of God, "they glorified him not as God, but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened. Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools, and changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and four-footed beasts, and creeping things." Rom. i, 21-23. The Egyptian sages reached the full extent of this wickedness and folly.

We can only mention a fact which has been fully proved-that the language, written character, and religion of Egypt, arose at the same time. Scattered from Babel, with the curse of God still tingling in their ears, incapacitated for either speaking or writing as they had formerly done, the sons of Mizraim journeyed to the banks of the Nile. Here they employed their cultivated intellect to supply these wants: a language was framed, a written character adopted, and a religious system devised. Yet all these bear indubitable traces of idolatry. Although important elements of primitive truth are preserved, they are neutralized, because God is dethroned, and men worship the creature and not the Creator. who is God over all, blessed for ever.

CHAPTER XI.

A GENERAL VIEW OF THE POSTDILUVIAN PERIOD.

Design of the chapter-Synchronistical chart-Dispersion-Discrepancy in the Chinese annals-Originof empires-Condition of the people-Use of balances-Spinning and weaving-Mode of traveling-Use of metals-Coined money-Military arts and weapons-Musical instruments-Hunting and sporting-Commercial intercourse-The Phenicians-Tyre-Overland trade-Science and learning-Sum

mary.

We have already considered the most prominent particulars in the history of the world, from the deluge to the death of Isaac. The dispersion; the history of the Scripture patriarchs, and the character of their religion; with the rise of the several primitive empires, their early history, and the origin and progress of idolatry in them; have all in succession passed under our review. We do not now purpose to extend our researches further into any of these subjects. But it will be important for us to regard the history of this period as a whole; to consider the relative position of these several empires; to see how far the accounts of each are sustained or contradicted by those of the others; and, if possible, to form some just estimate of the civilization, science, learning, and religion, of that era.

To aid the reader in comprehending this subject, we invite his attention to the annexed synchronistical chart, which exhibits collaterally the principal events of each kingdom in the same century, and shows the cotemporary Scripture patriarchs for the whole of the time. This, in connection with the genealogical table already given, will enable us further to elucidate those points which it may be necessary to notice.

The first particular which calls for attnetion is the dispersion. This event, according to the best opinion we have been able to form, took place in the latter part of the fourth century after the deluge. But, if this is correct, we have to account for the discre pancy presented by the annals of China. The chart shows that Fohee is supposed to have begun to reign in China B. C. 2953, and died B. C. 2838. Shuckford, who, although an advocate for the abbreviated chronology, perceived that on any principle Fohee would be cotemporary with Noah, first suggested the idea, that Fohee was the same as Noah, and that, leaving his sons to journey toward Shinar, he conducted a portion of the population

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eastward, and settled in China. He supports his views by the following reasons: "The first king of China was Fohi; and as have before observed that Fohi and Noah were cotemporaries, at least, so there are many reasons from the Chinese traditions concerning Fohi to think him and Noah the same person. 1. They say Fohi had no father, that is, Noah was the first man in the postdiluvian world: his ancestors perished in the flood; and, no tradition hereof being preserved in the Chinese annals, Noah, or Fohi, stands there as if he had no father at all. 2. Fohi's mother is said to have conceived him, encompassed with a rainbow; a conceit very probably arising from the rainbow's first appearing to Noah, and the Chinese being willing to give some account of his original. 3. Fohi is said to have carefully bred seven sorts of creatures, which he used to sacrifice to the supreme Spirit of heaven and earth; and Moses tells us, that Noah took into the ark of every clean beast by sevens, and of fowls of the air by sevens and after the flood Noah built an altar, and took of every clean beast, and every clean fowl, and offered burnt-offerings. 4. The Chinese derive the name of Fohi from his oblation, and Moses gives Noah his name upon account of the grant of the creatures for the use of men, which he obtained by his offering. 5. Lastly, the Chinese history supposes Fohi to have settled in the province of Xeusi, which is the north-west province of China, and near to Ararat, (in Cashgar,) where the ark rested. But, 6, The history we have of the world does necessarily suppose, that these eastern parts were as soon peopled, and as populous, as the land of Shinar; for within a few ages, in the days of Ninus and Semiramis," they were fully able to resist the Assyrian invasion.Shuckford's Sacred and Profane History, vol. i, p. 62. Although the chronology and history of this extract are very different from our own, we have thought it right to give it, because its principal arguments are applicable to the chronological arrangement which we have adopted; according to which Fohee died about half a century after the death of Noah; and therefore, when the remoteness of the period is considered, these events may be said nearly to synchronize. Besides this chronological coincidence, there are the points of resemblance noticed by Shuckford; most of which, notwithstanding his defective chronology, deserve attention. Are we, then, to believe that Noah, leaving his sons, departed from Armenia, and, journeying with his attendants, settled in the East? We confess that, to our judgment, this notion

