour?

A. This is the worst kind of lying, be­cause it not only is a sin against God and truth, but it is a sin against our neighbour, whom we ought to love. If we bear false witness against our neighbour in any courts of law, this is called perjury, and is pu­nished by cutting off the ears, and exposing the guilty person in a pillory. But if we raise a false or scandalous report, or tell stories of a neighbour, this is called a ca­lumny, and is a very mean and wicked action, and will make us hated and despised.

Q. What is the tenth commandment?

A. Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's house, thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's wife, nor his man servant, nor his maid servant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor any thing that is thy neighbour's.

Q. What is the meaning of coveting?

A. To covet is to wish for that which we have not, and which we have no right to; to covet our neighbour's house is dishonest, and this covetous disposition, if given way to, will lead us in time to cheat, and to tell lies, and to steal. To covet our neigh­bour's [Page 66] wife is a kind of adultery; and to indulge a covetous temper is to lay the foundation of almost every sin.

Q. How shall we prevent ourselves from breaking this commandment?

A. By never giving way to bad thoughts, but to check them in the very beginning, because bad thoughts give rise to bad wishes and inclinations and to covetous­ness; and bad inclinations, and covetous­ness, give rise to bad conduct, and to steal­ing, adultery, telling lies, and to bearing false witness. So if we would be good, we must shun the very first appearance of evil. For God, as we may read in the New Testament, is displeased both with bad thoughts, as well as with bad actions.

Q. If we never give way to bad thoughts, shall we never be guilty of bad actions?

A. It is the surest way of guarding against them, and the easiest way to be good; be­cause bad thoughts always go before bad wishes and bad actions; and bad thoughts are more easily avoided, than bad habits are conquered.

These are the ten commandments, which are frequently read in places of public wor­ship, and which we must all learn, and ob­serve, because they were given by God himself, and they teach us our duty to him and to mankind.

[Page 67] By the first, second, third, and fourth, we learn, that there is no God but one, and that we should fear to offend, and love him above all things, and worship him, because he made us, and can destroy us in a moment. We learn by the fifth to be dutiful to our parents, and those that are set over us in their stead: and by the sixth, seventh, eighth, ninth, and tenth, we are taught neither to murder, steal, or do any manner of wrong; nor to speak ill of any body, or ever to covet; that is, to wish for any thing that belongs to another. Because as God knows our thoughts, he will punish wicked thoughts, as well as wicked doings.

Moses was forty days and forty nights at the top of Mount Sinai, learning all these, and many more good things from God. But, in the mean time, the ungrateful Is­raelites grew tired of waiting for him.

In their impatience they supposed that he never would come back, and so re­quired Aaron, the brother of Moses, to make an idol for them, that they might worship, that is, that they might pray to.

Aaron was grieved to hear them talk so wickedly, and simply, but was so weak as to fear that they would kill him, if he refused them. Therefore he took the gold and silver which the Egyptians had given [Page 68] them; he melted it over the fire, and made an image of it in the shape of a calf; and a great many of them worshipped it, like their neighbours the heathens, and like the Egyptians. While they were so doing, Moses came down from the moun­tain; and when he saw what they were about, he was so provoked, that the tables fell out of his hand, and were broken to pieces. And God was so offended at their wickedness, as to command that the most notorious of those who were guilty of ido­latry, that is, of worshipping the idol or image, should be slain. There were twelve thousand killed that day, and he made those who were left wander about forty years in that place, which was called the Desert or Wilderness,^* before they were permitted to go into the promised land, as a punishment for their stubbornness. Almighty God also thought fit to punish several other bad things, that some of them were guilty of.

Before this time, he had been pleased to command a sort of table to be built with stones set over one another. This table was called an altar, and upon that altar he bid them lay a lamb, or a dove, [Page 69] or some other thing; and whatever was laid upon the altar with wood under it, was called the Sacrifice, because it was sacrificed; that is, offered to God, as an acknowledgment that all we have comes from him, and that our best services are due to him. And when God was pleased with those who offered it, he sent down fire from heaven to burn or consume the sacrifice, as a token that he accepted of it, and he forbade that any common fire should ever be put to it. But one day two very bold young men, Nadab and Abihu, had the assurance to disobey, and to put common fire upon the altar to burn the sacrifice; but God soon punished their presumption by sending fire from heaven, which burnt them up, and nobody could save them.

Another time there was a man who was so wicked and presumptuous as to speak against God, his Maker; and this great sin is called blasphemy. And God Al­mighty commanded, that every one should throw stones upon the blasphemer till he was crushed to death, and it was done ac­cordingly.

Even Moses, who was so good a man, forgot himself one day: he was so pro­voked by the people's obstinacy, as to be in a violent passion, and offended his [Page 70] Maker, who to punish him, said, he should not live till they went to the land of Ca­naan, but bid him go to the top of a high mountain, and look at it. When he came down again, he was very sorry for his fault; and God pardoned him, and took care of him when he died.^*

Q. You said that Moses learned many other good things from God besides the ten commandments. Pray what were they?

A. Amongst other laws and command­ments, which Moses received from God, are the following:

He that curseth his father or mother, shall surely be put to death.

Thou shalt neither vex a stranger, nor oppress him, for ye were strangers in the land of Egypt.

Ye shall not afflict any widow or father­less child: if thou afflict them any wise, and they cry at all unto me, I will surely hear their cry.

Thou shalt not raise a false report.

Put not thy hand with the wicked, to be an unrighteous witness.

Keep thee far from a false matter, for I will not justify the wicked.

[Page 71] Thou shalt take no gift, for the gift blindeth the wise, and perverteth the words of the righteous.

Ye shall do no unrighteousness in judg­ment; thou shalt not respect the person of the poor, nor honor the person of the mighty, but in righteousness shalt thou judge thy neighbour.

Thou shalt not countenance a poor man in his cause.

Thou shalt not wrest the judgment of thy poor in his cause (meaning that you must always judge justly, not favoring the poor, or the rich, but that you should do what is right, without partiality.)

Ye shall do no unrighteousness in judg­ment, in mete yard, in weight, or in mea­sure.

Just balances, just weights, a just ephah, and a hin (that is, just measures) shall ye have.

Ye shall not steal, neither deal falsely, neither lie one to another.

Thou shalt not defraud thy neighbour, neither rob him.

The wages of him that is hired shall not abide with thee.

Thou shalt not curse the deaf, nor put a stumbling-block before the blind.

[Page 72] Thou shalt rise up before the hoary head, and honor the face of the old man, and fear thy God.

Thou shalt not go up and down as a tale-bearer.

He that killeth any man, shall surely be put to death.

And he that killeth a beast, shall make it good, beast for beast.

Thou shalt not hate thy brother in thine heart.

Thou shalt not avenge, nor bear any grudge against the children of my people, but thou shalt love thy neighbour as thy­self.

If thou meet thine enemy's ox, or his ass going astray, thou shalt surely bring it back to him again.

If thou see the ass of him that hateth thee lying under his burden, and wouldest forbear to help him, thou shalt surely help with him.

(From this we learn, that we should do good to all, even to our enemies—and that we should be merciful and kind to poor animals.)

When ye reap the harvest of your land, thou shalt not wholly reap the corners of thy field, neither shalt thou gather the gleanings of thy harvest, thou shalt leave them for the poor and strangers.

[Page 73] Ye shall keep my sabbath, and rever­ence my sanctuary.

If thou sell ought unto, or buyest ought of thy neighbour's hand, ye shall not op­press one another.

And if thy brother be waxen poor, and fallen into decay with thee, then thou shalt relieve him, though he be a stranger or sojourner.

Take no usury of him; thou shalt not rule over him with rigor, but shalt fear thy God.

God gave several other laws to the Jews, and promised them his favor if they were obedient, and threatened them with very severe punishment, if they were disobe­dient.

God said to the Jews by Moses,

If ye walk in my statutes, and keep my commandments, to do them, then I will give you rain in due season, and the land shall yield her increase, and the trees of the field shall yield their fruit, and your thresh­ing shall reach unto the vintage, and the vintage shall reach unto the sowing time, and ye shall eat your bread to the full, and dwell in your land safely. And I will give peace in the land, and ye shall lie down, and none shall make you afraid, and I will walk among you and be your God, and ye shall be my people.

[Page 74] But if ye will not hearken unto me, and will not do all these commandments, I will appoint over you terror, and consump­tion, and the burning ague. And ye shall sow your seed in vain, for your enemies shall eat it. And if ye will not for all this hearken unto me, then I will punish you seven times more for your sins. And your strength shall be spent in vain; for the land shall not yield her increase, nei­ther shall the trees of the land yield their fruits.

I will bring a sword upon you, I will send the pestilence among you, and ye shall be delivered into the hand of your enemies, and ye shall eat the flesh of your sons, and the flesh of your daughters shall you eat; and I will make your cities waste, and I will bring the land into desolation, and your enemies which dwell therein shall be astonished at it. And I will scatter you among the heathen, and will draw out a sword after you; and your land shall be desolate, and your cities waste. And ye shall perish among the heathen, and the land of your enemies shall eat you up. And they that are left of you shall pine away in their iniquity in your enemy's land.

Now all these threatenings which were denounced more than three thousand years [Page 75] ago, have been wonderfully fulfilled. The Jews, though they were so highly favored of God, proved disobedient and idola­trous, and they have been driven out of the promised land by their enemies. Their distress, when they have been besieged, has been so great, that parents have eaten their children. Their temple was utterly destroyed. Their land is now possessed by the Turks, and they are scattered and despised over the face of the earth. There never was any example of this kind of any other nation whatever.

