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AFTER the Publication of the Prayer Book, to which this Work

is intended to be attached, it occurred to me that the addition of such of the Sunday Lessons as are taken out of the Old Testament, with some short Notes, would be an improvement; and I accordingly dedicated part of my leisure to that object. To have added the New Testament also, would have required much more time than I could command; and it is hoped that the Notes already given upon the Epistles and Gospels may be of assistance even upon other parts of the New Testament. One of the Tables at the commencement of the Prayer Book points out what parts of the New Testament the Prayer Book contains. The Notes now introduced are chiefly explanatory: they by no means extend to all the passages which require explanation; nor have they any claim. to depth of learning and research: but they may be of some assistance, especially to the young, and to those who have not made the Scriptures their study. They will tend to produce a habit of searching out the meaning of obscure parts: the periodical recurrence to them on the days to which they belong may cause them to be sifted and examined, so that mistakes in them may be corrected, and defects supplied; and what is wanting here may in many instances be furnished by the much more perfect Work of Messrs. D'Oyley and Mant. That Publication, indeed, has made this the less necessary; but as my Notes were in general written before the corresponding Numbers in that Work appeared, the two Publications will not materially clash and in these momentous times, when the wars upon the earth have carried off probably more than six millions of its inhabitants within the last twenty-five years, and when God's visitations may be extended to other lands which shall not take warning and reform, nothing should be suppressed which can make the Scriptures better understood, or advance the practice of religious duties. With an anxious, but humble hope, that this Work may in some small degree have that effect, it is offered to the consideration of the Public.

The Common Chronology is here adopted, without referring to Dr. Hales, because, much as Dr. Hales and his valuable work are intitled to respect, it would have been raising questions which it is beyond the scope of this Work to discuss.

Printed by A. Strahan,

Printers-Street, London,

GENESIS.

Genesis is one of the Five Books of Moses, and contains a short account of the creation, and of the first ages of the world, to within 60 or 70 years of the birth of Moses.

CHAP. I.

Leave (a) God.

N the beginning (a) God (b) created the 2. And the arth was without form, and void (c); and larkness was upon the face of the deep: nd the Spirit (d) of God moved upon the ace of the waters. 3. And God said,

Let there be light:" and there was ight. 4. And God saw the light, that it was good and God divided the light from the darkness. 5. And God called he light, Day; and the darkness he called,

(a) v.1. "In the beginning." Before Christ's irth 4004.

(b) v. I. "God." The word here, and in ther parts of this chapter translated "God," s a plural noun, and yet is followed by a verb ingular: so that Moses probably understood What, under the term "God," more than one Existence or Being was included, and yet that hose Existences or Beings were so united, that hey might properly be considered as only one. God is a Spirit, John iv. 24., without flesh, or blood, or body, or any thing tangible, (see 1st of the 39 articles); of infinite wisdom and good

ess; always knowing what is best, and always willing what is best. And as men only disagree when, from the imperfection of their nature, they are not wise enough to know what is best, or not good enough to will it; so, from the perfection of the Divine Nature, the Beings or Existences which partake of it, from always knowing what is best, and always willing it, must necessarily in all instances be unanimous, or of one mind. Though each is capable of thinking for himself, judging for himself, and acting for himself, yet each must, from the consummate perfection of their natures, come to the same conclusion with the others; and upon every point on which there can be deliberation or judgment, they must inevitably be one in mind. The doctrine, then, of our church, "that the Father is God, the Son "God, and the Holy Ghost God, and yet "that they are not three Gods, but one God," may easily be understood. Each is a distinct Existence or Being; each capable of thinking, judging, and acting for himself; but each so perfect in wisdom and goodness, that whatever one thinks best all must think best; whatever

