by another form; for there, a hundred and fifty days the Babylonish captivity ended, was the year 536 B. C.; this, however, will be fully proved in the proper place. I am well aware that the date of the Mosaic creation has been a matter of some dispute, because the Hebrew and Samaritan texts of the Bible, and that of the Alexandrian version, all represent this differently. I am also aware that chronologists are not even agreed as to the result to be deduced from any one of these texts; but undoubtedly this disagreement must arise from their own remissness, for the same numbers, if rightly added together, must produce the same sum. But before we proceed to the computation of events, it will be necessary, in the first place, to consider the particular season, or time of the year in which the Mosaic creation was effected. And, secondly, to consider the true length and form of the Scripture years. In the first place, then, we observe that it was the general opinion of the ancients that the creation was effected about the time of the autumnal equinox; therefore, not only the Jews, but also the Egyptians, Chaldeans, Persians, Syrians, Phenicians, and Macedonians began their year at that time. That the creation of the world was effected at that time of the year is, I think, evident from Scripture; for Moses informs us that, on the third day of the creation, "the earth brought forth grass, and herb yielding seed after his kind, and the tree yielding fruit, whose seed was in itself, after his kind." Gen. i. 11, 12. Such was the state of the herbs and trees on the day of their creation; and it is both reasonable and natural to conclude that such would be their state again, after a revolution of the earth round the sun; and, according to history, such has always been their state, either in Babylonia or in the land of Canaan, about the time of the autumnal equinox. According to Josephus, the year at the flood began also at the same season;* for he says, when alluding to the flood, that this calamity happened in the six hundredth year of Noah's government (age), in the second month,† called by the Macedonians Dius, but by the Hebrews Marchesvan; for so did they order their year in Egypt, or, as L'Estrange has rendered the last clause, according to the Egyptian division of the year. Now, this account from Josephus is very agreeable to Scripture and reason; for the season of ingathering was certainly the most proper time for Noah to procure a sufficient quantity of provision for the various and numerous inhabitants of the ark. It is also certain that the years after the flood began at that time; for the feast of ingathering is said to be at the year's end, (Exod. xxiii. 16; xxiv. 22,) or, as it is in the margin," at the revolution of the year," a phrase importing that the year had revolved, and had begun anew. This feast was celebrated among the Hebrews in the first month of their civil year, but it was the seventh month of their ecclesiastical year, (Lev. xxiii. In the fourth section, he describes the feast of taber39,) which month corresponds partly to our Septembernacles to have been on the fifteenth day of the same and partly to our October in the Gregorian year. Hence | it is evident that the Mosaic creation began about the time of the autumnal equinox, and that all the most ancient years were reckoned always to begin at that season. We come now, in the second place, to consider the true length and form of the Scripture years. As to the length of the years mentioned in Scripture there can be no doubt, for since they all began about the time of the autumnal equinox, they, by consequence, must have been solar years. But with regard to the form of those years, it must be observed that, wherever in Scripture, excepting the Book of Genesis, we find the time of any event referred to, that time is always according to the Jewish form of the year. But in the Book of Genesis the time is evidently computed Antiq. book I., chap. iii. sect. 3. Whiston here observes that Josephus here truly determines that the year at the flood began about the autumnal equinox. L'Estrange's Translation, book I., chap. v. p. 39. But if this point needed any farther proof or confirmation, we might apply to the works of Josephus, where we shall find an abundance; but here I shall confine myself to the tenth chapter of his Antiquities. In the first section of that chapter he describes what the law requires for the daily sacrifices, and also what additional sacrifices are required at the new moon. In the second section he describes another addition to these, to be offered on the first day of the seventh month of the sacred year, or which was the first day of the first month of their civil year. And in the third section, he says that on the tenth day of the same lunar month (namely, the seventh of their sacred year) they fast until the evening. month, that is, the seventh lunar month spoken of be- SACRED POETRY. THE MISSIONARY'S FAREWELL TO ENGLAND. I LEAVE my fond, my native home, With lavish gifts my country crown'd! In heaven's high realm in thee I found; And glad the martyr's sufferings bore. Of opening prison to the bound; I'll pause, and "Calvary" repeat: O may that love of Christ, who died, Nought earthly in my breast remain ! By land or sea alike to save; Or Afric's scorching desert tread,- Which strews thy summit, Zion's hill! Or wander lone by Kedron's rill, Friends, lov'd, though wandering far, adieu! MISCELLANEOUS. The present State of Religion in France. The degraded