Afterwards we read in the book of Le­viticus, that when they be in the land of their enemies, that God will not cast them away, neither will he destroy them utterly, but if they shall confess their iniquity, and their hearts shall be humbled, he will still remember his covenants with them.

Q. What is the greatest affront that can be offered to God?

A. It is to worship or pray to any but himself; to any creature; to the sun, moon, or stars; or to any thing that is made with hands, as God expressly says in the second commandment; and praying to any thing but God is called idolatry.

Q. Were the Egyptians idolaters?

A. The Egyptians were great idolaters, and therefore the miracles and wonders [Page 76] which God enabled Moses to perform, might be in mercy designed not only to deliver the children of Israel, but also to cure the Egyptians of their idolatry. The pride and obstinacy of Pharaoh gave oc­casion for these miracles, and on that ac­count he was judged a proper person to be their king by Almighty God, who says, "for this purpose have I raised him up."

Q. What is meant, when it is said, that God hardened the heart of Pharaoh: Did God make him wicked?

A. No: for Almighty God has no plea­sure in the death of a sinner, but would rather that he should repent and live. It was therefore Pharaoh's own pride and obstinacy that was the cause of his de­struction. In other places, Pharaoh is said to have hardened his own heart: it was not therefore by any extraordinary influ­ence of God upon his mind that his heart was hardened, nor could Almighty God be said to have done it, in any other man­ner, than as he may be said to be the doer of every thing which he does not prevent.

Q. What is the greatest happiness any one can attain?

A. The greatest happiness any one can attain, is to know the one living and true God; that is, to have true apprehensions of his infinite holiness, mercy, and righte­ousness; [Page 77] from which we may learn what we must do, and what sort of persons we must become in order to obtain his favor. The Egyptians, in common with other hea­thens, were great idolaters; they were miserably ignorant of the great God, and worshipped various different animals: to bring them therefore to the knowledge of himself, by whatever means, was really the greatest favor that could be bestowed upon them.

Q. Pray how do we know all these things?

A. God Almighty in his great goodness was pleased, that Moses should write them all down, and leave it for us who came after, that we might know his will and his greatness.

So Moses wrote the history of the crea­tion, the fall of Adam, the death of Abel, the flood, the confusion of Babel, the de­struction of Sodom, the history of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Jacob, and the story of Joseph. All these he wrote in one book, called the book of Genesis. Moses after­wards wrote the account of his own birth, of the plagues of Egypt, of the children of Israel passing the Red Sea, of their wan­dering in the wilderness forty years, of all that befel them there, and all that God directed them to do. These matters are [Page 78] in four other books, called Exodus, Levi­ticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy, which with Genesis, are sometimes called the Pen­tateuch, i. e. five books.

God directed those that came in Moses's place, after his death, to write what had happened in their time. So we have all the history of the children of Israel, almost till the coming of Jesus Christ our Lord. We have also an account of Christ's life and death. All this is together in one great book, called the Holy Bible, because it contains the word of God. And the word of God is called revelation, because God has revealed, that is, told it to us. Some part of the Bible is always read in public worship. It is the wisest and the best book in the whole world. Other books are written out of men's own heads, or out of what they pick up from others, but the Bible was written by good men, to whom God revealed his will; and it teaches all that is necessary for us to know, and be, and do, in order to our passing comfortably through this world, and being happy for ever in the next.

When you can read it, and are old enough to understand it, you will be al­lowed to read it all yourself.

Q. What is virtue? or what is it to be virtuous?

[Page 79] A. It is when we are either tempted or persuaded to do what we know to be wrong, to resolve against it, and not to yield to any body or any thing, though we like it ever so much, if we know it will offend God. When we are tempted, we must strive hard with ourselves, and pray to God to help us, like Joseph, and all other good men, and then it will not be in the power of bad or foolish people to spoil us; that is, to make us do ill.

CHAP. XIV.
THE HISTORY OF JOSHUA.

AFTER the death of Moses, it pleased God that Joshua, the son of Nun, should succeed him; that is, stand in his place, to shew the children of Israel the way into the promised land of Canaan, de­fend them against their enemies, and teach them their duty to their Maker. He was to instruct them in every thing that was fit for them to do, and tell them what they ought not to do. He that governed the Israelites in those days was called their judge.

[Page 80] When therefore Joshua became judge of Israel, he drew near the first city in the land of Canaan, called Jericho, and sent privately into the city to get an account of the place and of the people in it. They who are employed in this manner are call­ed spies; and when a spy belonging to the enemy is found in any place, he is always put to death. These spies were very near being caught in Jericho; but a woman called Rahab, who lived near the gate of the city, took compassion on them. She hid them in her house till it was night, and then let them out of a window by fas­tening cords to it. Before they went away, she made them promise, that in return, for having saved their lives, she and her family should be spared when the Israelites got possession of the city.

After this God commanded Joshua to march with all the people to the river of Jordan, which ran between them and Je­richo. He then ordered, that the sons of Levi, called Levites, should carry the ark, and walk before the rest into the river, and stand in the middle of it, with the ark. When they drew near, behold! to the great amazement of all the people, the waters divided as at the Red Sea, and they passed over without so much as wetting their feet. Afterwards the people passed over also, [Page 81] and then the waters immediately returned to their old place.

The next wonder that God performed for the sake of his people, was at the town of Jericho. He commanded Joshua to lead them round the town seven days together, blowing a trumpet every time, and on the seventh day the walls of the city tumbled down. By this means the Israelites march­ed in without any difficulty, and were mas­ters of the place. The people to whom it belonged having opposed the Israelites, and being such wicked idolaters, God com­manded the children of Israel to kill them all, except Rahab and her family, accord­ing to the promise the spies had made her. So they took great care of her, and all that belonged to her, for what good man ever forgets those that have been good to him? All the kings of that neighbourhood, jea­lous of their success, came out at different times and fought against them. Whenever the Israelites acted wickedly, God suffered their enemies to beat them; and from the story of one of them called Acham, which is mentioned in the scriptures, one may learn that nothing is hid from the all-seeing eye of God. But whenever they repented and behaved well, his anger was appeased, and then they again became stronger than their enemies, and the victory was on their side.

[Page 82] Joshua having thus conquered almost all the land of Canaan, divided it into twelve parts, according to the twelve tribes of Israel. He made eleven of the tribes draw lots for their shares, that there might be no disputes among them. As for the tribe of Levi, they did not draw, because God had provided for them in another way; for he thought proper they should be his ministers, and always attend on his immediate service; that is, employ them­selves entirely in explaining the scriptures, praying and doing sacrifice at the altar. And as Joseph, the beloved son of Jacob, had two sons, Ephraim and Manasseh, of these were formed two tribes.

Q. Were the inhabitants of Canaan to be blamed for opposing the Israelites, who came to take their country from them?

A. They were certainly not to be blamed for endeavouring to repel invaders, if they did not know that what the Israelites did in this respect was by the express command of Almighty God.

Q. Although they did oppose them, and were such wicked idolaters, why did God order the Israelites to destroy them?

[Page 83] A. We do not always know the reasons of God's dispensations, but we may be sure that they are ever founded in mercy as well as justice. You remember that the land of Canaan had been promised to Abraham above four hundred years before, and that this promise was very often afterwards re­peated; but it was not to be fulfilled till ‘the iniquity of the old inhabitants was full;’ that is, till they were become so wicked that they were not fit to live; and Almighty God had surely a right to de­stroy them in whatever way he saw best; by the hand of the Israelites, as well as by an earthquake or famine. Moreover, this signal destruction of the Canaanites, of which the Israelites themselves were made the instruments, would be an awful warn­ing to them, to avoid those sins which had brought the divine judgments on that people.

Q. What was the ark which the Levites carried before the Israelites over the river Jordan?

A. It was something like a chest, in which God commanded the two tables of the law to be carefully kept; and this ark he committed to the care of the Levites, and did not suffer it to be produced, but upon extraordinary occasions.

CHAP. XV.
THE BOOK OF JUDGES.

AFTER all these things, Joshua died in a good old age; and he had been so worthy a man, that all Israel mourned for him many days. They remained some time without any judge, and being like a flock of sheep without a shepherd, very often went astray. Instead of obeying the laws of God, which they had been so often taught, and which were sufficient to guide them, they chose to follow the inclinations of their own hearts, which were disposed to evil. Bad people cannot live long in peace and quiet with one another, for they always want more than they have a right to, and do not scruple injuring others. Unjust actions must always produce quar­rels, for nobody will let another oppress him, if he can help it.

The people of Gibeah, of the tribe of Benjamin, did a most barbarous wicked thing by one of the Levites, for which all the other tribes resolved to punish them. The rest of the Benjamites, instead of cor­recting their wicked relations, took their part. This brought on a civil war, in [Page 85] which the tribe of Benjamin was almost all destroyed.—A civil war is, when people of the same nation go to war with each other.—This was a very bloody one, and when it was over, the other tribes repented hav­ing dealt so hardly with their brethren the Benjamites, and they all became good friends again.

