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They might really and honeftly find, (without any ideas of undue fubordination, or oppreffion, having ever yet exifted in the world,) an advantage of a very fubftantial kind, in fuch an union; an advantage, leading them to hopes of improvement, both of their faculties, and of their fituation.

And the history so far confirms fuch ideas, that the immediate defcendants of Cain, are reported to have been the inventors, or at leaft teachers, of various valuable arts :-of tentmaking, - of musick, of extracting metals from the earth,-and of artificial works in brass and iron

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And here again it may be obferved, that for fuch works to be interesting, and ufeful, there must have been more dwellers upon the face of the earth, than either the defcendants of Adam, or of Cain, could amount to :—whilst at the fame time the very name of a particular land, Naid, (or Nod,) feems to intimate, that there must have been fome previous inhabitants, to allow of its having any name at all.

To refer, once more, to the ideas of thofe defcendants from early Patriarchs, the Bramins, who have unquestionably, (though en

*Genefis, ch. iv. ver. 20, 21, 22.

larged

tangled with much corruption,) preserved many moft ancient and true patriarchal traditions; they would readily affent to the idea, that Cain bad debafed himself by marrying into an inferior CAST; and that therefore, he thenceforth went and lived with those inferior cafts.

And truly the Holy Writings of Mofes fpeak much the fame language; not only in this inftance, but in what follows:

For one of the next pieces of history we meet with therein, is,-that,

Genefis, ch. vi.

Ver. 1. It came to pass, when men began to multiply on the face of the earth, and daughters were born unto them,

Ver. 2. That the fons of God faw the daughters of men, that they were fair, (or pleasant, and agreeable ;) and they took them wives of all which they chofe.

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very

Now, who the fons of God were, seems to evident *;-becaufe Adam is in Scripture called a fon of God:-they were, therefore, we may conclude, the defcendants di

* Luke, chap. iii. ver. 38.

realy

rectly from Adam, and of Seth ;-of the original unadulterated family of the most excellent clafs, or fpecies.

And this idea seems to be greatly confirmed, by what is fo remarkably said, concerning the birth of Seth,

Ver. 3.

Chap. v..

that Adam begat a Son, IN HIS

OWN LIKENESS, after his IMAGE.

— κατὰ τὴν εἰδέαν αυτᾶ, καὶ κατά τὴν εικόνα αὐτό.

Which is not faid on the birth of Cain.

This idea alfo is ftill further confirmed, by what is faid concerning his birth, and that of his fon Enos: in

Chap. iv.

Ver. 25. That Eve bare a fon, and called bis name Seth-for GOD, faid fhe, hath appointed me another feed inflead of Abel, whom Cain flew.

Ver. 26. And to Seth, to him alfo there was born a fon; and he called his name Enos:

THEN BEGAN MEN TO CALL UPON THE NAME OF THE LORD.

Or,

Or, as the Septuagint has it:

Ver. 26. Οὗτος ἤλπισεν ἐπικαλεῖσθαι τὸ ὄνομα ΚΥΡΙΟΎ ΤΟΥ ΘΕΟΥ.

Ver. 26. This man entertained hope in calling upon THE NAME OF THE LORD GOD, or, that the Name of THE LORD, THE GOD, fhould be called upon.

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Which expreffes both his hope in the promife of GOD, concerning THE MESSIAH ;and alfo the distinguishing character, fomewhat renewed in Seth, and Enos, of the Sons of God. Whilft at the fame time, it may be observed, that in this verfe, the Septuagint, ás well as our Tranflation, calls these persons by that very name of ANOTHER SEED, distinct from Cain, and IN LIEU OF ABEL, whom Cain flew

Σπέρμα ἕτερον ἀντὶ ̓́Αβελ,

The Tranflators of the Septuagint feem to have been fo fully aware, that a fuperior class of beings was intended to be defcribed, as in contradiftinction to the race of men in general, by the expreffion in the fecond verfe of the fixth chapter,-that, instead of using the expreffion fons of God, they even tranflate VOL. III.

H

the

the words, by ufing the expreffion yleλot, angels-which is fometimes, though very rarely, used in other places to fignify Men of God, or Prophets; as has been fhewn in the preceding pages *.

The words of the LXX are:

Chap. vi.

Ver. 2. Ιδόντες δὲ οἱ ἄγγελοι τ8 Θε τὰς θυγατέρας τῶν ἀνθρώπων, ὅτι καλαί εἰσιν, ἔλαβον ἑαυτοῖς γυναῖκας ἀπὸ πασῶν ὧν ἐξελέξαντο.

And the Angels of God fecing THE DAUGHTERS OF MEN that they were pleasant, took unto them wives of all whom they chofe.

But though we may perceive, plainly enough, who thefe perfons, the fons of God, were:- yet who were the daughters of men? Certainly not the daughters of Adam. For if Cain himself married a daughter of Adam; -or if any of thefe now named were. defcended from any other imaginary daughters, or fons of Adam, befides Cain, and Abel, and Seth, they were undoubtedly as much deferving of the appellation of the daughters

Vol. I. p. 271, 272, 273, octavo edition, and P. 181, quarto.

180,

of

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