principally confined to the family of Eber, from whom the Hebrews are named, and Shem is called by way of emphasis their father,' because that they by their piety inherited the covenant blessings promised to him. So for a contrary reason Ham is called emphatically the father' of Canaan, Gen. 9. 18, though he had several sons besides.

State the line of descent from Shem to Peleg? V. 22-25.

What remarkable event occurred in the days of Peleg, from which his name was derived? v. 25.

'Peleg;' i. e. division, comes from the Heb. Phâlag,' to divide, because that at the time of his birth, or about that time, the division,' or dispersion, of the sons of Noah took place, in consequence of the confusion of languages, related in the ensuing chapter. This fact enables us to fix the date of that event, for Peleg was born one hundred and one years after the flood. The confusion of tongues therefore occurred A. M. 1757-8.

By what passage are we warranted to understand this 'division' in the sense here given it? Ps. 55. 9.

Divide their tongues;' i. e. confound their counsels; destroy their unanimity; and split them up into opposing parties.

What part of the world is supposed to have been peopled by the posterity of Joktan? Ans. Probably the country watered by the Indus and its tributary streams, extending castward to the Ganges.

HEADS OF PRACTICAL REFLECTION.

V. 1. However the Gentiles may have apostatized from God, they all sprung from the Church at first.

V. 9. Power acquired by violence will usually be exercised with tyranny, and the giants of despotism have ever been disposed to hunt to death the unoffending people of God.

V. 11. Proud and impious potentates can never rest easy without aitning to enlarge their borders.

CHAPTER X I.

What is said in the first verse of this chapter? 'The whole earth,' i. e. all the inhabitants of the earth. Thus, 1 Kings 10. 24, 'All the earth sought to Solomon to hear his wisdom,' i. e. all the inhabitants of the earth.

Of one language; Heb. of one lip,' i. e. having but one language with a uniform mode of pronunciation. Of one speech; Heb. of one (sort of) words;' implying principally unity of counsel.

What language is this supposed to have been?

By almost universal consent it is allowed to have been the Hebrew, which was probably the primitive language of the human race. Thus, the Jerus. Targ, on this passage: They spake in the holy tongue wherewith the world was created in the beginning.'

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What came to pass as they journeyed from the east?

This was a company, headed probably by Nimrod, who had left the regions in the vicinity of Ararat, and were now spreading themselves over the fertile plains of Babylonia, on the west of the river Tigris.-It appears from ch. 10. 31, where mention is made of a diversity of languages, that the events recorded in this chapter, were anterior in point of time to those related in the preceding, as the confusion of tongues, which was the cause of the dispersion, must have occurred before the dispersion itself. Such chronological transpositions frequently occur in the sacred volume.

What scheme did they here form, and with what intent? v. 3, 4.

The design, in all probability, was to establish a universal monarchy, of which Babel was to be the metropolis, and in this manner to thwart the purposes of heaven, in regard to the colonization of the globe, by numerous small and independent communities. Great consolidated governments have in all ages been the greatest scourge under which the earth has groaned. The tower or fortress which was proposed to be built, would serve as a sort of landmark, to keep the families of the earth together, as well as a central rendezvous for idolatry. For false religion and civil oppression generally go hand in hand; and Babylon' in the Scriptures is a type of both.-V. 4, And they said; rather, For they had said;' i. e. in previously taking counsel and projecting their plan.

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Of what materials did they propose to erect their edifice, and why this selection? v. 3. 'Burn them throughly; Heb. burn them to a burning.' Stone quarries are, and ever have been, utterly unknown throughout the whole region of Babylon, while the soil, even to this day, is remarkably well fitted for making bricks, and abounds with bitumen, both solid and liquid, to a degree unparalleled in any other quarter of the globe. The soil of ancient Assyria and Babylon,' says Mr. Keppel, consists of a fine clay mixed with sand, with which, as the waters of the river retire, the shores are covered. This compost, when dried by the heat of the sun, becomes a hard and solid mass, and forms the finest materials for the beautiful bricks for which Babylon was so celebrated. We all put to the test the adaptation of this mud for pottery, by taking some of it while wet, from the bank of the river, and then moulding it into any form we pleased. Having been exposed to the sun for half an hour it became as hard as stone,' Keppel's Travels in the East; A. D. 1824, p. 73.

'Slime.' The bitumen designated by this word is common in all the plain of the Euphrates, and floats on the surface of standing water, in small ponds, marshes, &c. It makes a mortar which in time becomes harder than the brick itself, and seems to be imperishable. The site of this tower, or at least of its supposed ruins, is fourteen miles to the N. E. of the site of Babylon, and the ruins are now called 'Birs Nimrod,' tower of Nimrod. Id. p. 103.

What is said of the manner in which the Lord regarded this daring enterprise? v. 5. Spoken after the manner of men, and suggesting the inference, that in the administration of justice every cause should be thoroughly examined before it is acted upon. God is here represented as coming down and actually acquainting himself with the facts, after which he returns to heaven, as it were to make up his judgment upon the most careful deliberation, and once more, v. 7, descends to the earth to put it in

execution.

How does he represent the foreseen consequences of their present undertaking, and what determination does he thereupon form? v. 6, 7.

What was the result of the Divine purpose, and what name was in consequence assigned to the place? v. 8, 9.

'Babel' This word is contracted from Balbal,' confusion, or to confound.

What saying of Solomon is applicable to this result? Prov. 10. 24.

Do the facts here related receive any corroboration from ancient profane history?

Abydenus, as quoted by Eusebius, declares, that the first race of men, big with a fond conceit of the bulk and strength of their bodies, built, in the place where Babylon now stands, a tower of such prodigious height, that it seemed to touch the skies; but the

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winds and the gods overthrew the mighty structure upon their heads.' In like manner Eupolemus, as cited by Alexander Polyhistor, affirms, That the city of Babylon was first built by giants who escaped from the flood; that these giants built the most famous tower in all history; and that the tower was dashed in pieces by the almighty power of God, and the giants dispersed and scattered over the face of the whole earth.'

Was the Christian church built by a contrary miracle? Acts 1.

What was the design of stating the line of genealogy from Shem to Abraham? See Mat. 1.

Does it appear from an inspection of this table that the flood had a decided effect upon the length of human life, and how?

How many sons had Terah, and which of them was the eldest? v. 27.

Ans. Haran. Begat;' i. e. began to beget.-By comparing v. 32 of this chapter with ch. 12. 4, it is obvious that Abraham was born, not when Terah was 70 years old, but when he was 130, which was 352 years after the flood, or A. M. 2008.

Which of them died first, and what children did he leave? 27, 28.

What were the names of Abraham's and Nahor's wives? v. 29.

Who is Iscah supposed to have been? ch. 20. 12.

From whence did Terah depart, who accompanied him, and whither did he go? v. 31. Ur of the Chaldees;' a country or city of Mesopotamia, Acts 7. 2, 4, now called 'Orfah,' (pron. Oorfah,) but anciently Edessa. Ur,' (Heb. Oor,') signifies