They were, however, much oppressed by their neighbours the Syrians. They called to God for help, and he appointed Othniel to be their judge, who led them on to fight their battles, and saved them from their enemies. After his death they fell into idolatry, and then God delivered them into the hands of the Moabites; but when they repented, Ehud was made judge of Israel, and overcame their adversaries; that is, their enemies. The next judge was Shamgar; he conquered the Philistines, who had fallen upon them; but when he died, they returned again. Then a wise woman, named Deborah the Prophetess, and Barak, a valiant, that is, a brave man, both governed Israel together, and gained a victory over the Philistines. When the Israelites found themselves delivered from their enemies, they were very joyful; and Deborah the Prophetess made a fine song, called a hymn or psalm of thanksgiving, [Page 86] such as are sung in places of public wor­ship, to praise God for his goodness to us.

After the death of Deborah, the Israelites fell again into idolatry, and God permitted the Midianites to rule and oppress them for seven years; but when they repented, and called to him for help, he sent his angel to call Gideon, who was threshing wheat in a barn, and Gideon, with God's help, soon freed them from their enemies.

When Gideon died, one of his sons, called Abimelech, murdered almost all his brothers, intending to be king of Israel. This occasioned great disturbances among them, but they were quieted by his un­timely death; for God permitted his life to be taken away by a woman throwing a stone at him

Tola was judge after him, and then Jair; in both their times the Israelites provoked God by their sins, and he delivered them up to the Ammonites. After this the peo­ple became penitent, that is, they repented, and then he gave them Jephtha as their judge. He was a great warrior, but one rash action that he committed, made the remainder of his life unhappy. When he was going out to fight the Ammonites, he vowed, if God gave him the victory, he would sacrifice the first thing he met when he returned home. He did conquer the [Page 87] Ammonites, but his only daughter not hav­ing heard of his vow, was [...]o impatient to see her father again, that she met him first of all; so to his great grief he was obliged to fulfil his vow, in consecrating her to the Lord to remain unmarried all her days, that being the only way in which he could make good his vow in respect of her. When Jephtha died, Ibzan was judge in his place; after Ibzan succeeded Elon, and after Elon, Abdon was judge. When Abdon died, the Philistines oppressed Israel very much, till Sampson was sent by the Al­mighty to deliver them. It pleased God to make Sampson, the strongest man in the world. He killed a lion without any help, and destroyed many of the Philistines. At length he fell into their hands, but not till he had killed a thousand of them with only the jaw bone of an ass; and then he carried away upon his back the gates of the city where he was confined, and made his escape. But it was not long before they took him again, by the treachery of a wicked woman called Da­lilah. The Philistines offered her money, if she would find some means to deliver him up to them, which she did.

One day the Philistines made a great feast to their idol god Dagon, in his tem­ple, and when they were in the midst of [Page 88] their mirth and jollity, they sent for Samp­son, to laugh at him and tease him. But the time was come, when it pleased God to deliver his people from such cruel ene­mies; for Sampson finding himself in their temple with those bad people, called upon God to help him; then taking hold of the pillars that supported the building, and loosening them, the roof fell down and crushed them all to death. After this the Israelites were quiet for several years, and Eli, the high-priest, became judge of Is­rael. There was a young man named Samuel, who had been bred up under Eli from a child; and Samuel was so pious and virtuous a youth, that God was fre­quently pleased to speak with him, and to reveal to him his will, so that he became a great prophet; Eli the high-priest was good himself, but he suffered his children to be wicked, and that is a great sin. His two sons, Hophni and Phineas, behaved very ill; and though he knew it was his duty to punish them while they were young, in order to make them better, he gave himself no trouble about it; and as they were not contradicted, they grew worse and worse. They at last brought on their own ruin, as well as their father's, for they were killed in battle by the Phi­listines, who over-ran all the country; the [Page 89] ark also was taken; and when old Eli heard the news, he fell down with grief, and broke his neck and died. Then was Samuel made a judge in his place, who kept the people in very good order, and followed the will of God in all things. However, the Israelites at last grew tired of having only judges over them, and had a mind to be governed by a king, as other nations were. God Almighty, who knows all things, knew they would never be so happy under a king as under a great pro­phet, like Samuel, who consulted his will in every thing; but he told them, since they had so great a desire for a king, they should have one. Accordingly he com­manded Samuel to anoint a young man, called Saul, of the tribe of Benjamin. It is an ancient custom to anoint a king with oil before he is crowned; therefore God commanded it, as a token that Saul was the king he had chosen for them. Samuel, however, still governed Israel for a great while longer, because the people knew he was a good man and a great prophet.

Q. What is a prophet?

A. A prophet is one to whom God com­municates the knowledge of such things, [Page 90] whether present, past, or to come, as cannot be learned without his particular assistance; and to speak or to write such things is called prophesying. Moses was a prophet, for he wrote the history of the creation; and he forewarned the children of Israel before his death, what would be the con­sequence of their disobeying the com­mands of God; he also foretold to the Israelites, in the xviiith chapter of Deute­ronomy, that in future times the Lord God would raise up a prophet from among their brethren like unto him, who should speak unto them all that God should com­mand him.

Some silly people fancy, that witches and conjurers have the same power of foretelling things; or, as they call it, for­tune-telling; but witches and conjurers are all cheats and impostors, who pretend to know what they do not know, with a design to get one's money, and to cheat one; and it is a great sin, as well as folly, to ask them questions, or listen to them.

A true prophet is very unlike these cheats; he does not attempt to get our money, but endeavours to make us good; and may be known by the wonderful works which God enables him to do, as he did Moses and many others. These wonderful works are called miracles, of [Page 91] which our Saviour and his Apostles work­ed a great many, as you will read in the New Testament.

Q. What is a vow?

A. A vow is a solemn and religious pro­mise made to God; and as all promises must be faithfully observed, that is, kept, so must those which we make to God in a particular manner. All that God does for us is of his own free goodness, for we can give him nothing, because every thing is his own, and he can take it when he pleases; and he desires nothing of us but that we worship him devoutly, and obey his laws, as he has told us in many parts of the scripture. It is better, therefore, to avoid these vows, which are frequently made in distress, and to be resigned to God without doing any thing like making a bargain with him.

We should be very cautious, even about making a promise, or taking an oath to one another; for when once the words are gone out of our lips, if they are not unlaw­ful, that is, contrary to God's law, we must perform them. For nothing is so base as not keeping one's promise; and nobody will be regarded after having broken it. But it is still worse than that, to take a false oath; that is, to swear a thing to be true which we know to be [Page 92] otherwise; or to swear a thing to be false, which we know to be true. Either of these kinds of false oaths is called perjury, which is a most horrible sin.

Q. What is a high-priest?

A. The high-priest of the Jews was the chief of the priests, whose office or place it was, like them, to offer sacrifices and to burn incense, and to do other services in the temple. It was his peculiar duty to go into the innermost part of the temple once every year, on the day of atonement, as it was called, to perform there the espe­cial, that is, the particular services of that day. He was appointed also to over-look all the temple worship, and to judge among the priests and the people in many matters, both civil and religious.

Q. Where do we find the history of the Judges of Israel?

A. You will find it all in that part of the scripture called the Book of Judges. There were fifteen of them after the death of Joshua; Othniel, Ehud, Shamgar, Debo­rah, Barak, Gideon, Abimelech, Tola, Jair, Jephtha, Ibzan, Elon, Abdon, Sampson, Eli, and Samuel.

CHAP. XVI.
1 SAMUEL x. &c. THE REIGN OF KING SAUL.

THOUGH Saul had been anointed king, he was still too young to go­vern the people; therefore he went back to his father's house, and staid there till the king of Ammon attacked the Israelites, that is, made war upon them. Saul then, as he was their king, put himself at the head of their army, and beat the Ammon­ites; upon which the Israelites were so pleased with his courage and prudence, that they all acknowledged him to be their king. After this, he gained many other victories; but at last he grew proud, and did not obey the orders which God gave by his prophets, and by that means lost the favour of God. He that gave him his crown resolved to deprive him of it, since he proved unworthy.

CHAP. XVII.
2 SAMUEL ii. &c. THE REIGN OF KING DAVID

DAVID was great grandson to Ruth, of the tribe of Judah, who was a very good woman, and had been remarkable for her dutiful behaviour to her mother-in-law. Her story is in the Holy Bible, and is called, The Book of RUTH. Her son Obed was the father of Jesse, and Jesse was the father of David.

After David had been anointed king by the command of God, he continued with his family, waiting till God thought pro­per that he should reign over the Israelites, in the place of Saul.

Some time after, Saul being disturbed in mind, and very miserable, because he knew he had offended God, desired his servants to send somebody who could play well upon the harp, to amuse his grief. David could play very well, so he was sent for. His music was so fine, that the king was much pleased: he listened to him with delight, and yet the moment David ceased (that is, left off) playing, the dis­temper of Saul's mind returned.—There [Page 95] is no cure for a guilty conscience, but re­conciling one's self to God by hearty re­pentance and amendment of life.—So Da­vid went back to his father.

Soon after the Philistines made war upon the Israelites, and sent Goliath, a giant, to challenge any one of them. A giant is a man much taller and stronger than other men: and Goliath was so great a giant, that not one of Saul's soldiers durst en­counter, that is, fight with him, though Saul promised his daughter in marriage to the man that should kill him. He came out for several days together, during them to battle; but they were all terrified at the sight of him. At last young David hap­pened to be sent to the camp, to bring some provisions to his brothers, who were soldiers. When he saw the giant, and heard his insolent language, God inspired him with courage, and he resolved to go out and meet him. All the army of Israel wondered and trembled for him: and when Goliath saw what a stripling he was, he supposed he had been sent to mock him, and was very angry. The giant then came forward to destroy David, but the young man took a stone, which he threw from a sling at him. It struck his forehead, and he fell down: then David ran to him before he could recover him­self, [Page 96] drew out Goliath's sword as he lay upon the ground, and with it cut off his head.—David did many other great things, because God assisted him, which made all the people admire him; and good Jona­than, the son of Saul, loved him as his own soul. But as bad people are always jealous of those who are better liked than them­selves, so Saul hated David, and would have been glad to have done him any mischief he could, though he was become his son-in-law, being married to his daughter.

