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something else. A raven can eat flesh-so if it saw a dead animal floating it might fly down upon it, and peck at it.

W. Ah, I did not think of that.

P. Noah sent the dove out again after seven days. I will read you a verse from the Bible.

"And he staid yet other seven days; and again he sent forth the dove out of the ark; and the dove came in to him in the evening; and, lo, in her mouth was an olive leaf pluckt off."

Ion. I suppose that the waters must then have gone down as far as the tops of the trees. Perhaps there were olive-trees growing on the mountain, as there are now.

P. There might have been. Noah stayed in the ark other seven days, and then he opened the window and sent forth the dove, but it did not return to him any more. So, in the 601st year, in the first month, the first day of the month, the waters were dried up, and Noah removed the covering of the ark and looked, and, behold, the face of the ground was dry. If you had been in Noah's place what would you have done then?

W. I should have opened the door, and have made haste out.

P. But Noah did not. He remembered that God had shut him in, and he waited patiently until he heard from God. God's message did not come for many days, but still Noah waited. It was not until the second month, and the twenty-seventh day, that God told Noah to go forth.

W. Why, that was a month and twenty-six days after the time when the dove went! It was a very long time to wait.

P. It was better to do that than make a mistake. I should think that Noah was a patient, quiet, and obedient man. He would not care to be only pleasing himself-he would think it was a much more pleasant thing to wait for God's commands, and to work out his will. Noah, and his three sons, Shem, Ham, and Japhet; and his wife, and his sons' wives, with every beast, every creeping thing, and every fowl after their kind, then went forth out of the ark. How different would the feelings of Noah and his wife be, to those of Adam. The love of God was upon them, and they felt happy in His sight. They knew that they and their sons would have to people this world again, and they looked upon it as belonging to them and their posterity.

W. And the animals too, how glad they must have been! I think they must have made a great bustle and noise coming out-they would be in such a hurry.

Ada. Yes. And the lions!-I know what they would do; they would make haste into the old woods again, and they would give a good loud roar; the forest would be such a nice place to roar in-the leaves would hang down, and be silent, and no doves would be singing there!

Ion. But the ark would be the most silent place-all the rooms would be so strange and empty. What did Noah do with the ark? P. I cannot tell you. Let us think where he and his sons would

go to.

When they felt the fresh breezes which blew across this strangely

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altered world, and saw the cheerful look of the plains, covered with bright green, their hearts would be glad, and they would be thankful to God that they had been spared. They would think to themselves— "We shall be glad to live here a little longer; for, all the rest of our lives we will serve the mighty God who has preserved us!"

L. But where would they live, papa? I suppose that they would begin to build a house directly.

P. No. We read that they first built an altar unto the Lord, and took of every clean beast, and of every clean fowl, and offered burntofferings on the altar. I once saw a picture of the old man, Noah, offering the sacrifice. He had made a square place with stones, and on the top of the stones was some animal which he had just killed with a knife that he had in his hand. There was some wood, too, on the altar, which I suppose he was going to set light to, and burn the animal. In the picture, Noah was standing on some high ground; and his three sons, Shem, Ham, and Japhet, with their wives, were standing around him. In the distance stood the ark on a hill, and the sight of that ark

W. Did they ever walk round it, outside, to look at it?

P. I dare say that they did; and the sight of that ark which they had lived in, and the country which they were to live in, would make them all feel grateful. They would think again-" God has taken care of us for a long time; so, even before we find another resting-place, we will take care of our duty to Him, and will thank Him."

You may, by reading the text, find that God was pleased with Noah's sacrifices; and He said, I will not curse the earth any more for man's sake. He then made this kind promise to Noah-a promise which has been faithfully kept:

"While the earth remaineth, seedtime and harvest, and cold and heat, and summer and winter, and day and night, shall not cease."

You may read, too, that God blessed Noah and his sons. He told them to be fruitful, and multiply, and fill the earth with people. He also made an agreement with them, or covenant, as it is called. By this covenant God promised that He would not destroy the earth again by a flood, and He gave them a sign in the heavens which people might often see, and thus remember His promise. This sign is frequently seen by men now, and will be seen by men even to the end of the world. Do you know what it is?

