The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1866-02-05
THE SUNDAY QUESTION.
seventh and Eighth Commandments a.
Sabbath


To the Editor orthe Rvenihg 7eJegraph -
We have good authority for the existence OF the
seventh precept from tue creation. "Have ye not
read, that he, which made them at the beginning,
made them male and female" Math xix, Moses ex-
tended some INDULGENCE, out he bever allowed the
putting away of wife for every cause, but only for
impunty See Deut. xiv, L. The Pharsee belied
Moses who did not sanction divorce wi hout cause;
but II a man find woman impure and is about to
send her Off Moses orders him to "give her bill of
divorce" Tins whole thing was, however, a muni-
cipal regu uation of the Jews, and not the seventh
precept-not the la of age prescribed the
beginning TO the whoie race Indsputaolv, TO those
who believe the B, BILE marriage is moral law, and
was made at the beFmnng, and this, monogamy,
and not polygamv. Monogamy IS the original law
and the seventh prccept enfoices it. But no
mention made of It nom Paraci'e to SINAI, in the
brief history; therefore, according TO the argumen-
tation which we refuting, the seventh is not a
moral law, but only jewish ceremonial affair, and
nOtl ing to us at all.
chou shalt not steal" This eighth precopt eau
not be fouud on the record until you to the his
tory OF Joseph, who charged brethren with steal
ing his silver cup; It therefore cannot be moral law
according to the reasoning used to annihIiate the
Sabbath, Ly converting 1t int jewish ceremony.
From all these Obviously false conclusions we infer
the filsehOod of the principle from which they
5pIing and return with incr ased confidence to the
correctness OF the rine that "tbe Sabbath was
made for man" )" immediately upon his creation.
We have seen the general character of this decla
ration of Lord but there romans aspect OF 1t
not yet presented. if it ordained and established
Vrthe benefit of mankIDdi it must have been 'mmu.
Gated to man, and not ke t hidden for twenty-five
enturies, and tnen revealed and made known to
three millions Of 1ugitv,s from bondage, who, by
their very social cons. tuition, were not 10 be COM
mercal peo ple; but whose national system cOOped
them up and secluded them from minglng anon z
the nations. If there no day of sasr5d rest
appointed of God for tho benefit of mankind until
Israel reached Sinai IN the year of the world two
thousand five hundred, no could 1t be said this
dav was made for manI
Man knew nothing at all of it for near half the
present age of the world! But If you take the his
tory as 1t is and find God blessing the Sabbath day
and sanctyng it, setting it apart from the days
labor, and requiring man TO cultivate thereon his
mind and heart In the ship of the great Creator
and premOhng charity among one another; and con-
slider the deep depravlty and ufulness of man.,
which ever leads him away from God; aud therefore
the constant tendency to disregard the holy day
then you see the beau Ifu consis ency of the lam
guage, Remember the Sabbath day to keep it
holy" with all the historical facts of tle case.
The vocation OF Abrn am, and the setting apart
of his race as the peculiar ople of God, pre-
cisely Designed to secure the truth from becoming
entirely unknown and lost. So the writing of the
history OF the woras creation and of man upon the
earth, became a necessity, when the lives OF men
dwindled down rapid y after the Flood; and IN
order to preserve these oracles, they entrusted
to this CHOSEN aud segregated people, that the ages
to come might not wholly lose the knowledge OF
their own history We are now ready TO approach
the holy and awful Mount, whence this Divine me-
mortal of the original restday issued forth from he
midst of the fire. 1HEOPHILUs