is too fanciful to be seriously entertained. Besides, Scripture clearly teaches that Noah had no children after the flood. What then is the solution of the apparent discrepancy? Evidently this: the Chinese carried back their history to the time of Noah, and regarded him as their king who was only their ancestor. We have seen that, in effect, the Egyptians did the same. Sanchoniatho carries up the series of generations from Misraim to Noah, without any interruption; and almost every ancient people connected the patriarch of the ark, and the leading circumstances of the deluge, with their own history.

It seems therefore probable in this case, that early tradition, brought to China by the first emigrants from Shinar, was appended to their history; and there is no reason why, soon after the death of Arphaxad, China might not have been occupied. Egypt was colonized even at an earlier period than this.

The dispersion is a great fact, uniformly attested by sacred and profane history, and supported by all accounts of the present character of all nations, and the nature and relation of all languages.

The origin of empires is a subject involved in much obscurity, and rendered doubly difficult by the learned labor which has been employed to elucidate it, in utter contempt of the authority of Holy Scripture. We have a striking instance of this in a work replete with learning, to which we have often referred, but which makes Nimrod the father of Ninus, and an emigrant from Egypt during the time of Abraham. The confusion induced by such efforts must be obvious to the most superficial observer.

On the contrary, the arrangement which is based upon the Scripture narrative is throughout simple and consistent. Here we have ample time for all the circumstances recorded by Moses: the dispersion takes place four or five hundred years after the deluge. Nimrod establishes himself as a sovereign in Babylon, and is the first of a regular series of kings. Nineveh, founded by Asshur, also rises into importance; and about six hundred years after the time of Nimrod, Babylon is subdued by the Assyrian power, which, also, in the same century, extends its dominion over Persia. Thus have we the rise and progress of that empire depicted, which all history assures us existed, and exercised a paramount influence in Central Asia, in the earliest period of authentic history. At the same time the prominent events in the histories of Egypt and China synchronize with this account, and all accord with that of the Scripture patriarchs.

Yet, although it is absolutely necessary, in tracing our way through these remote ages, to refer to the names of kings, and to use the periods of their governments as way-marks in our investigations, we are far from thinking that these make up the history of the time, or are even the most important elements of it. The general character of the people, the measure of civilization which they enjoyed, their arts, science, and learning-habits, manners, and customs-present to our minds subjects full of great and varied interest, which must, at least to some extent, be known, if we would form any just idea of the history of mankind during this era.

To this class of inquiries we will now direct attention; and first refer to those arts which are more immediately connected with the comforts and conveniences of life.

Nothing can be more evident than that, long before the close of this period, every requisite for the supply of the necessaries, comforts, and even luxuries of life, was amply provided. And, therefore, in noticing those arts to which we particularly allude, we do not wish to produce the impression that these only were known, but rather that, these being assuredly in general use, we may fairly infer all those also of a similar kind to have been practiced.

The scales or balances were known, and in common use. We are told that " Abraham weighed to Ephron the silver which he had named," Gen. xxiii, 16; and Job exclaims, "O that my grief were throughly weighed, and my calamity laid in the balances together!" Chap. vi, 2. Not only, therefore, was the practice of weighing various commodities common, but the art had passed into a figure of speech; and hence the patriarch, when anxious that his sorrows might be justly estimated, desires that his grief may be "weighed," and his calamity "laid in the balances." Spinning and weaving were also understood and practiced. Various kinds of clothing had undoubtedly been always in use. Soon after the period of which we are speaking, we find clothing made ornamental, and distinctive of rank. Joseph's coat of many colors was of this kind, and so were "the vestures of fine linen" in which the same individual was arrayed when he had so satisfactorily interpreted the dreams of Pharaoh. We have, however, direct reference to peculiar distinctions of this kind before the death of Isaac. Rebekah, we are told, on first meeting her future .husband, "took a veil and covered herself." But in this, as in