Night and the evening and the morning were the first day. 6. And God said, "Let there be a firmament (e) in the "midst of the waters, and let it divide "the waters from the waters." 7. And God made the firmament, and divided the waters which were under the firmament, from the waters which were above the firmament: and it was so. 8. And God called the firmament, Heaven: and the evening and the morning were the second day. 9. And God said, "Let the "waters under the heaven be gathered

one wills all must will in no possible case can there be any difference between them, but in every possible case they must be "of one "mind." See 2 Hales, 815, 970, in notes, and for instances of the doctrine of a Trinity amongst pagans, see 3 Hales, 502 to 506. The concurrence of "the Son" in the work of the creation is repeatedly noticed in Scripture. In speaking of "the Word" (which is described as having been made flesh, and having dwelt among us, John i. 14, meaning Jesus Christ), St. John says, "all things were "made by him, and without him was not any thing made that was made." John i. 3. In Eph. ii. 9. God is spoken of as having "created all things by Jesus Christ." It is said of him, in 1 Col. xvi. 17. by him were "all things created that are in heaven, and "that are in earth: all things were created "by him, and for him: and he is before all

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things, and by him all things consist." And in Heb. i. 2., one of the distinctions of the Son is, "by whom also he (i. e.God) made the worlds. (c) v.2. void," i. e. with nothing upon it, neither grass, herb, tree, or animal.

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(d) v. 2. "The Spirit," i. e. as most divines suppose," the Holy Ghost." Judith, in her animated thanksgiving upon the death of Holofernes, about 640 years before the birth of Christ, says, "Let all creatures serve thee, "for thou spakest, and they were made; thou didst send forth thy Spirit, and it created them." Judith xvi. 14. See also Prov. viii. 22 to 31. where Wisdom (personified) is described as having been with the Lord, when he appointed

the foundation of the earth.

(e) v.6. 7. 8. 14. 15. 17. 20. "A firmament,” rather " an expanse, ""an open space."

K K

"together unto one place, and let the dry "land appear:" and it was so. 10. And God called the dry land, Earth; and the gathering together of the waters called he, Seas and God saw that it was good. 11. And God said, "Let the earth bring "forth grass (ƒ), the herb yielding seed, "and the fruit tree yielding fruit after his "kind, whose seed is in itself, upon the "earth" and it was so. 12. And the earth brought forth grass (g), and herb yielding seed after his kind, and the tree yielding fruit, whose seed was in itself, after his kind: and God saw that it was good. 13. And the evening and the morning were the third day. 14. And God said, "Let there be lights in the firmament "of the heaven, to divide the day from "the night and let them be for signs, "and for seasons, and for days, and "years. 15. And let them be for lights "in the firmament of the heaven, to give "light upon the earth :" and it was so. 16. And God made two great lights; the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night: he made the stars also. 17. And God set them in the firmament of the heaven, to give light upon the earth, 18. and to rule over the day, and over the night, and to divide the light from the darkness: and God saw that it was good. 19. And the evening and the morning were the fourth day. 20. And God said, "Let the waters bring forth abun"dantly the moving creature that hath

(ƒ) V. II. 12. Grass," ," rather "produce.” Herbs and trees were the things produced. (g) v. 12. For "grass and herb," read "Pro"duce-herb."

(h) v. 26. "Us" and " our " in the plural number; as if the speaker were not alone, nor acting alone. So Gen. iii. 22. "The Lord "God said, Behold, the man is become as "one of us." And Gen. xi. 7. The Lord said, "Let us go down, and confound their "language." And who was he," says St. Chrysostom, "to whom God said, Let us "make man? Who but he, the Angel of the "Great Council, the Wonderful Counsellor, "the Mighty One, the Prince of Peace, the "Father of the future age, the only-begotten "Son of God, the Equal to his Father in essence, by whom all things were made." Doyley and Mant's Bible.

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"life, and fowl that may fly above the "earth in the open firmament of heaven." 21. And God created great whales, and every living creature that moveth, which the waters brought forth abundantly after their kind, and every winged fowl after his kind and God saw that it was good. 22. And God blessed them, saying, "Be "fruitful, and multiply, and fill the waters "in the seas, and let fowl multiply in the "earth." 23. And the evening and the morning were the fifth day. 24. A God said, "Let the earth bring forth "living creature after his kind, cattl "and creeping thing, and beast of the "earth after his kind:" and it was 25. And God made the beast of the earth after his kind, and cattle after their kin and every thing that creepeth upon th earth after his kind: and God saw th it was good, 26. And God said, “La "us (b) make man in our image, after o "likeness (i): and let them have domin

over the fish of the sea, and over "fowl of the air, and over the cattle, 66 over all the earth, and over every cree "ing thing that creepeth upon the earth 27. So God created man in his own image in the image of God created he him: ma and female created he them. 28. And Go blessed them, and God said unto them "Be fruitful and multiply, and replen "the earth, and subdue it: and ha "dominion over the fish of the sea, an "over the fowl of the air, and over ever

