The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1869-09-27
foarY-sscosn STREET REFORMED PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH
Sermon by Rev. DR.. ScOtt-The First Com.
mn udmeut.

Sermon by Rev. DIR. ScOtt-The First Conn
mandment.
The Rev. Dr. W. A. Scott delivered one OF his series
OF Sunday evening lectures last night to rather
limited audience on the subject OF the First CON-
mandment He said, in commencing his lecture,
that he would follow the order Of the catechsm and
divide the subject into three parts namely-what is
the commandments What does II requires and what
1t forbds The third Of the twentieth chapter
of Exodus the explanation OF what is required may
be found:-"ThOu shalt have none other Gods
but me-" This covers and precedes all
that follows. They are not called the ten
commandments In the original Hebrew,
but the ten words, and the best commentators say
that they were written two tablets Of stone and
on both sides, six commandments on one ana four
on the other. Tradition also supports this view.
The preface sets forth the authority and the doc
trlne in the first commandment Is understood to be
contained in all the rest. BY putting the first and
second together some writers make but nine COM
mandments although there is abundant evidence
that ten were intended. This Is entirely wrong, and
is opposed to the Hebrew text. In the Roman
Catholic version the second Is absent and words
put IN as explanatory. This arrangement Ia accord
ing 10 ST. Augustne's Interpretation; but he not
inspired. 1t verhes the remarkable saying OF that
lustrlous divine-'It Is possible may be In error
out cannot be herelic.n In fact he broke the rule
Of the Church himself But Notwithstanding the DIFF
ferences Of translatOrs and commentators the whole
OF the Ten Commandments are preserved IN their
purity as God gave them; they are ali to us and all
sufficient. The reverend lecturer unable to say
why the commandments were written In ten, neither
more nor less, but 1t was doubtless for o wise pur-
pose. The language OF the first commandment shows
that 1t was written for the understanding Of Eastern
people. 1t indicated an intimacy and acquaintance
between the Israelues and their Goa. They stood in
peculiar relationship. To this day the monarch Of
Japan is never mentioned by his subjects by name,
and death Is the punishment for those who do so
without a special privilege. The TACT that man
saoFa sn RH es4sw
Arabic for ruler and dispenser God can have
there nams by w ssas bis sn auaess snS
attributes can be fifty designated. The name Cod,
which is often differently applied In other countries
His greatness, His goodness and His power. We use
1t to express our sense OF the supremely good the
supremey great Plato called the soul by the Greek
word which, being translated means God, and also
1.-THE soul Of the GOd.n The ancents believed that
there was but one Supreme Giver OF good. The
Of e oa
showed an acquaintance, q familiarity between the
Godhead and the chosen people. He was their Cod
commandment Is, "there snail not be anywhere any
god but Me-" great theological question depended
on the correctness Of the Greek and Chaldean read
God was the God OF the Israelites only and the
other that He was universal God. The first and
second terms should not be confolnded. God meant
the Supreme Being; gods are objects on which our
affections are placed. We must have God, and 1t
is imperative to believe In Him. 1t is held by some
that light and nature, In the absence OF revelation,
is sufficient to give us an idea of God but this was
an erroneous aud extreme opinion Scripture proves
that the inductve argument. from effect to cause,
length the absurdities and faacies OF positive phi
osophy, and combated them the lecturer eloquently
denounced such cold, cheerless themes. The laws
OF nature teach us nothing without revelation. Not
to recognize God rs to insult the intelligence OF man.
kind. 1t is our duty to love God to fear God and to
God, perish