He tried so often to put David to death, that David was obliged to go away and hide himself, sometimes with the prophet Samuel, and sometimes with the Philistines. But the Philistines grew suspicious, and took him for a spy, so he durst not stay long with them. He wandered about in the deserts, and lodged in caves, while Saul was almost mad with fury that he could not find him. In the mean [...]me David gained many friends, who went with him, and shared his distresses; and there were several of the Israelites that assisted him. There was, however, one man called Na­bal, who was brutal and churlish, and be­haved with roughness and ill-nature to him. But his wife Abigail, a prudent, sensible woman, was much concerned when she heard of it; and to save her husband from [Page 97] the resentment, that is, the anger he had reason to expect, she went to David to make all the excuses she could, and to ask his pardon.

Still Saul pursued David wherever he went. One day Saul happened to go into a cave where David was hid with two or three of his friends in a corner, out of sight. Then Saul was in David's power, and he could have ended all his distresses, by putting his unjust enemy to death. But a good man would suffer any thing rather than take revenge, or do a base act, and would always return good for evil. So David let Saul escape, and yet that stub­born king continued still to be David's enemy.

Another time Saul's life was again in David's power, but no provocation could tempt him to do him any hurt, so they parted again: and then David, to be en­tirely out of his way, went and lived in the country of the Philistines.

Some time after, a fresh war broke out between that nation and the Israelites, in which Saul and Jonathan his son were killed in battle. When David heard the news, he was much concerned for Saul, because he was his father-in-law and his king; and he grieved most exceedingly for Jonathan, who had always behaved to him as a bro­ther [Page 98] and a friend. He made a funeral song for Saul and Jonathan.

After the time of mourning was past, first two of the tribes, and then the other ten ac­knowledged David king of Israel.

He ruled for a great while with justice and mercy, and was a wise and a great king. He never forgot the friendship of Jonathan towards him, but treated a poor lame son that he left behind, called Mephi­bosheth; with great affection. His subjects were happy under his government. He was very devout, and made a number of holy songs or psalms. We have in the Bible an hundred and fifty, mostly written by him, which are called the Psalms of David. Some of these are penitential, that is, written when he was sorry for his sins, and imploring or asking earnestly. God's forgiveness; and some are thanks­givings for mercies received. Some de­scribe the goodness and greatness, and all the wonders of Almighty God; and others are prophetical, that is, filled with prophe­cies of what should afterwards happen.

David also collected all the riches he could get, either in gold or silver, ivory, precious stones, or fine timber, and laid them by, as materials for erecting, that is, making a great temple at Jerusalem; a temple is a magnificent building in honour [Page 99] of God, set apart for his service; where the priests should be continually attending on his worship, and whither the people should resort to pray and offer sacrifices. This was what he had chiefly at heart; but it was not the divine will that the temple should be begun during David's life-time. God was, however, graciously pleased to acquaint him, by one of his prophets, that he approved of his inten­tion, and that it should be executed, that is, done in the reign of Solomon his son. In short, David reigned so well, that his neighbours loved him, and God called him the man after his own heart. Jerusa­lem was his chief city, and where all the men were every year to assemble three times, to observe the passover, and two other festivals.

Who would have thought that such a wise prince could ever do wrong? But the foolish pleasures of the world, the riches he possessed, and the respect every body paid him, tempted him to forget his duty to God his maker, and to think too much about pleasing himself: and whoever does that will soon be led astray. It was just so with David; whenever he neglected studying to please God, and began to think of pleasing himself only, he fell into the greatest sins; but God Almighty was so [Page 100] good as to send him great afflictions, which made him think of his sins and repent. After a great deal of sorrow and resolving to amend his life, the Almighty forgave him and blessed him again. The sins of David were very great indeed, but his sor­row for them was great too, and his pu­nishment very severe, which at some time, and in some manner, is what all sinners must expect. David suffered great sick­ness for his crimes, and met with terrible afflictions in his family. They quarrelled among themselves, and Absalom, one of his sons, rebelled against him. He also lost the love of part of his people, who ceased to respect him, when he became disobe­dient to God. The greatest part of them joined with Absalom, and made him king, and drove David out of Jerusalem, his ca­pital city; but when God had sufficiently humbled him, he suffered Absalom's army to be destroyed, and the young man him­self lost his life. The people then returned to David their old king. He grieved a long while for his son Absalom, and took care never to offend God any more. He lived to a great age, and governed the people well, and God to reward him, per­mitted his son Solomon, though but a youth, to succeed him to the crown of Israel.

[Page 101] Q. Are the Psalms of David the same which we now have in the Bible?

A. Yes; and many parts of them are very proper for public or private christian worship: but we are to remember, that it is of no use to repeat the words of a prayer or psalm, unless we think, at the same time, of what we are saying. It is highly displeasing to God to let our thoughts ram­ble, either at public or private prayer.

Q. Is it a sin to divert ourselves, and to be cheerful?

A. Very far from it: God Almighty, who is goodness itself, and loves us, per­mits us to be as cheerful, and to divert our­selves as well as we can, provided our diver­sion or mirth is not sinful; that is, that it does not hurt ourselves or others. When it can do no harm, it is called innocent mirth; and good people always feel mirth and pleasure, because they know that God Almighty loves them, and protects them. It is, however, certainly a sin to employ our whole time in diversion only, because that prevents necessary and useful business from being done. But as king David's son says, in the book of Ecclesiastes:

To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under heaven.

[Page 102] A time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck away that which is planted.

A time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance.

Wise people, therefore, are always care­ful to divide their time in a proper man­ner.

CHAP. XVIII.
1 KINGS i. &c. THE REIGN OF KING SOLOMON.

SOLOMON had been taught by his parents, that religion and virtue are true wisdom: and that true wisdom is more valuable than riches, because it pro­cures us the esteem of good men here, and purchases us eternal happiness hereafter. Therefore, when he prayed for God's bles­sing, he asked for nothing but wisdom; and the Almighty was so pleased with his moderation, that he granted him the wis­dom he asked for, and riches and honours besides. By means of this he was the greatest king ever heard of; and to this day, when we would praise any body's [Page 103] wisdom, we say, he is as wise as Solomon. He did many good things, which are men­tioned in the scriptures; and wrote some of the books that are in it. One of them is called the Proverbs of Solomon. It is full of wise sayings and beautiful thoughts, very improving and entertaining. He built the temple of Jerusalem, which was a most beautiful building. We find the de­scription of it in the Holy Scriptures. Solomon also made a great palace for him­self, and several other fine buildings. And his wisdom was so much talked of abroad, that the queen of Sheba came from a dis­tant country to see him, and to admire the wonders of his country.

Yet, even this great and wise man went astray; with all his wisdom, Solomon fell. We all must remember to have read, how careful Abraham was to choose a good wife for his son Isaac; and also, how Isaac, when he grew old, sent Jacob to Padan-Aram, to marry one of his relations, because they had had a good education. A good wo­man behaves well to her husband, and takes care of his family and his children: but Solomon, wise as he was, did not consider that. He took wives from among bad people, that were idolaters and idle, and did nothing but eat and drink, and make merry. These bad women persuaded Solo­mon [Page 104] to do like themselves, by which means he fell from all his glory. He was de­spised in his old age, and a prophet from God foretold him, that the crown of Israel should not continue in his family; so he died in shame and disgrace.

CHAP. XIX.
1 KINGS xii. THE DIVISION OF THE KINGDOM UNDER REHOBOAM.

REHOBOAM, the son of Solomon, suc­ceeded him, but did not resemble him, that is, was not like him in wisdom. He had not sense enough either to ask it of God, or to consult the experienced old men whom his father used to employ in the affairs of the nation. This weak prince, on the contrary, encouraged by his young and foolish companions, behaved to his subjects with such pride and severity, that ten of the twelve tribes rebelled against him, and made Jeroboam, the son of Ne­bat, their king. Only two of the tribes continued with Rehoboam, the tribe of Ju­dah, and that of Benjamin; and God Al­mighty [Page 105] never permitted him nor his sons to regain the rest. So that he remained only king of Judah, while Jeroboam was called king of Israel.

This Jeroboam, the son of Nebat, was a very bad man, and an idolater; and so were his sons that reigned after him, and every king that succeeded them. There were about twenty of them, one after an­other; that is, in succession. Omri, the fourth king, built a great city, called Sa­maria, and it became the capital, that is, the chief city in Israel, as Jerusalem was the capital city of the kingdom of Judea.

CHAP. XX.
1 KINGS xvii. THE CAPTIVITY OF THE IS­RAELITES.

GOD Almighty bore with their idola­tries, and other sins, for some time, to leave them room to repent; but at last, as their wickedness increased, he would bear with it no longer. So in the reign of Hoshea, their last king, Samaria was taken by the king of Assyria, and Hoshea, with almost all his people, were carried away [Page 106] into Babylon, the capital of Assyria; and, at the same time, a number of Babylonians were sent to Samaria, to inhabit that city, and enjoy the lands of the Israelites.

Q What were the names of those kings of Israel?