(i) v. 26. "In our image, after our ' ness, i. e. (probably) pure, innnocent, rational; bearing a resemblance to God in faculties of the mind. 2 Lightf. 1327.. word "image" has this sense, Col. ii. "Put on the new man, which is renet "in knowledge, after the image of him th "created him, i. e. God." And again, Rom viii. 29. 66 to be conformed to the image "his Son, i. e. Christ." Bodily resemblan could not have been intended, because "G " is a spirit, John iv. 24." without body parts, (1st of the 39 articles); and "no m

hath seen God at any time, John i. 18." W Adam is said, Gen. v. 3. to have "begat a "in his own likeness, after his image," the mea ing probably is, that that son had, naturally corrupt and depraved propensities, instead of that pure disposition in which Adam was created.

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"living thing that moveth upon the earth." 29. And God said, "Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, and "every tree, in which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed: to you it shall be for meat (k). 30. And to every beast of the earth, and to every fowl of the air, and to every thing that creepeth upon the earth, wherein there is life, I have given every green herb for meat:" and 31. And God saw every thing hat he had made, and behold, it was very good. And the evening and the morning were the sixth day.

at was so.

THU

CHAP. II.

HUS the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them. And on the seventh day God ().ended Gis work which he had made: and he rested n the seventh day from all his work which e had made. 3. And God blessed the eventh day, and sanctified it (m): because at in it he had rested from all his work, hich God created and made. 4. These re the generations (n) of the heavens, and f the earth, when they were created; in e day that the LORD God made the earth, nd the heavens, 5. and every plant of

(k) v. 29. "For meat." This verse con

ins no permission to eat animal food; and atil they had bred, the killing any female aimal would have put an end to that species. (1) v. 2. "Ended," i. e. " had ended." By he end of the sixth day every thing was made. (m) v. 3. "Sanctified it " Though it is not xpressly stated that the Sabbath was observed efore the time of Moses, that was most proably the case; why otherwise should Moses nention its being sanctified at this time? The eason assigned for its institution is a reason why it should be observed in all ages, and by ll people. And before the ten commandments were given, viz. when the Israelites first had nanna, they were not to gather any on the eventh day, because that was "the rest of the holy Sabbath unto the Lord." Exod. xvi. 23. Christians have made the first day of the week their Sabbath instead of the seventh, because it was on the first day that our Saviour rose from the dead; it was on that day in particular that the apostles used to assemble for religious purposes; and it was on that day,

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the field, before it was in the earth, and every herb of the field, before it grew: for the LORD God had not caused it to rain upon the earth, and there was not a man to till the ground. 6. But there went up a mist from the earth, and watered the whole face of the ground. 7. And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul. 8. And the LORD God planted a garden eastward in Eden; and there he put the man whom he had formed. 9. And out of the ground made the LORD God to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food: the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of knowledge of good and evil. 10. And a river went out of Eden to water the garden; and from thence it was parted, and became into four heads. 11. The name of the first is Pison (o): that is it which compasseth the whole land of Havilah, where there is gold. 12. And the gold of that land is good: there is bdellium and the onyx-stone. 13. And the name of the second river is Gihon: the same is it that compasseth the whole land of (p) Ethiopia. 14. And the name of the third river is Hiddekel (q): that is it which goeth to

when they were so assembled, that they received that signal approbation from God, the visible appearance of cloven tongues like as of fire sitting upon each of them, the infusion of the Holy Ghost, and the power of speaking languages they had never learnt. See Mark xvi. 9.-John xx. 19.-Acts ii. 1 to 4. See 2 Lightf. 642-3. The importance God in later times attached to an observance of the Sabbath will appear, post.—Is. lvi, 2. 4. 6. and post.-Is. lviii. 13.

