The Universalist. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1884-1897, 1886-12-25
GENESIS.

The first Book of the Bible is called Gene
sis, that being the word with which the Greek
translation begins, and is rendered in our
English version SIN the beginning" Genesis
is the beginning or first book of the Bible.
1t is also book of beginnings. 1t contains
an account of the creation of the world, and
the origin of life upon it, and OF man, Its
principal inhabitant. 1t describes the lnstl-
tuition of the family, the organization OF hu-
man society, and the founding of the COM
monyealth of Israeli a kingdom of GoD upon
the earth. 1t is the Oldest work in the world
that can lay any claim to being trustwor-
thy history. 1t was in existence more than
a thousand years before the birth of Herodo-
tus, the ''father of History" That it was
written by "Moses the man of GoD," who
was the first great prophet and law giver OF
Israel, as is the universal testimony of an
tiquity has not been successfully contro-
verified by modern destructive criticism.
s.The Book of Noses" 'The Book of the
Law" and "The Book of the Law of Moses"
SO frequently referred to and quoted In the
Psalms, and by the prophets and JESUS, was
substantially the same as the Pentateuch
1.-THE fye-fold book or the first five books of
our Bible. That Moses was instructed to write
a book, and that he did accordingly write
one, is made known in the book itself. (See
Exodus xvii. ID; xiv. 4, Z; xxxiv. 27; Numbers
xxxiii. 2; Deuteronomy xviii 81, I'll; xxx.
20, 81, 81; XXI. 8, "a, 26.) In the compost
ton of the book, Moses undoubtedly availed
himself of existing documents, traditions
and legends concerning the origin and pre-
vious history of the world, employing his own
prophetic endowments and knowledge. The
purpose of the book was an embodiment OF
the diyinely authorized laws and institutions
for the government of Israel, the kingdom
of GoD. The book may have been revised
and enlarged in the course of the ages by the
scribes, and ''the holy men of COP" IN the
schools of the Prophets, "who spake as they
were moved by the Holy Spirit" Ezra, who
was instrumental in reviving the Temple
uorship after the return from Babylon, dur
ing the reign of Nehemiah, B. @. 1856, may
have rewritten and revised the Book of the
Law of Moses: and the copy which he read
and caused to be interpreted to the people
Nehemiah viii. was probably identical with
the Pentateuch of our Bibles. The Book
of Genesis contains an inspired account of
the generations of Israel, the people of COP,
from the Creation to the death of the patri-
arch Jacob. The inspiration applies to the
moral purpose and qualification of the writer,
to his perception of truth and righteous
ness, and not to the form of his writings.
Bv moral is meant such a Divine quicken
inc of the natural faculties of the sacred
writer's, that, while they used their own mem
ory, reason and intellectual culture, they
we're protected from all such errors as would
;mnair the value of their writings as instru-
,ments for religious instruction and spiritual
impulse; OF, IN other words, that they were
inspired Just so far as was necessary to make
their writings profitable for doctrine, for
reproof, for correction, for instruction IN
I ghteousness." Minor errors IN science, IN