A. Jeroboam, Nadab, Baasha, Elah, Zim­ri, Omri, Ahab, Ahaziah, Jehoram, Jehu, Jehoahaz, Jeroboam, Zach [...]riah, Shal [...]um, Menahem, Pekahiah, Pekah, Hoshea.

CHAP. XXI.
2 KINGS xxiv. xxv. THE TAKING OF JERUSALEM, AND THE DESTRUCTION OF THE TEMPLE.

AS for the kingdom of Judah, it was governed by kings of the family of David, for fourteen generations, and to the number of twenty kings after him. Some of those kings were good men, and zealous for the worship of the one true God, like [Page 107] their grandfather David; such as Asa, Amaziah, Azariah, Jotham, Hezekiah, and Josiah: but most of the others followed the example of their brethren, the kings of Israel, and were idolaters, like them. The people also of the one kingdom be­came as bad as those of the other. The goodness of God did not fail to warn them, by several prophets, that he would destroy them as a nation, if they persisted in their wickedness. We read in the Bible of Elijah and Elisha, great prophets; also of Hosea, Amos, Zedekiah, Micaiah, and a great number of others, who were all sent for that purpose. Not one of these was able to persuade the Jews, that is, the Judeans, to amend their lives; and even the ex­ample of the fatal end of the kingdom of Israel was not sufficient to make that of Judah to reform, that is, to grow better; so that in the reign of Zedekiah, king of Judah, that kingdom was also over-run by the Assyrians, who carried away the king and people to Babylon, and plundered the temple of God, about six hundred years before the coming of Jesus Christ.

Q. What were the names of the kings of Judah from Rehoboam?

[Page 108] A. Rehoboam, Abijah, Asa, Jehosaphat, Jehoram, Ahaziah, Joash, Amaziah, Uz­ziah, Jotham, Ahaz, Hezekiah, Manasseh, Josiah, Jehoahaz, Jehoiakim, Jehoiachim, Zedekiah.

Q. Where can we find the history of all these kings?

A. We find a full account of all these kings in that part of the Bible called the books of Samuel, and in the books of Kings, and of Chronicles.

Q. May we be sure that the threatenings of Almighty God will be executed, as well as his promises fulfilled?

A. Yes, we may be sure of it.

Q. Did not the Israelites know this, and had not Moses told them many years before, what would be the consequence, if they disobeyed the will of God?

A. They did know it; and Moses had told them that they would be carried away captives by their enemies; but this is what wicked foolish people do every day; they know if they commit sin, that they cannot be happy, yet they behave as if they did not know it.

CHAP. XXII.
EZRA, NEHEMIAH, &c. THE RETURN OF THE CAPTIVES, AND RESTORATION OF THE TEMPLE.

THE Jews continued in the land of their captivity about seventy years. At the end of that time, Cyrus, king of Persia, being also king of Babylon. God Almighty put it in his mind and heart to send home most of the children of Israel.

They were by that time sufficiently humbled, and very penitent, and never went back into idolatry again. God there­fore took compassion on them, and they were enabled, after some difficulties, to settle themselves again at Jerusalem, and repair the temple, but they could not make it so beautiful as it had been at first. How­ever, the high priests and Levites officiated in a regular manner, and the service of the temple was conducted with decency, for they had the free exercise of their religion; though in most other matters, they were obliged to submit to a governor appointed by the kings of Persia.

[Page 110] We read of the return of these captives, of the repairing of the temple, and re­building the walls of the city, in the books of Ezra, Nehemiah, and Esther, which are part of the Holy Bible. We also find in that divine and wonderful volume, the prophecies of Isaiah, of Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Daniel, and a great number of others, which foretold all those great events.

Q. Did these prophets live at the same time?

A. No: some of them lived in the times of the kings of Israel and Judah; some of them after the destruction of their king­doms; and some after the return of the Jews from captivity.

Q. What were these prophets commis­sioned to do?

A. They were sent by Almighty God, to forewarn the people of Israel and Judah, of the sad consequence of their disobeying the laws of God, and to exhort them to re­pentance; and sometimes they were sent with messages from God to other nations. The books which are called by their names, contain many very fine discourses delivered at different times: they likewise speak in several places of the coming of the Messiah; [Page 111] and Isaiah in particular, describes his ex­cellent character, and many of the circum­stances of his sufferings and death.

CHAP. XXIII.
DANIEL i. iii. vi. OF DANIEL AND HIS THREE COMPANIONS.

IN the beginning of the book of Daniel we have an account of him, together with Shadrach, M [...]shach, and Abednego, be­ing brought captives, that is, prisoners, from Jerusalem to Babylon, and educated at the court of king Nebuchadnezzar, on ac­count of their great abilities, to sit them for some posts of trust under his govern­ment; when they gave a noble example of piety and temperance, by living on pulse and water, and refusing to taste the king's meat, because the Babylonians ate such things as were forbidden by the law of Moses. But Nebuchadnezzar, full of pride and folly, made an image of gold, commanding that all his subjects who did not worship it should be put to death; and Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, being [Page 112] brought before the king, upon his asking them why they did not serve his gods, nor worship the golden image which he had set up? replied to him, O Nebuchad­nezzar, we are not careful to answer thee in this matter. If it be so, our God, whom we serve, is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and he will deliver us out of thine hand, O king. But if not, be it known unto thee, O king, that we will not serve thy gods, nor worship the golden image which thou hast set up.

Then Nebuchadnezzar commanded a furnace to be heated seven times more than usual, and Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego to be cast into it. But they were miraculously preserved by an angel of God, so that the fire had no power upon their bodies, nor was an hair of their heads singed, nor any thing about them burnt.

When king Darius, who reigned after Nebuchadnezzar, had placed Daniel at the head of all his affairs, the great men of the kingdom, envying his power, and seeking his ruin, craftily obtained an order from the king, which could not be changed, to forbid any prayers to be made for the space of thirty days, to any God or man what­ever, except to the king, thinking thereby to ensnare Daniel. But he fearing nothing, continued to pray in his usual manner, [Page 113] with his windows open, three times a day. This being easily known, these wicked men took advantage of it, and accused him to the king, who was very sorry to find his faithful servant in danger from his order, and laboured all he could to save him, but in vain, and was forced to command him to be cast into the den of lions.

The king passed the night in sadness and solitude, neither were any instruments of music brought before him, and his sleep went from him. And he arose very early in the morning, and went in haste unto the den of lions. And when he came to the den, he cried with a lamentable voice unto Daniel, and the king spoke and said unto him; O Daniel, servant of the living God, is thy God whom thou servest continually, able to deliver thee from the lions? Then said Daniel unto the king; O king live for ever (this was an usual manner of speaking to kings in those days.) My God hath sent his angel, and hath shut the lions' mouths: forasmuch as before him innocency was found in me; and also before thee, O king, I have done no hurt. Then the king was exceeding glad, and commanded Daniel to be taken out of the den, and the men that accused him to be brought and cast into it; over whom the lions had the mastery, and broke all [Page 114] their bones in pieces, before they came to the bottom of the den.

Q. Why would not Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego worship Nebuchadnezzar's image?

A. Because it was forbidden them by the first and second commandments.

Q. Ought not we to be ready to suffer any thing, rather than go against our con­sciences, and worship any other than God?

A. Yes: because God can deliver us out of the greatest dangers, as he did these men. If not, he can make us happy in another world.

Q. But might not Daniel have forborne to worship God for thirty days in the pub­lic manner he was known to do, and have contented himself with praying to him in secret, rather than disobey the laws, and expose himself to be devoured by wild beasts?

A. By no means: for that would have been to act deceitfully, and would have appeared to be a forbearing to worship God at the command of a king. Whereas on such occasions, and at all proper times, we are to make open profession of our re­ligion, without fear of man.

CHAP. XXIV.
DANIEL. OF THE FOUR MONARCHIES.

THE next thing these prophets fore­told, was God's punishment of the Assyrians or Babylonians, whose city would be destroyed by the Persians, for having treated the Israelites with such cruelty. They also foretold, that those Persians would afterwards be conquered by the Greeks, and that those Greeks would, at last, be overcome by the Romans, which Romans would become masters of the world: that the Jews would, as well as other nations, be obliged to submit to them; and that after all those things, our Saviour Christ would come into the world. All this has accordingly come to pass, and these four monarchies, or powers, have governed the world in their turn. First, the [...]ssyrians, who subdued the two king­doms of Israel and Judah, and every other country within their reach Secondly, the Persians, who, commanded by Cyrus, made themselves masters of the proud city of Babylon, and permitted the Jews to re­turn home. Several other kings of Persia [Page 116] succeeded him, till, thirdly, the Greeks, commanded by king Alexander, called the Great, marched into Persia, beat their armies, and took possession of their domi­nions. The Jews were frequently dis­turbed by them till they submitted to the Romans, who, fourthly, came out of a city called Rome, and, by degrees, conquered almost every nation in the world. When every country had yielded to them, and all nations were at peace, Augustus Caesar was emperor of Rome; at which happy time our blessed Saviour came to deliver us all from sin and death.

Q. Were the Jews in subjection to the emperor of Rome, when Jesus Christ was born?

A. Yes: but the Romans suffered them to be governed by their own laws, to en­joy the free use of their religion, and to be ruled by a king of their own nation; only they had not the power over life and death, and they were obliged to pay tribute; that is, such a sum of money as the em­peror pleased to demand every year to be paid to him.