state of religion in France, or rather the absence of all religion whatsoever, almost exceeds belief. Not only is it an acknowledged fact, that the Churches are abandoned almost entirely to women, but sentiments are expressed in conversation, which, though the natural effects of infidelity, appear too atrocious for an age of civilization. I have met with a gentleman who calmly maintained, that when calamity had reached a certain pitch, it was a most wise and justifiable measure to take poison, with another, who argued at consider. able length for the policy of destroying, by law, a large portion of infants, to avoid the evil of an overgrown population. The death-blow has been given to the very semblance of a Christian Sabbath, by the custom of devoting the golden hours of the Sunday morning to the review of the National Guard. The evening, alas! had long been given up to the theatre, and other profane amusements. But when things have arrived at the very worst, the dawn of a new day appears to brighten the horizon. Now first in the history of France is something like entire freedom of religion conceded to the inhabitants. Now every minister of the Gospel, of whatever denomination, has but to inform the public authorities of the place which e visits, of his intention to establish a religious service, and he is immediately placed under their protection. Hence efforts have been undertaken for the good of France, trifling indeed in their apparent importance, but blessed already with remarkable success, and the harbingers, we humbly trust, of more extensive labours. In a small town which had been visited by colporteurs, who sold Bibles and tracts, and conversed on religion with those who would hear them, so active a spirit of curiosity was awakened, that immediately on the arrival of a Protestant minister, a considerable number of persons resorted to him; and now that eighteen months are scarcely elapsed, upwards of thirty individuals have been converted from Romanism, and give evidence, by their conduct, of a conversion to true Christianity. I have myself visited this infant Church, and can bear testimony to the unfeigned piety which governs it.— Poems of a Traveller, by the Rev. JOHN HARTLEY, M. A. The Lord's Prayer.-In reference to this prayer, Montgomery beautifully observes, "How many millions and millions of times has that prayer been preferred by Christians of all denominations! So wide, indeed, is the sound thereof gone forth, that daily, and almost without intermission, from the ends of the earth, and afar off upon the sea, it is ascending to heaven, like incense and a pure offering. Nor needs it the gift of prophecy to foretel, that, although heaven and earth shall pass away,' these words of our Lord'shall not pass away," till every petition in it has been answered, till the kingdom of God shall come, and his will be done in earth as it is in heaven." CONTENTS.-Things Secret and Things Revealed. Part IV. By Rev. W. Macphail.-Biographical Sketch. Mrs Margaret Wilson, late of the Scottish Mission, Bombay. Part III.-Hebrew Gleanings. By Rev. R. Simpson, A.M.-A Discourse. By Rev. G. Burns, D.D.-Letter of a Sister to a Brother, on his Leaving Home to Pursue a Mercantile Life. Communicated by Rev. Hugh Ralph, LL.D.-The Chronology of Sacred Scripture.-Sacred Poetry." The Missionary's Farewell to England."-Miscellaneous. Published by JOHN JOHNSTONE, 2, Hunter Square, Edinburgh; J. R. MACNAIR, & Co., 19, Glassford Street, Glasgow; JAMES NISBET & Co., HAMILTON, ADAMS, & Co., and R. GROOMBRIDGE, London; W. CURRY, Junr. & Co., Dublin; and W. M'COMB, Belfast; and sold by the Booksellers and Local Agents in all the Towns and Parishes of Scotland; and in the principal Towns in England and Ireland. Subscribers in Town will have their copies delivered at their own residences regularly, by leaving their addresses with the Publisher. Subscription (payable in advance) per quarter, of twelve weeks, Is. 6d., and the other periods in proportion. with condescending favour, to terms so easy in THE GREAT DESIGN OF CREATION. themselves, connected with a reward so great, and (A Fragment.) IN maintaining the testimony which the Lord hath committed to the Church, his witnesses are required to record those wonderful works by which he hath declared his eternal power and Godhead. And of these works which declare the glory of the Lord, that of redemption is the most distinguished. This is the end of the whole system of Providence, to which the work of creation is subservient. For the manifestation of his glory, the Lord was pleased to create the world, and to impart existence to the creatures by which it is inhabited. To these, in all their various orders, capacities were communicated, wisely adapted to their respective nature, the purposes which they were intended to serve, and the place assigned them in the scale of existence. Among the creatures of almighty power, man occupied a distinguished station; by his body, formed of the earth, he was allied to the material world; by the immaterial principle which animated his body, he was related to the spiritual world. The powers with which his mind was endowed fitted him for the intelligent and active service of his Creator; and, adorned with the moral image of God, he possessed the glory of knowledge, righteousness, and unspotted holiness. As a rational creature, he was in a state of moral subjection to God, and bound to yield universal obedience to that law which was inscribed on his heart; but that this