while building it, God confounded their language, so that they could not understand one another's speech.

This strange event teaches us that men, however numerous and powerful, can accomplish nothing, if God sees fit to defeat their designs. He permits wicked men, often, to go on in their foolish and sinful projects, but sooner or later, he will bring disappointment, disgrace and ruin upon them; if not in every case in this world, certainly in the next.

Fear to sin against this great and almighty Being. Undertake nothing, relying on your own strength, or in a spirit of pride and vanity. Undertake nothing without feeling your dependence on God, nor without asking his blessing upon your labors.

STORY XI.

ABRAM AND LOT.

NOAH had three sons, Shem, Ham, and Japheth. About two years after the flood,

at which time Shem was one hundred years old, he had a son named Arphaxad. Arphaxad had a son named Salah; then came Eber, Peleg, Reu, Serug, Nahor, and Terah,-fathers and sons in their order. If you will count, you will see that Shem was the great, great, great, great, great, great grandfather of Terah.

Terah had a son whose name was Abram, (the same that was afterwards called Abraham,) about whom I shall tell you some interesting things. Terah had also two other sons, Nahor and Haran. Haran, who was the eldest of the three, died before his father did, at Ur, in Chaldea, the place where he was born. He left a son, named Lot, who of course was the nephew of Abram. Abram was his uncle. While they were living in Chaldea, God in some way appeared unto Abram, and said to him, "Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father's house, unto a land that I will show thee. And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing. And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that

curseth thee; and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed."

This was the call of Abram; and it was accompanied, as you see, with a wonderful and gracious promise. From among his descendants the Saviour should come, Jesus Christ, by whom the greatest of all blessings would be bestowed upon the inhabitants of the earth, even the pardon of sin and deliverance from it. This promise was exactly fulfilled about two thousand years afterwards!

The people of Chaldea were idolaters, and the land was full of all kinds of wickedness. This was the reason why God called Abram to leave it; so that in his family, and their descendants, the knowledge and worship of the true God might be preserved.

Terah, Abram's father, was told by his son of this call of God, and was ready to obey it. "He took Abram his son, and Lot the son of Haran, his son's son, and Sarai his daughter-in-law, his son Abram's wife; and they went forth with them from Ur of the Chaldees, to go into the land of

Canaan; and they came into Haran and dwelt there."

Here Terah died, at which time Abram was seventy-five years old. Immediately after this, and in obedience to God's command, Abram set out on his long journey, to go to the distant land where God should direct him, and where himself and his descendants were to live. He knew nothing of the country, nor of its inhabitants. Many difficulties and dangers might await him. But God had commanded him to go, and that was enough. He had a strong faith in God, and in his promises, fully believing that under his care, and following his directions, both he and his family would be safe. We should all have the same strong faith in God. We should believe every thing which he has commanded, and promised, or threatened, in the Bible. Then we, too, shall be save under his guidance and protection; and he will bring us, at last, to a heavenly country, to dwell with him in perfect and endless happiness.

Abram took with him his nephew Lot, his wife Sarai, and the rest of his family, together with all that belonged to them,

and, after a long journey, came to the land of Canaan. This was between the mountains of Arabia and the Mediterranean Sea. It reached from Egypt to Phenicia, and was called Canaan from Canaan, the son of Ham. It was afterwards called Palestine, and the Land of Promise; then the Land of Judea; and lastly the Holy Land, because Christ was born there, and there lived, and died, and ascended from it to Heaven.-Get some one to show you this country on the map.

Abram visited various parts of Canaan, and was at length forced, by a severe famine, to go into Egypt to get food for himself and family. While there he had some troubles, because the king of Egypt, who was a wicked man, endeavoured to get his wife away from him. In consequence of this, God afflicted the king and the people that lived with him with great plagues, so that they were glad to send Abram and his wife, and all his family away.

After this Abram left Egypt entirely, and returning to Canaan, came to Bethel, a place where he had before been, and where

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