(11) v. 4. "These are the generations, &c."

i. e. "this is an account of the creation, &c."

(o) v. 11. "Pison." There is a stream from the Euphrates to the Tigris, some short distance from the Persian Gulph; and from thence to the gulph the Euphrates had the name of Pison, the Tigris that of Gihon. This cross stream, therefore, from the Euphrates to the Tigris, is the river that watered the garden. 1 Well's Geography, c. i. p. 17.

(p) v. 13. "Ethiopia," rather "Cush," in Asia. Patr.

(q) v. 14. "Hiddekel," i. e. "the Tigris."

ward the east of Assyria. And the fourth river is Euphrates. 15. And the LORD God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden, to dress it, and to keep

it. 16. And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, "Of every tree of the "garden thou mayest freely eat: 17. But of the tree of the knowledge of good "and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in "the day that thou eatest thereof, thou "shalt surely die (r)." 18. And the LORD God said, "It is not good that the "man should be alone: I will make him "an help meet for him." 19. And out of the ground the LORD God formed every beast of the field, and every fowl of the air, and brought them unto Adam, to see what he would call them: and whatsoever Adam called every living creature, that was the name thereof. 20. And Adam gave names to all cattle, and to the fowl of the air, and to every beast of the field: but for Adam there was not found an help meet for him. 21. And the LORD God caused a deep sleep to fall upon Adam, and he slept: and he took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh instead thereof. 22. And the rib which the LORD God had taken from man, made he a woman, and brought her unto the man. 23. And

Adam said, "This is now bone of my "bones, and flesh of my flesh : she shall "be called, Woman, because she was "taken out of man." 24. Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife and (s) they shall be one flesh (t). 25 And they were both naked, the man and his wife, and were not ashamed.

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(r) v..

v. 17. "Die," i. e. either, "incur a spiritual death," or, "become subject to "death, mortal." Moses could not mean to insinuate that they were threatened with immediate death, to die on the day of eating, for that he knew had not happened. (s) v. 24. "They," or 66 they two." It is so quoted by our Saviour, Mat. xix. 5.-Mark x. 8.-and by St. Paul, 1 Cor. vi. 16.—and Eph. v. 31.

(t) v. 24. "One flesh." It shall be their duty to have but one mind, one heart, one will; to agree in all things. The idea that man and wife are thus to be "one flesh," is perfectly

NOW

CHAP. III.

TOW the serpent (u) was more subtile than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made: and he said unto the woman, "yea, hath God said, Ye shall "not eat of every tree of the garden? 2. And the woman said unto the serpent "We may eat of the fruit of the trees "the garden: 3. But of the fruit of th "tree which is in the midst of the garde "God hath said, Ye shall not eat of "neither shall ye touch it, lest ye di 4. And the serpent said unto the woma "Ye shall not surely die. 5. For G "doth know, that in the day ye "thereof, then your eyes shall be opene "and ye shall be as Gods, knowing g " and evil." 6. And when the wom saw (x) that the tree was good for food, that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a to be desired to make one wise; she of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and also unto her husband with her, and did eat. 7. And the eyes of them were opened, and they knew that were naked and they sewed fig-les together, and made themselves apr 8. And they heard the voice of the La God, walking in the garden in the of the day and Adam and his wife themselves (y) from the presence LORD God amongst the trees of the den. 9. And the LORD God called Adam, and said unto him, "Where "thou ?" 10. And he said, "I he "thy voice in the garden: and I "afraid because I was naked; and I "myself." 11. And he said,

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intelligible; and how is the doctrine, "Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, are "God," more difficult?

(u) v. 1. "The serpent." Not the nat animal, but the great enemy of manki spoken of in Rev. xii. 9. as "the great "gon, that old ferpent, called the devil "satan." He probably assumed the ap ance of a serpent.

(x) v. 6. "Saw." The serpent prot eat of it in her sight. 2 Hales, 13.

(y) v. 8. "Hid themselves." The first sequence of a sense of guilt.

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