obedience might be voluntary in its nature, that it might be subjected to probation, and that new motives might bind him more strongly to the service of his Maker, the Lord was pleased to reduce the law of nature into a federal form. Adam was constituted the representative of his posterity, and a covenant was made with man, in which life and blessedness were promised as the reward of obedience, while death was announced as the inevitable consequence of infringing the positive enactment, by which his regard to the divine authority was brought to a simple and obvious test. To an arrangement so distinguished by sovereign goodness, so marked VOL. III. recommended by authority so high, man as a holy creature, and subject to the divine will, necessarily acceded. Possessed of full power to perform the condition of the covenant, and aware of the consequences of transgression, on the exercise of this ability, and on the determination of his will, the happiness or misery, the life or death of man depended. On his finished work the Lord looked with satisfaction, and pronounced it good; good in the excellence of its several parts, and in their adaptation to their end; good, as conducive to the beauty, utility, and perfection of the whole; all good, as calculated to promote the glory of the great Creator. By the world thus framed by the word of God, he furnished the intelligent creation with a permanent witness of his eternal power and Godhead. In material and animal existence, he displayed the glory of his natural perfections, his almighty power, unsearchable wisdom, and exuberant goodness. In the moral nature of man, by the image of God which adorned his soul, by the nature and authority of the law which was inscribed on his heart, by the conditions of the covenant into which he was admitted, he left not himself without a witness of his supreme authority and moral character. The perfection of created excellence was' transitory. Man, though distinguished by divine goodness, and bound to obedience by the most sacred ties, being in honour did not continue; seduced by Satan, he violated the covenant of life, and, by transgression, judgment came upon all men to condemnation. The seeming triumph of Satan over a ruined world was of short duration. His endeavour to usurp the throne, and frustrate the designs of heaven in the creation of the world, was in vain. The fatal catastrophe had been foreseen; and in the counsels of eternity it had been determined to confound the adversary, by rendering the apostasy of man the occasion of a far more glorious display of the perfections of God than had been furnished by the work of creation in all its grandeur. The Lord had never determined to commit the full manifestation of his glory to the creatures which he had formed; sin, therefore, was permitted to enter into the world; this display was reserved for the new creation, in which the beauty of his natural, moral, and gracious attributes is made great. In the counsels of peace the whole plan of redemption had been arranged. The Son was set up from everlasting to execute what, in covenant he had undertaken as the surety and representative of guilty man,-by making his soul an offering for sin to expiate contracted guilt, to obtain eternal redemption, to triumph over Satan, and to display the glory of God, in the lustre and harmony of his infinite excellencies, in such a manner as angels shall contemplate with everlasting admiration, and saints shall celebrate with unceasing rapture. For the execution of this great design the earth was formed, that it might be the theatre on which this work of wonder should be achieved. For this the heavens were created, that they might be everlasting habitations to the redeemed; and, for this the hosts of heaven seem to have been brought into existence, that they might minister for them who shall be the heirs of salvation, and unite with them on high in ascribing salvation to Him who sits upon the throne, and to the Lamb. Soon as man had sinned, and thus became obnoxious to misery, the Son of God entered on the discharge of his mediatorial work; and, in virtue of his interposition, the command was given, "deliver him from going down into the pit, for I have found a ransom.' Forbearance is exercised, and the guilty escape immediate destruction. The Lord descends with purposes of mercy, and, while man, convicted, self-condemned, overwhelmed with confusion, and filled with consternation, stood trembling before his Judge, to preserve from utter despair, and dispel the appalling terrors of consuming wrath, before the sentence was pronounced a covenant of grace was revealed, in these memorable words addressed to the serpent, "I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed, he shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel." This intimation of mercy was comprehensive. It contains a promise of deliverance from the thraldom of Satan, and the bondage of sin, with a discovery of the manner in which this was to be effected. Through the obscurity of the terms in which it was announced, our first parents must have discerned that their ruin was not irretrievable,-that their deliverance was not to be attained by themselves, but by another, that this great Deliverer was to partake of human nature, the seed of the woman, that in the accomplishment of this great work, he should suffer by the agency of the serpent, but that, through his sufferings, the power of Satan should be destroyed; and that their recovery was to be by the