Q. Had any of the prophets foretold where Jesus Christ should be born?

[Page 117] A. Yes, it had been foretold that he should be born in Bethlehem of Judea

Q. Did the people of the Jews then expect, that about that time the Messiah should be born?

A. Yes, there was such a general ex­pectation, not only among the Jews, but throughout all the east; but the Jews mistook the true character of the Messiah, and expected a great temporal prince, who would make them a powerful nation, and deliver them from their subjection to the Romans.

CHAP. XXV.
OF THE BOOK OF JOB.

I HAVE now given an account of most of that part of the Bible which is called the Old Testament, except the Book of Job. It contains the life of that good man, and is one of the finest histories in the Holy Scripture. It is not known what time he lived; but he is mentioned as a pattern of goodness, patience, and submission to the will of God. No man ever underwent harder trials; for he was deprived of all his fortune, his friends, [Page 118] and his children, and endured the most painful sickness; but all this served to shew his great dependence upon God, and his humility, and that no extremity of sufferings could tempt him to do evil. When Job's piety had been sufficiently manifested, God Almighty restored to him all he had lost, fortune, friends, children, and health; and added a great deal more, so that the latter end of his life was still more prosperous than the beginning had been.

Q. Are there no more books in the Old Testament than those we have given an account of?

A. Yes, there are; and you will see them when you shall be able to read the Holy Bible.

CHAP. XXVI.
THE LIFE OF OUR SAVIOUR.

OUR Saviour Jesus Christ was born in the country of the Jews, whilst Au­gustus Caesar was emperor of Rome, and in the time of a general peace. The parti­cular [Page 119] circumstances that attended his birth are related in the New Testament.

Soon after he was born, some wise men from the eastern country, where the ex­pectation of the Messiah was general, hav­ing been informed by the appearance of an extraordinary star, of that happy event, came into Judea, to pay homage to him. Herod, whom the Romans had set over the land of Judah, was much alarmed at the news; for mistaking in common with the rest of the Jewish people, the true cha­racter of the Messiah, he feared that Jesus Christ would be raised to the throne in his place.

This bad man, therefore, tried to find out the child, with an intention to destroy him; but Mary, the mother of Jesus, and Joseph her husband, were so poor and so little known, that he could not discover him. Then cruel Herod, in order to make sure of him, commanded all the infants to be put to death, who were in or about Bethlehem, where it was foretold that Christ should be born. But God discovered his wicked intention to Joseph in a dream, desiring him to make haste, and take the child and his mother into Egypt. They went and staid there, till God again in­formed him by another dream, that Herod was dead, and commanded him to return [Page 120] home, but to go to Nazareth, and not to Bethlehem, for fear of Herod's son, who then reigned, and who was as cruel as his father.

When Jesus was but twelve years old, he astonished all who saw or heard him, by the extraordinary wisdom he displayed. But before he made any appearance as a prophet, John the Baptist was sent out by God Almighty, to prepare people's minds for the coming of the Messiah, and he en­couraged and endeavoured to persuade every body to repent, and also to be bap­tized; a ceremony by which they pub­licly expressed their desire of becoming the disciples of the Messiah, acknowledg­ing that repentance was necessary in order to their becoming such, and their belief that John was divinely commissioned to prepare men for his reception.

When our Lord was about thirty years old, he began to act himself suitably to the intentions of his coming. First of all, he was baptized by John, at which time the Holy Spirit of God, in a particular manner, came down upon him. Jesus was after this put under a very singular [...], to exercise him before-hand, and to fit him for his great office of Teacher and Sa­viour of a sinful world; and he fasted forty days, all which time was spent in [Page 121] holy meditation and prayer, and receiving divine instruction and direction. When this was ended, he began to call upon the people to repent and amend their lives. He went up into a mountain, and deli­vered some of the most excellent discourses, or sermons, that ever were heard. In these discourses he taught that which we call the Lord's Prayer, as a pattern for all ad­dresses or prayers to Almighty God. He teaches us also that we must be humble, submissive, patient, and good-natured; in short, that we must neither do nor say, nor even think any thing that is wrong, and that we must study to do kindness, even to our greatest enemies. For by so doing we imitate God himself, who is kind to the disobedient, as well as the pious and obedient; who sends no afflic­tions but to make us better, or to keep us good; and who permits the enlivening sunshine, and refreshing showers, to visit the good and bad alike.

When our Saviour came down from the mount, he practised all he had been preaching; for he went about doing good, and using the great power which he had received from God for the benefit of men. He cured distempers of all kinds by a word, or a single touch. He made the deaf to hear, the lame to walk, the blind [Page 122] to see, the dumb to speak, and raised the dead to life. In one instance there was such virtue accompanying him, that a distempered person who touched his clothes, in hopes of being cured, was im­mediately well; and though he had no lands or money, he twice satisfied the hunger of several thousands with a few loaves and fishes. The history of his raising Lazarus from the dead, and the whole account of that family, gives us a most pleasing picture of tenderness, hu­manity, and friendship. Our blessed Lord, not content with doing what good he could personally, or by himself, chose twelve from among his disciples to be constantly with him; he particularly in­structed them, and after they had been enabled by Almighty God to work mira­cles, he commanded them to disperse themselves about to instruct, that is, to teach the ignorant, as he did, and to re­lieve every kind of distress. He told them they would frequently meet with very bad usage, but that they ought to submit pa­tiently for his sake; that what they suf­fered was in the service of God, for the good of mankind, and for their endea­vours to teach truth and righteousness: and that if we live in this world in ever [Page 123] so inoffensive, or even useful a manner, we may still have some enemies.

Q. Were not all men delighted with so great, and good, and amiable a character, and did they not do every thing in their power to shew their love and respect for him?

A. No, indeed they did not, a very few persons excepted.

Q. How could this happen; one would think that every body would be almost ready to lay down his life for such a per­son?

A. One would think so; and this would have been the case, had not the people of the Jews been at that time very wicked, having their minds poisoned by many bad passions; in particular they were proud, conceited, and ambitious; that is, wished to make themselves great and powerful, at the expense of the happiness of other people; when, therefore, they found that Jesus would not gratify them by taking to himself any worldly grandeur, they were so disappointed and offended, that they were easily prevailed upon by their rulers, and particularly by the Pharisees, to seek his destruction.

Jesus, however, still went on teaching his disciples and the people every thing that was useful for them to know. He [Page 124] told them also a great deal besides, that would come to pass afterwards; such as the nature of his death and sufferings, of the time and manner of his second coming, of the life of men after death, and of their reward or punishment, according as they had been good or bad. Some things in his teaching he delivered in short hints and striking stories, called parables, which, if they were not quite so easy to be under­stood, were less displeasing to some who heard him, and likely to be remembered by them, till they became better disposed to receive the instruction that was con­tained in them. What he said at some times darkly, at other times he delivered more clearly, and he explained all things to those disciples who were very much with him. And in one way or other, he has abundantly furnished us with all things necessary to lead us to the knowledge of our duty, and to excite us to the practice of our duty; to help us to avoid and to overcome temptation, and to support and comfort us in difficulties and afflictions.

Q. Did Jesus know that he should suffer a very painful and cruel death, and did his disciples know it?

A. Jesus knew it from the first, but it did not at all abate, that is, lessen his zeal in the great work in which he was en­gaged; [Page 125] and he often foretold, even the circumstances of his death to his disciples; but although they were honest well-mean­ing men, they were led away by the gene­ral mistake, that the Messiah was to be a great temporal prince.

Our Saviour's words and discourses asto­nished every body. Numbers of the peo­ple admired and followed him; but the priests, the scribes, the Sadducees, and Pha­risees, were against him from envy and jea­lousy. These last were hypocrites, who pretended to be wiser and better than other men, but were full of pride and deceit. Such men always hate those who are truly good, especially when they find they are better liked than themselves.

They therefore persecuted our Lord, and tried to puzzle him with artful questions, and to draw him in to say or do something contrary to law, in order to have a pretence for putting him to death. But he shewed himself as much above them in wisdom as in virtue, and often sent them away con­founded at the wisdom and prudence of his answers.

Their malice grew to a great height, and they persuaded many to unite with them; our Saviour knew they would soon obtain their wish; and he knew that he was sent into the world, not only to do good [Page 126] by his miracles and discourses, but also to do good by the violent and public death which he was to undergo. By this death the sincerity of his professions (that is, his truth in respect of what he had told them) his obedience to God's will, his confidence in his heavenly Father, and his own belief in a future life and recompense to the good were to be proved: by this death also, his disciples were to be encouraged and pre­pared to endure all things in the ministry to which they were appointed: by this death also, a clear proof was to be given of his love to all persons; and lastly, his death was to be followed by his resurrection from the grave. That resurrection would be a proof that his followers will not perish when they die. For this violent and public death, therefore, a very awful, though very useful event, Jesus carefully prepared both himself and his disciples.

Q. Who were the Scribes and Lawyers, and Pharisees and Sadducees?

A. The Scribes and Lawyers were per­sons, who were supposed to be learned in expounding or explaining the law of Moses; and the Pharisees and Sadducees were two sects of men amongst the Jews, who held very different opinions indeed; yet as they had all of them private ambitious ends of their own to answer, and were worldly-minded [Page 127] and covetous, they agreed in per­secuting and condemning Christ, whose ex­cellent doctrine and holy life, were equally a reproach to them both. The Pharisees were men of learning, and pretended to un­common holiness; but their religion con­sisted chiefly in the observance of rites or certain forms, and ceremonies, for which they sought to be admired of men, whilst they neglected the weightier matters of the law, which are judgment, mercy, and faith. The Sadducees disbelieved a future life after death.

