"of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. And the Lord faid, I will de"ftroy man, whom I have created, from off "the face of the earth (u)." Yet here again the Divine justice was tempered with mercy. The execution of the fentence was delayed. God declared that the days of man upon earth, the period of trial during which the univerfal deftruction fhould be poftponed that opportunity might be afforded for repentance, fhould be one hundred and twenty years. But trial was granted in vain. The fatal period drew to its close. "God looked upon the earth, and behold it was corrupt; for all flcfh had corrupted his way the earth. And God faid unto upon "Noah; the end of all flesh is come before "me (v)."

Though the Divine wifdom referves for a future life the great diftribution of rewards. and punishments between the righteous and the wicked; yet it frequently distinguishes even in this world the faithful fervant of the Almighty by fignal mercies and bleffings, while it crushes the workers of iniquity with exemplary vengeance. Thus it was on the approach of the deluge: "Noah found grace "in the eyes of the Lord." The caufe is af

A

() Gen. vi. 5-7.

(~) Gen. vi. 12, 13.

figned in the next verfe: "Noah was a just 66 man, and perfect in his generations, and "Noah walked with God (w)." So likewise when God afterwards faid unto Noah, "Come "thou, and all thy house into the ark;" he immediately fubjoins the reafon of this gracious deliverance; "for thee have I seen " righteous before me in this generation (x)." St. Peter, speaking of the old world, characterises Noah by the appellation of "a preacher "of righteousness (y)." From that expreffion we may conclude that he was not only an example of religion in his own private conduct, but that he publicly protested against the abandoned depravity of the human race; ftrenuously laboured to roufe the finners to a conviction of their guilt; and denounced against the unrepenting world the impending judgements of God. Confiding in the merciful protection of that Power whom he loved and obeyed, he entered the ark with his family; and with thofe individuals of the animal race, which God had brought to him that they might be preserved to replenish the earth: and "the Lord fhut him in.". Then "were all the fountains of the great deep "broken up;" the ocean was heaved out of its bed by convulfions and earthquakes; and

(w) Gen. vi. 8, 9. (x) Gen. vii. 1. (y)-2 Peter, ii. 5. C "the

"the windows of heaven were opened:" floods of rain rushed from the sky: "the "waters prevailed exceedingly upon the "earth; and all the high hills that were under "the whole heaven were covered." The ark, containing the fole remnants of the human race and of the animated world, floated on the boundlefs deluge.

This aweful teftimony of the Divine indignation against fin took place, as the Scriptures exprefsly affirm, when Noah was fix hundred years old; and, according to the common computation, one thousand fix hundred and fifty feven years after the creation of the world, and two thousand three hundred and forty feven years before the birth of Jesus Chrift.

At the expiration of one hundred and fifty days the waters were fo far abated, that the ark refted on the mountains of Ararat, in Armenia. At the end of ten weeks more the fummits of the mountains appeared above the furface of the flood. At length, on the first day of the fucceeding new year, Noah, after having fucceffively fent forth a raven and a dove, that he might judge, accordingly as they should return to him or not, of the state of the ground, removed the covering of the ark; and perceived that the furface of the

earth

earth was dried. And on the twenty-seventh day of the fecond month, after having refided in the ark one year and fome days, he and all its inhabitants, by Divine command, defcended from the frail fabric, in which Omnipotence had preferved them amid the univerfal deftruction of their fellow-creatures.

On this fecond father of mankind, and on his family, the Supreme Being conferred bleffings and privileges in most respects fimilar to those which he had bestowed on their firft parents: confirming to them the fovereignty of the earth and of the inferior animated creation; and in one point enlarging the original grant, by permitting to them the use of animal food. To remove the apprehensions of another deluge, by which it might not be unnatural for them or their defcendants to be harraffed; he folemnly declared, that there never should again be a flood to deftroy the earth. And with the most benignant condefcenfion to the weakness of human faith, he farther pronounced, that the rainbow, an appearance uniformly produced by drops of falling rain illuminated by the fun, was ordained to be the fign of this everlasting covenant between himself and his creatures; and when beheld by him, fhould for ever bring his promise to his remembrance. And in order

C 2

order that he might completely diffipate the fufpicious fears of men, that, if not a deluge, yet some other convulfion should afterwards be commiffioned to ravage the whole earth and extinguish their race; he made known his merciful and unalterable determination : "I will not again curse the ground any more "for man's fake-neither will I again fmite any more every thing living, as I have

"done.

While the earth remaineth, feed"time and harveft, and cold and heat, and "fummer and winter, and day and night, "fhall not ceafe (x)."

Shortly after the deluge, Noah, in confequence of the difference between the conduct of his eldest and youngest fons towards him and that of his other fon Ham, was commiffioned prophetically to announce to the latter the future fubjection which the posterity of Canaan, the child of the offender, fhould experience under the defcendants of Shem and Japheth; and to foretel that fignal bleffings should attend the race of thefe two righteous men. Among the reafons for which the prophecy was emphatically detailed by Mofes, we may conclude this to have been one; that it was fingularly adapted to encourage the children of Ifrael to carry without fear into

(x) Gen. viii. 22.

the