grace of that God against whom they had rebelled. Deliverance through divine grace, by a suffering but victorious Deliverer, was the first doctrine revealed to fallen man; and salvation through the successful sufferings of another, is the doctrine of atonement. This promise was the first dawning of that light of hope and joy, which, by successive revelations, was destined to "shine more and more unto the perfect day." It includes the plan of redemption which was to be progressively developed. On this the Church was built, and on this sure basis the faith, the hope, and consolation of the children rest. As it was the foundation, it was also the centre of all true religion, every future revelation communicated to the Church, whether in the form of promise, doctrine, precept, or institution, was illustrative of this first manifestation of mercy, built upon it, and resolvable into it. Where it was received by faith, and those ordinances appointed to represent the work of the promised seed, were observed, there true religion prospered, and the worship of the true God was maintained. Where this was neglected men continued in their apostasy from God, and their worship degenerated into idolatry. As this revelation of mercy was the sole foundation on which the hopes of the guilty could repose, it was of the utmost importance that it should be distinctly remembered. Unassisted tradition proves a hazardous channel for the conveyance of doctrine; and, to avert the consequences of forgetting a promise of so momentous concern, the rite of sacrifice was instituted, as a symbolica. memorial of the covenant promise, and a permanent type of the sacrifice of the announced Deliverer. The first doctrine delivered to fallen man, and the first instituted ordinance of worship in the Church, were peculiarly calculated to illustrate each other. The promise announced what was to come in ordinary language; sacrifice gave intimation of the same, by means of expressive symbol. In the first promise we have the origin of a long series of predictions, by which the divine person, the incarnation, the work, the sufferings, the death, and subsequent glory of the Redeemer, were made known; in the first sacrifice we have the commencement of an extensive system of types, which prefigured the mediation and atonement of the same glorious Person. Our first parents formed the Church which the Lord established in the world, the first article of their faith was the doctrine of atonement, and the first recorded act of worship was that of animal sacrifice. By faith in the divine testimony, and observing the ordinance of his appointment, they submitted to the authority and entered into covenant with God, who manifested his paternal regard, and intimated the acceptance of their sacrifice by clothing them with skins, thus furnishing them with an instructive emblem of that righteousness in which his people are clothed, obtained at the expense of life, and by which there is deliverance from condemnation, while, as a covenant God, he conferred upon them an important temporal benefit. BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH. MRS MARGARET WILSON, IN the relaxing climate of India, Mrs Wilson felt that the incessant labours in which she had been engaged since her arrival on its shores, as well as the severe family trials she had endured, were rapidly weakening her constitution. Yet such was her unwearied anxiety | to fulfil the great and important duties of the Missionary work that, although strongly recommended by her medical advisers to try the effect of a voyage to her native land, she was reluctant to quit the post which the Great Head of the Church had assigned her. As a change of air, however, and a complete rest from labour had become indispensably necessary, she agreed to accompany Mr Wilson to Surat, about a hundred and seventy miles from Bombay. The state of her mind on leaving, even for a short time, the scene of her Christian exertions, is thus described in her journal, under date 16th December 1835: "We left our own house at two o'clock. When stepping into the shigram, the Ayah, teachers, and girls of the schools came crowding around us, some uttering lamentations at our departure, others making their low and humble saláms, and a few inquiring how they should be paid in our absence....... I felt sorry at leaving the scene of our labours; and there was a feeling of deep and awful responsibility weighing upon my spirit, which I could only unburden in prayers and tears. How little have I done for these poor idolaters among whom I have lived, and to proclaim to whom the unsearchable riches of Christ is the professed object of my life! How little genuine philanthropy have I manifested for the victims of delusion and crime, or for the votaries of a delusive superstition! The recollection of God's mercies,-his unnumbered mercies to me since I sojourned amongst this people, and in this land, seemed to deepen my feelings of guilt; and, as the thought occurred to me that my strength is gone, and the sand of my hour-glass almost run out, I wished that I had another life, to give it entirely to Christ! I have another life, a life of which this is but the shadow. It is now hid with Christ, and, when I enter upon its privileges and its joys, I shall know no sin and feel no weariness. I shall serve God with unbounded liberty and delight, be permitted to see his glory_unveiled, and privileged to cast my crown at his feet, ascribing glory and honour, and dominion and power, to