Q. What were the dispositions of mind that made the Pharisees pretend to be what they were not, or be such hypocrites?

A. Vanity (that is, the love of admira­tion) covetousness (by which is meant the love of money) and ambition (by which is meant the love of power) and when any of these vices get root in the mind, they op­pose themselves to every thing really excel­lent, they mislead the judgment, make the heart bad, and are very hateful in the sight of God. To persons of such dispositions, the deep humility, the perfect kindness, and the universal goodness of our Lord, could not but be very displeasing.

On the night that Jesus was to fall into the hands of his enemies, he sat down to supper with his disciples, and acquainted [Page 128] them that one of that company would be­tray him; and hinted that Judas Iscariot was the man. After supper he brake bread and blessed God for it, and gave some to each of them, saying, Take, eat, this is my body, which is broken for many. Eat this in re­membrance of me. He also took the cup of wine, and gave it to them, saying, This is my blood which is shed for many. Drink this in remembrance of me.

Soon after supper, those to whom Judas had betrayed his Master, came and seized upon him and carried him away.

As to the manner of his examination before Pilate, his crucifixion, his resurrec­tion, his appearance to his disciples after his burial, and his ascension into heaven: it is so finely related by the sacred writers of that part of the Holy Bible, called the New Testament, that we cannot do better in this respect than to read it over frequently, and with attention.

Q. You said that Jesus Christ delivered some very excellent discourses, pray what were they?

A. You will read them in the New Tes­tament. Amongst others is an excellent sermon from the mount; on which Christ pronounced the following blessings, and taught the following doctrines.

[Page 129] ‘Blessed are the poor in spirit, for their's is the kingdom of Heaven.’

Q. What is the meaning of being poor in spirit?

A. To be poor in spirit signifies to be humble-minded, to be of a quiet teachable disposition, not to think highly of ourselves, or to indulge a violent or stubborn temper, but to be contented with our situation what­ever it may be. These are the poor in spirit, and to these the kingdom of heaven is promised.

The next blessing is to them that mourn, promising that they shall be comforted.

Q. What does this mean?

A. It means, perhaps, that those shall be comforted who mourn, or are distressed, from a sense that they have done wrong, and who are sincerely desirous of doing right in future, or who are sorry for the weaknesses and faults of others: this is a very proper and affectionate temper, and will always be attended with great comfort, and satisfaction in the mind.

The third blessing is to the meek, with this promise, that they shall inherit the earth.

Q. What does this mean?

A. The meek are those of a quiet and gentle disposition, who are not disposed to be quarrelsome and angry, but to forgive. [Page 130] These are the people who pass through life most comfortably, by not resenting little offences, they avoid making any enemies; by a gentle and kind behaviour, they make many friends; and so they may be said to inherit the earth.—Whilst those who are of a quarrelsome temper, make every body about them unhappy, and are unhappy themselves: if they are rich they have no comfort in their riches, because they are miserable in their own minds: and if they are poor, nobody scarcely will help them, because they have made themselves disliked.

The fourth blessing is to those who hun­ger and thirst after righteousness, and it is promised to them that they shall be filled.

Q. Pray what are we to understand by this?

A. To hunger and thirst after righteous­ness, means an earnest and constant desire to be righteous, that is, to be good: and God has graciously promised that those who hunger and thirst after righteousness, they shall be filled (that is, they shall be­come good) let us therefore always, and with all our might, strive to leave undone those things which we ought not to do, and to do those things that we ought to do; firmly believing that God will help us when we endeavour; and that in time, we [Page 131] shall become as perfect as we have endea­voured to become.

The fifth is, ‘Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy.’

By this blessing we are encouraged to shew a kind, affectionate, and forgiving temper. It is the surest method of gaining us the love and good will of men; he who is cruel and unkind, who speaks ill, and behaves harshly to others, seldom meets with compassion when he falls into distress: and the recollection of his own cruelty, must make him very unhappy.—But every body pities, and many endeavour to re­lieve the distresses of a kind and merciful man, so that he often obtains mercy even in this world, and he is sure (which is much better) to obtain it in the world to come.

The sixth promises to the pure in heart, that they shall see God.

From this blessing, we see it not only necessary to avoid doing wrong, or saying any thing wrong, but that we must endea­vour to keep the heart pure from every bad wish, for all evil begins either in our thoughts, or our desires; and we-find that in order to see God, and to be happy in the next world, we must keep our hearts pure in this.—Let us then shun every ap­pearance [Page 132] of evil, and conquer every bad wish or thought in the beginning.

The seventh blessing declares, that the peace-makers shall be called the children of God.

From this we should learn not only to avoid a quarrelsome temper ourselves, but endeavour as much as possible to hinder, and to reconcile any quarrels amongst our friends and neighbours. Those then who go about telling tales, and making mischief amongst their neighbours, we may be sure are displeasing to God, since it is the peace-makers who shall be called the children of God.

In the eighth, Jesus Christ says, ‘blessed are they who are persecuted for right­eousness sake, for their's is the kingdom of heaven.’

In former times many people were per­secuted, that is, they were punished, and of­ten put to death, for speaking and doing what they believed to be right, to them Christ has promised the blessing of the king­dom of heaven.

And in the next blessing, which is very much like it, he says, ‘blessed are ye when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake; rejoice, and be ex­ceedingly [Page 133] glad, for great will be your reward in heaven.’

Now, though in this country, no people are put to death for their religion, yet there are many thoughtless and wicked people, who are apt to make a jest of every thing serious, who not being good themselves, laugh at others for saying their prayers, going regularly to worship, and being so­ber, and mild, and peaceable, and reli­gious. But do not let such treatment dis­courage you, but, on the contrary, let it en­courage you—for remember—that great will be your reward in heaven.

In another part of his sermon, Christ re­commends them, to be patterns of good­ness and piety, that others seeing their good works, may glorify their father who is in heaven.

Those who have opportunities of read­ing this excellent sermon, and of learning their duty to God, and to mankind, should attend to this, and endeavour to be such patterns of goodness, that others may fol­low their example.

Jesus Christ farther tells them, that by the Jewish law, murder and adultery are forbidden; and that those who are guilty of these crimes, are liable to judgment, and to be punished: and at the same time, proposes a much higher virtue or goodness, [Page 134] for he tells us, that we must guard against every thought, or wish, or temper, that would lead us to do wrong; and that, ‘whosoever is angry with his brother without a cause,’ does wrong in the sight of God, and is in danger of punish­ment.

From hence we may learn, that God re­quires of us before we attempt to worship him, to be reconciled to all men (for we should in this sense consider all men as our brothers.) If, therefore, we would wish that God should listen to us, forgive us our faults, and love us, we must be kind and forgiving to others, and make them amends for any harm we have done them, before God will hear us. And if we should find that any pleasure, or any temper, or habit, that is ever so natural and agreeable, and seemingly almost necessary to us, should prove hurtful in making us less good; however dear it may be, we must get rid of it, if we would be happy in heaven, though it should be as dear to us as a right hand, or a right eye.

[Page 135] Again Christ says, ‘ye have heard that it hath been said, thou shalt not forswear thyself, but shall perform unto the Lord thine oaths. But I say unto you, swear not at all, &c. but let your communica­tion be yea yea, and nay nay, for what­soever is more than that cometh of evil.’

By this we are to understand, that upon every occasion we should most carefully tell the truth, and not take the name of God in vain, or speak lightly of serious things: for when we are strictly good, and strictly just, we shall upon every oc­casion be as much shocked at telling a falsehood, as a bad man can be at swear­ing falsely, for which the laws have pro­vided a punishment here, and God will punish hereafter. Let us therefore never swear, but be simple and sincere in our discourse.

Again, in this sermon, Christ adds, ‘I say unto you, resist not evil; but who­soever shall smite thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the other also. And if any man will sue thee at the law, and take away thy coat, let him have thy cloak also; and whosoever shall com­pel thee to go a mile, go with him twain (that is, two.)’

Here Christ recommends that we should not resent, or be angry at injuries or af­fronts, [Page 136] but that we should forgive them: this meekness is so far from being a proof of a mean and low disposition, that it is a strong proof of a great, a good, and chris­tian temper. Besides this, it is really the most wise, for it is the way to make our enemies our friends; it will make us happy in our own minds, and procure us the favor of God; and it is better to put up with many little injuries, rather than to go to law, which not only makes men unhappy in themselves, but often brings them to poverty and distress.

Again, Christ says, ‘Give to him that asketh thee, and from him that would borrow of thee, turn not thou away.’

If you have it not in your power to give money, you may give advice, and lend your assistance. You are taught by this to do every good and kind action in your power.

The meaning of this is, that when we do charitable actions, we should do them from a kind and merciful disposition, and because all mankind are our brethren; (and to relieve and assist our brethren, is pleasing to God) now if we do good for these reasons, we shall not want the praise of men, and God, who sees in secret▪ will reward us openly in the other world.

But those who do actions that seem to be good, only in order that men may see and praise them, they are vain, and proud, and silly; and such dispositions as these cannot recommend them to God.

[Page 138] And so with prayers, we should pray in secret at home, when we are by ourselves, as well as at places of public worship, and God will reward us.

And as we are directed to pray that we may not be led into temptation, it will be wise in us not to expose ourselves to it, but to avoid every thing that is likely to lead us to do wrong, especially those tempta­tions to which we are most likely to give way.

