The National tribune. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1877-1917, 1886-12-30
SUNDAY MEDITATION.
Practical Duties Taught By 4 Study OF the Inter,
national Sunday school Lesson Appointed for
Jan. q, Gen. I-6: Lib

our former lesson related to the making OF
Adam and Eve on Saturday of the first week
OF the year A. NJ, 1901 Il. G. 1t also account
ed for the origin of the Sabbath. 1t is evident
Eye was made on the same day on which Adam
was created. God would not have pronounced
the words very good" on the sixth day, as
i: 81 says he did, had things been so incom-
plete as they would have been without her.
Then V. % declares, male and female created
he them" Compare s.: /, 2, which show Adam
and Eve both the product of the same day.
God himself said, 1T is not good that the man
should be alone" (2:19.) But in 1:3l, he
hnds everything very good" Chapter tells
OF the Garden Of Eden, which last word means
pleasant, delightful. The Septuagent renders
Eden by the word Paradise, meaning a choice
garden or park. Eve was made in the Garden.
The exact location Of the Garden has never
been fixed. Seeking it, we are situated some
thing as Bunyan represents the children search
ing for the House Beautiful" Butler, in
Hud'brdS, speaking Of his hero. shows how
futile IS our effort TO locate Eden:
He knew the seat of Paradise,
Gould tell IN what degree IL lies;
And as he was disposed, could proyeit
Below the moon or else above it."
Paradise has been located in Ceylon, Africa,
Armenia, Babylon. Persia, Assyria, Arabia,
MesOpotamia, somewhere along the Ganges, in
Iartary, China, some point under the equator,
IN Palestine, in Europe So theories would
land US III Africa, Asia and Europe, and some
have verify believed we must seek Eden in
America. 1t had been thought to have been in
the moon, in the third heaven or the fourth. 1t
has been placed on the earth, in the earth, and
under the earth. A strong advocate for the
North pole has recently written q volume to
support his hypothesis, and its reading has
made quite number of converts to the theory.
SO our knowledge ON this subject is quite in
definite. We can approach little toward the
location by statement of Moses: A river
went out of Eden to water the Garden, and
from thence it was parted into four heads"
Now, it must have had relation to four rivers
or streams. The names of the rivers are given ::
Pison, GihOn, Hiddekel (Tigris) and Euphrates.
The last two are well-kuOwn streams. IL is
thought the Pison is the same as that called
the Phasis. and the Gihon corresponds with the
Arexes. All these can be considered as having
common source. So the general opinion is
that Eden was in the mountainous region of
Armenia Eminent scholars locate it at the
head of the Persian Gulf. From Eden origin
ated the ancient heather idea Of the imaginary
Gardens OF the HesperidcS, in which all the
trees bore gold. Hence also the Gardens of
Adonis. Hence also the sacred gardens set
apart Tor devotion, proving in some cases pro-
fame, in others innocent
We cannot tell how long our first parents re-
NAMED in the Garden. Ii was during innO-
cency. No data are furnished by which to fix
the period. The temptation eliminated in the
fall and expulsion before the birth of a child.
1t Is not supposed Adam and Eve withstOOd the
temptation for any great length of time. All
commentators fix the fail within the first year.
IL is plain Adam was not with Eve during
the special temptation by the serpent. Had
he been on the spot, he would surely have in
terposed some remark during the stran &c con-
versation between his wife and the tempter.
Satan tempted Eve and Eve tempted Adam.
The tempter of Eve was a beast. (V. ~
From '. Ia we see il was biped probably.
Since its form was changed to that of a reptile,
1t will always be impossible to determine what
it was. We would think the name serpent
applicable to it after the temptation rather
than before. 1t seems that Satan being spirit
was forced to incarnate himself in form so as
to appear to Eve and address her. He proba-
| bly, selected the beast referred to in " 1 and
used it. Ii had vocal organs which could be
used by Satan. Under the influence Of the
evil one it walked and talked. OF itself it pos
sessed great subtlety, sagacity. One would
think the beast somewhat responsible for be-
coming party to the sin of tempting Eve,
since 1t was punished. (V. H. But though
| the animal were not at fault, it would be no
injustice for God to change its form. reducing
Its powers, and lowering it in the rank of ami
mails. God can form or reform creatures rs he
chooses. No one would fault God for convert
ing fowl into reptile. His manner of be-
ginning his conversation would cause US to
! think his talk with Eve reported in the lesson
was the continuance of former interview.
! Otherwise the beast must be believed to have
approached Eve in a very abrupt way. She
did not seem surprised at his appearance or
| propositions. Perhaps there had been on prior
occasions more or less familiarity on innocent
| subjects. This would be policy on the part of
satan He could gain access and confidence.
Eve would suspect strange circumstance.
The serpent probably first ate, saying: See.
| do not die. You will not" He must have
eaten so rs TO convince Eve the fruit was good
| and harmless. He was too wise to tell Eve
that God had not forbidden the eating from
that tree. lie simply denied the results threat
ened. Satan's method of quoting Gods order
as 10 the trees was cunning. He wanted TO
| make the command seem offensive. God put
II in the form of a grant or allowance, saying /:
"Of all the trees thou mayest freely eat, but"
etc. Satan Stated it in the form of a prohibit
ton, so as tocause it TO seem OdiOuS. ". ~
Many trees were in the Garden. One sus-
tanned Adam aad Eve with q nourished i'm
| mortality, and so called the tree of life. !"
From one they were forbidden To cat. 1t was
in the midst Of the park. 1t was edible, beau
| tiful and iSc-making. corresponding to the
last of the flesh lust OF the eyes and the pride of
life. II John, 2: l6.) The circumstance that the
a
from the fact they were constantly eating from
trees without injury. Some less familiar thing
might have caused awe and made them more
apprehensiye. The fact the test was q tree
| made the sin the less excusable. They had
trees enough, and why not lot one alone? Had
they been hungry aud the fruit of the forbid
den tree their only food, they might have had
an apology for disObedience.
What was the object of the temptation ?
Gods purpose was good. His intent was not
mans fall but his fixedness in moral character.
| The Creator could have made man mere piece
of mechanism. so constructed that he could have
acted only in certain line. But God wanted
an order of beings moro akin to himself. lie
made man "a moral agent, capable Of doing good
or evil. lie was To be good only because he could
| be evil. Temptation is not sin. Inducement
| is not cOmpusiOn. Yielding to temptation
weakens; resisting. strengthens. Free moral
| agency involves the possibility of sin in the
form of disobedience. With all its contingent
| cies yea, even with all results in the forms oil
| guilt aud punishment, We yet rejoice God did
not so make us that We could not violate law.
| Eve understood plainly Gods order, giving
| freedom TO eat of all bat one tree. She put the
| case even stronger than God did, asserting
Neither shall We touch it," God did not say
( that rs is evident from 2: IL. Some think she
wanted to carry the idea God was too strict
! She also said lest" (3:l3,) as though the mat
| ter were questionable. She seemed "oyermueh
/ righteous" Zee, 7:l6) Jewish writers de-
| clare that when Eve said, neither touch it, >
| the serpent pushed her against il, exclaiming
See, thou has touched it, and art still alive
thou mayeSt therefore safely eat of the fruit
for surely thou shalt not die" She looked al