Him who sits upon the throne, and to the Lamb. I felt a great degree of bodily weakness and exhaustion, but the prospect of heaven was bright and cheering. Love to God, so much wanting in my soul, would make this cold dull earth something like heaven; but, alas! its bright and beautiful manifestations are often faint among God's dear children." When they had reached Surat, Mr Wilson went forward on a Missionary tour to the northern parts of Gujarat and Cutch, while Mrs Wilson remained in the city. During the short period of her residence there she received the melancholy intelligence of the death of a very dear Christian friend in Bombay-Mr Money. That her mind was deeply affected by the loss of one so highly esteemed and valued, is evident from the following extract from a letter which she wrote on the occasion to her husband. "I have sympathized much with you in what you must have felt on receiving the melancholy tidings of Mr Money's death. I know how much you loved him; I did not know the high estimation in which I held him, till death had severed the tie which bound him to us, and to his other Christian friends. But his spirit has gone to a holier region, where all is light and joy and immortality. He is now associated in our minds with the services of the upper sanctuary; | with the cloud of witnesses who bear testimony to the truth; and with Jesus, the Mediator, who has arisen as the first fruits of them that sleep, and who has shed a holy light upon the darkness of the tomb. It was delightful to think of Mr Money in life, such a combination of energy, pięty, genius, and refined feeling. But we may joy also in his death. He has gone before us to his Father's house, and his faith and patience are an encouragement to us to hold fast unto the end, that we too may receive the crown of life. . . . . We are told that Mr Money's death is the engrossing theme, both in Bombay and at the out-stations." On the 11th of February 1836, Mrs Wilson set out from Surat on her return to Bombay, and a few days after her arrival, she had the melancholy pleasure of meeting with Mrs Money, the widow of her deceased friend, and of hearing from her an account of his dying hours. The following particulars of her interview with the bereaved widow she mentions in a letter to Mr Wilson : "The account Mrs Money gave me of what he felt for some time previous to his illness was most deeply and tenderly affecting. It showed by what sure, but rapid, stages the Lord was sanctifying and preparing him for the inheritance of the saints in light. She said that prayer seemed not only to be the natural element of his soul, but his constant exercise. He was not only whole hours, but whole days, with very few intervals, engaged in it. He complained greatly of coldness in devotion, and of the iniquity of his heart,—at the very time that he seemed to her to be standing on the threshold of heaven. His desires after holiness were most intense, and he prayed that God would send disease, or disappointment, or any trial that he might see fit, if it would only be blest to bring about his entire sanctification. Mrs Money thought it was wrong of him to pray in this manner, and attempted to remonstrate with him on the subject. He said, O Mary, I am so burdened and oppressed with indwelling sin that I cannot help it. What is bodily pain? It would be a blessed state to me if it would make me love God alluded particularly to the strong desire he felt to see more.' He dwelt much on the glories of heaven, and and converse with the patriarchs and apostles. He selected Noah in particular, as one whom he wished to see. His desire to behold the Saviour was very great. On this subject, he manifested something like a holy impatience. On the first day of the year, he said to Mrs Money, that he thought this would be a remarkable year to them; and seemed to have a feeling that some great event was about to take place. He spoke very often of us, and said that he had no friend whom he loved more tenderly. In a letter from Captain Scott to Mr Williams, it is mentioned that he seemed to wish to die. Referring to a short period before the delirium commenced, Captain Scott says, he (Mr Money) lay in earnest prayer; but I could not catch his words. After some time he said, 'Oh I have been so blessed. I have had such a glorious view of eternity,-I cannot return to a sinful world. Oh no, I cannot! Is it wrong to desire that the Lord would take me away quickly?' When Mrs Money came into the room, he said, Mary, my dearest Mary, do not think that I love you or our little ones less, when I tell you, that my desire is that the Lord would remove me. O that you could see what I do! Tell my dearest mother that I died happy, it will rejoice her heart.' He spoke to Mrs Money of her great responsibility'in regard to the children,-telling her to lead them to honour Christ, to guard them against vanity, and the fear of man, which is a great snare. He dwelt much on this last subject, and tried to impress it upon all around him, saying, Of what use would youth, talents, strength, all that the world is proud of, be to me, there is but one thing that I can trust to,' alluding to the finished work of Christ. When the doctor came to him early in the morning, he said, 'Oh, I am so happy, so full of peace, I would I could make you all feel the joy that I do!' I wish I could repeat the one-half that Mrs Money told me, but you will hear it from her own lips. She was quite composed before I left her, and wished me to |