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these sons had been ripening to manhood. cannot suppose that theirs was a solitary and unprecedented instance of approach to God's presence, or of the presentation of offerings: they must have learned the practice from their parents, who, doubtless, at the ends of the days, during the many years which had elapsed since their expulsion from Eden, had approached and offered by Divine appointment, and with the Divine approval. But what had they offered? I recur to the circumstances before us; and I find Cain and Abel bringing their gifts to the tabernacle. Abel is a keeper of sheep; Cain is a tiller of the ground. Each brings of the abundance of his possessions: Abel the firstlings of his flock; Cain, the fruit of the earth. But I find Abel's sacrifice alone accepted, and am led to enquire into the reason of such distinction. supposed previous character of the two brothers is brought forward by many to account for it; and doubtless there was much in the disposition of the hating and murderous Cain, which would render him an object of the Divine displeasure. He inclined unto wickedness in his heart, and the Lord would not hear him. But I am tempted to search further into the circumstances recorded, for the grounds of Cain's rejection; especially when I reflect that, under the ancient dispensations, formal unfitness is most frequently found to have incurred the open disapproval of

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God. And if I am not mistaken, I find it illustrated by a few simple considerations. Cain was the first-born; and as such, inherited the priesthood. This law of the Patriarchal dispensation is well known. As such, he drew near to offer sacrifice. Now, on examining those parts of the Levitical ordinances which relate to sacrifice, I find that never were offerings of the fruit of the ground made, unpreceded by an offering of slain animals; that day by day the first duty of the temple was the slaying of the appointed lamb; that on the sabbaths, two were offered previously to any other sacrifice; and that on the solemn feasts, more blood was ordained to flow, before the oil and the flour could be presented. And I know that for all this there were deep reasons, which I cannot but suspect influenced also the arrangement of the Patriarchal worship.

Cain, as the priest of his family, had been in the habit of bringing and slaying the burnt-offering at the tabernacle. But the lamb for the burnt-offering was none of his own providing. For it, he was beholden to his brother. With that brother, he had enmity. It is reasonable to suppose this, from the severe and sudden vengeance which he inflicted on him afterwards, on a cause of jealousy occurring. Why then should Abel's flock furnish the greater sacrifice, that which must precede his own, and prepare the for its accep

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tance? Why might not the fruits of his own

field serve the purpose? With such thoughts, at the end of the days, he brings before the Lord the produce of the ground. Without shedding of blood, he approaches God's presence, and stands before the consuming fire.

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Now let us observe the conduct of Abel. priesthood of his elder brother had been as yet honoured by him, and he had furnished him wherewith to offer before the Lord the sacrifice which he required. But now that elder brother despises the ordinance of Jehovah, and approaches him with unauthorized offerings. Shall the service of God be neglected, and the burnt-offering left unperformed? By faith, Abel offers unto God the more excellent, the ampler sacrifice, and the priesthood of Cain is set aside. We seem to see a hint of this in the very form of the narrative. "And Abel, he also (as if it were not a matter of course) brought of the firstlings of his flock, and of the fat thereof." We need not then enquire further, why the sacrifice of Abel was accepted, and that of Cain rejected. Those who thus understand the circumstances, find a confirmation of their view in the words addressed by God to Cain: "Why art thou wroth, and why is thy countenance fallen? if thou doest well, shalt thou not have the excellency? (i.e. the preeminence); and if not, is not a sin-offering lying at the door? And unto thee is his desire, and thou shalt rule over him."

But wherein did Abel's faith consist, when he offered unto God this ampler sacrifice? Are we to suppose it to have been the mere inflexibility of a blind obedience? could it have been said in that case, that "he being dead, yet speaketh" to us, or "is yet celebrated?" Do we not rather see in his conduct, evidence of a strong persuasion that sacrifice was God's appointed witness to the satisfaction of the Divine justice, the type of that great bloodshedding, without which is no remission? And does not the author of the Epistle to the Hebrews further sanction this conclusion, when in speaking of the fully manifested blessings of the last dispensation, he asserts that we have come to Jesus the mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling, which speaketh better things than Abel? Does he not imply that the testimony which Abel bore to the ancient Church, but darkly and ill-understood, is openly and clearly borne to us in the gospel of Christ?

But we have not yet exhausted the instruction to be derived from this, the first recorded sacrifice. "The Lord had respect," literally, "turned, unto Abel and his offering." This has been generally interpreted of the consumption of the sacrifice by fire from the Divine presence. Theodotion rendered it, "The Lord consumed by fire the offering of Abel." And certainly, if we consider the way in which the Lord's approval of

sacrifice was afterwards shewn, this interpretation seems highly probable. On the completion of the Mosaic tabernacle, when the victims had been slain, and all things performed in order as the Lord had appointed, we read: “And there came a fire out from before Jehovah, and consumed upon the altar the burnt-offering and the fat: which when all the people saw, they shouted and fell upon their faces." On the staying of the plague which was sent upon Jerusalem for David's sin in numbering the people, we read, "David built an altar to the Lord in the threshingfloor of Ornan the Jebusite, and offered burntofferings and peace-offerings, and called upon the Lord: and the Lord answered him from heaven by fire upon the altar of burnt-offering." On the dedication of Solomon's temple the same token of the Divine acceptance was vouchsafed; and again to Elijah on Mount Carmel. And in Psalm xx., where we read, "The Lord remember all thine offerings, and accept thy burnt sacrifice,” we find in our margins, 'or, turn to ashes:' and thus some of the versions have rendered it."

I find it then highly probable that the acceptance of Abel's offering was testified by the descent of fire from the Divine presence consuming his sacrifice: I know that such was the

1 Numb. ix. 24.

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2 1 Chron. xxi 26.

Et qu'il réduise en cendre ton holocauste.- Ostervald. E riduca in cenere il tuo olocausto.-Diodati.

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