Those who are of a sober, serious, and religious conduct, and consider their duty to God, and the duties of religion, of pub­lic worship, private prayer, and good will to their neighbours; we see that they are likewise the most diligent in their business, and they have the best enjoyment, and the greatest share of the comforts of this life: at least to the fear of God, and to his right­eousness, all other things that are needful are added.

From this we should learn to be very charitable and kind, in judging others; and very cautious how we condemn them.

[Page 140] We should think favourably (at least as favourably as possible) of their conduct; for with what judgment we judge, let us remember God will judge us, and this is a very serious consideration.

From this we should learn never to ne­glect our prayers to God, but we should be earnest and constant in our desires to become good, and gain the blessing of Providence, and every virtuous and good disposition. If we ask, it shall be given; if we seek, we shall find; if we knock, it shall be opened.

Whatever good advice we may hear, and however regular we may be in at­tending worship—yet if we do not prac­tise in the week, what we hear on a Sun­day, we shall be like the foolish man, who built his house on the sand; all our la­bour will be in vain. But if we are mind­ful to treasure up all these good sayings, and to rule our conduct by them every day in the week; if we resolve every morning to observe them, and compare our behaviour with them in the evening, and where we have acted contrary to them, to resolve to be doubly careful in future;—we shall in [...]ime get a habit of doing them, and then we shall be like the wise man, who built his house upon the rock, whatever temptations, difficulties, and mis­fortunes, we may meet with in life, our foundation will be sure—for we shall have the protection of God, we shall either resist, or bear them patiently here, and they will prove useful trials, to fit us for happiness hereafter.

CHAP. XXVII.
OF THE APOSTLES.

AFTER the books of the four evan­gelists, Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, we find a book called, The Acts of the Apostles, in which there is some account of what became of them after their Lord had left them. As for poor wicked Judas, his guilty conscience drove him to such despair, that he hanged himself.—It is thus that one sin generally leads to an­other. But self-murder could only add to the crime he had before committed. We have no right to take away the life that God has given, whether other peo­ple's, or our own. We may repent of other sins, after having been guilty of them. There are, however, very few people, if any, who are not out of their minds, that attempt to commit such a crime. The other apostles, or disciples of Christ, did in obedience to God's com­mands, go about preaching the gospel, and doing good works. We read, that they very soon, according to the promise of Jesus, were enabled by the power of God to speak many languages which they [Page 143] had never learnt, to work miracles like those of their Master, and to conduct them­selves on very difficult occasions, with extraodinary fortitude and wisdom.

They almost all died martyrs to the faith; that is, were put to cruel deaths, by barbarous men, because they would persist in speaking the truth, which they had re­ceived from Christ, and witnessing what they had seen and known relating to him.

St. Paul, the author of many epistles, or letters, which compose a part of the New Testament, had not been originally a dis­ciple of Christ, but had been a Jew, and persecuted the church at Jerusalem; that is, the assembly of Christians there. God however, was pleased to convert him at last from his errors, and he became a good Christian, and a zealous Apostle. St. Pe­ter, and the other apostles, seemed to con­fine themselves chiefly to the conversion of the Jews: but St. Paul worked upon a larger plan, for he adressed himself to the heathens also, and converted an infinite number of them. He went twice to Rome, and preached the gospel there. St. Peter and St. Paul were great friends and fellow-labourers in the work to which they were appointed. St. Paul, before he went to Rome, wrote a long letter to the Romans, and by the knowledge of the gospel re­vealed [Page 144] to him, he tells them what they were to believe and to do.

St. Peter wrote two epistles, which are directed to all the strangers, new Chris­tians, both Jews and Gentiles, scattered about Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia; who by reason of their af­flicted and persecuted state, might be called strangers upon earth.

St. John also wrote three epistles, one to the universal Church; that is, the general society of Christians all over the world, and the other two to particular societies.

We have, besides these, some other Epistles, written by different Apostles.

The last book in the New Testament, is the Revelation of St. John, which is written in so sublime and figurative a style, and altogether prophetic, or fore­telling things to come, that the learned only are capable of searching into its meaning; and common readers need not perplex themselves at all about it. Let us therefore content ourselves like St. Paul, with the knowledge of Christ crucified; and let us aim at nothing else so much, as imitating his virtuous and amiable life.

The design of these Epistles is to fix upon the mind a serious belief in the truths of christianity, and to persuade men to the practice of every virtue.

[Page 145] Q. What is the meaning of the word Testament?

A. Testament means the same as cove­nant or agreement, which always supposes two parties. Thus Almighty God was pleased in ancient [...] to seperate Abra­ham from his own family and kindred, and to promise him, that as a reward of his faith and obedience, his descendants should obtain the land of Canaan, who were to continue to possess it in prosperity and peace so long as they obeyed the law that should be given to them by Moses.

This, therefore, on the part of God, was conditional, and only to be performed in consequence of obedience to his laws on the part of Abraham and his posterity: hence the former part of the sacred his­tory, although it contains a great variety of other matters, is called by the name of the Old Testament, or Covenant.

Q. Do we know any thing of what might be the further design of God in thus dis­tinguishing one particular family?

A. This dispensation respecting Abraham was a principal means of▪ preserving the knowledge of the one living and true God in the world, and of preparing the way, and providing evidence for the gospel; and thus Abraham became the happy in­strument [Page 146] of the greatest benefit and bles­sing to many others.

The latter part of the sacred history re­fers to the promises of God made by our Lord Jesus Christ, of a future happy and never-ending life after death, if we on our part are careful to observe and to do whatever he has commanded us, and this is called the New Testament, or Cove­nant.

Q. Will our being called Christians, and having been baptized, or the holding any particular opinions, entitle us to be heirs of his promise?

A. No indeed, not any of these things if we do not lead holy and exemplary lives. ‘Ye are my friends, when you do what­soever I command you.—If any man have not the spirit of Christ, he is none of his.’

Q. What were the principal things which our Lord Jesus came into the world to teach men?

A. He was sent to teach us, that if we do indeed purify ourselves from all sin and iniquity, and faithfully and steadily endea­vour as our first pursuit to obtain the favour of God by obeying his laws, that then our heavenly Father, of his own free mercy and goodness, will forgive our past offences, receive us into his favour, and admit us to [Page 147] the glorious privilege of being called his children: and that although we must, in this world of trial, expect some dissappoint­ments, yet if we persevere to the end, in the exercise of all christian dispositions, and the practice of all christian duties, we may be certain that God will never forsake us; and that after death, he will raise us up again to a life of glory and happiness, which will never end.

Q. What is the true character of a christian? Is every body a christian who reads the history of Jesus Christ, and who believes all that is written in the New Testament concerning him?

A. To be a christian, it is necessary not only to read, and believe the history of Jesus Christ, we must endeavour also to be­come like him in disposition and conduct; always avoiding pride, and being careful never despise another, for Jesus Christ was of a meek and humble spirit; and as he was the friend and teacher of mankind, his true follower will endeavour like him, always to assist and be kind to others; the christian who is not blest with riches, to feed the hungry and clothe the naked, will yet pity their sufferings—help them in their labours—reform the wicked, and set forth by his conversation and example, the com­forts and advantages of a devout and holy [Page 148] life; thankful for all worldly blessings, that providence hath set within the reach of virtuous industry, he takes them that he may use them for others, as well as for himself; remembering that of all his powers, and of all his talents, he is to render an account. His heart, however, is not set on external blessings; he seeks a better portion both for himself▪ and for all who are within his influence. True Goodness always meets with whatever support and encouragement he can give it, and while he abhors the vices of the wicked, he pities them, that would reclaim them. The love of goodness disposes him to associate with those who are good.

The word of God is his delight, and his counsellor; his day is always welcome to him, and he loves the habitation of his house.

The true christian although he weep with those who weep, will yet be enabled to support his own sorrows without murmur­ing; always saying in his heart, "thy will oh Lord! not mine be done;" and ever bearing in mind the calmness and mode­ration of Jesus Christ towards his enemies, he also will endeavour to suffer even insults, reviling, and ill usage with patience, and a composed mind; and as the true christian will make choice of every means to advance [Page 149] nearer and nearer towards the perfection of Christ, he will diligently study those pre­cepts which Christ delivered on earth, in order to teach men how to resemble him­self, by becoming virtuous and wise, which alone can make us happy. The true christian will frequently examine his own character, and endeavour to correct every thought, and word, and action, that may appear contrary to these doctrines; and instead of encouraging anger, hatred, re­venge, dishonesty, intemperance, deceit­fulness, swearing, or falsehood, he will en­deavour, on the contrary, to please God, by following the instructions of Jesus Christ, which teach us to live peaceably with all men, to forgive our enemies, and to aviod every evil disposition, or wicked practice, which might lead us to forget God, to in­jure another, or to love this world better than that which is to come. The true christian, therefore, loving God with all his heart, and always doing to others that which he would wish that others should do to him, according to the example and gos­pel of Christ, will lead a life of peace, al­ways remembering in poverty, and sick­ness, and every distress, that these afflic­tions can last but for a season, and that every day he approaches nearer towards that time, when God shall admit him into [Page 150] heaven, and make him happy with himself for ever. With these joyful expectations; the true christian will find comfort under all his sufferings, and when at length through temptation, trials, and tribulation, he shall be sufficiently prepared for another, and a better life, he will then be enabled to meet death with a composed mind, and to say with Jesus Christ in his last hour, ‘I have glorified thee on earth, and now, Oh Father! glorify thou me.’

This it is to be a true christian.