Ion. I don't, papa. Was it a star?

P. No, it was a beautiful bow of seven different colours, which stretched across the heavens from one part of the horizon to another.

This bow is caused by the shining of the sun on drops of rain; so it is called the Rainbow. As it is seen in the heavens after a shower of rain, it is a very good sign to help us to remember the Deluge. The people who lived soon after the flood would be very glad to see it, for at every shower of rain they might begin to fear least it should become a flood; but the rainbow would remind them of God's promise, and would quiet their fears. Whenever the Jews see a rainbow, it is their custom to bless God.

This covenant which God made with Noah must have pleased him

very much. His children, too, would learn how good a thing it is to be thankful, and to give praises, and to offer sacrifices to God, even before we attend to our own selves; and so also, dear children, may you learn something.

1st, Try and grow up to be quiet, patient, humble men, like Noah, loving to be called the servants of God.

2nd, Learn something from the sacrifice. I said in our last lesson that JESUS CHRIST is your ark to save you from this world's cares; and you may know, too, that Jesus Christ is your sacrifice. Now, you can only obtain God's pardon and love through His merits—and the only sacrifice you can make is the sacrifice of yourself.

L. How are we to do that, papa?

P. You may learn from Noah. Noah, perhaps, wished to build a house to please himself. Noah also ought to build an altar to please God. Which did he do first?

W. He built the altar,

P. Yes; he sacrificed his own wishes-he made them wait while he paid the gratitude he owed to God. He did his duty first. This is one way to sacrifice yourself;-sacrifice your wishes to God! There are many other ways of sacrificing yourselves. Try, dear children, to find them out; and, every day, as you rise in the morning, think these thoughts

"God was as kind to me yesterday as he was to Noah. God will be as kind to me to-day. I will thank him now, as Noah did; and all day long I will be ready to sacrifice my wishes to Him, to show Him how thankful I am.

Centh Sunday.

THE TOWER OF BABEL.

"And the whole earth was of one language, and of one speech. And it came to pass, as they journeyed from the east, that they found a plain in the land of Shinar; and they dwelt there.

"And they said one to another, Go to, let us make brick, and burn them throughly. And they had brick for stone, and slime had they for mortar. And they said, Go to, let us build us a city, and a tower whose top may reach unto heaven; and let us make us a name, lest we be scattered abroad upon the face of the whole earth. And the Lord came down to see the city and the tower, which the children of men builded. And the Lord said, Behold, the people is one, and they have all one language; and this they begin to do: and now nothing will be restrained from them, which they have imagined to do. Go to, let us go down, and there confound their language, that they may not understand one another's speech. So the Lord scattered them abroad from thence upon the face of all the earth: and they left off to build the city. Therefore is the name of it called Babel; because the Lord did there confound the language of all the earth and from thence did the Lord scatter them abroad upon the face of all the earth."-GEN. xi. 1-9.

W. Here, Lucy, is a new Bible picture to look at.

Come and see. L. What a great tower this is, in the middle! But, look at the people. They all seem to be going away from it, and they are going in parties, in different directions-some to the north, and some to the east.

Ion. And do you not see that some of them have gone a long way already? There is a long string of people going over the mountain in the distance. I think I know something about this tower and the building of it; but papa will tell us the story.

P. I will do so, and afterwards you shall read the account as it is written in the Scriptures.*

Let us think of the world a hundred years after the time of the flood. As old Time flew on, the people multiplied again; the plains began to be covered with sheep and oxen; houses were built instead of tents, and the young and old were at work as their fathers had been before the flood. Some were making instruments of brass and other metals, as Tubal Cain had done. Others were hunting, ploughing, or making bricks; but I am sorry to say that not many of them appear to have been worshipping God.

L. Would they forget God so soon, papa, after the flood?

P. I am afraid so, from what followed. Perhaps they were too busy. If men have too much to do, and not enough time to think about God, bad thoughts will come into their minds. Directly they forget God,

bad thoughts come.

It seems that they forgot God's goodness, which is the same as forgetting God Himself; for, although God had said that He would not drown the world again, they were afraid to trust Him.

Then came the bad thoughts. They said to one another, "Go to, let us build us a city and a tower; and let us make us a name, lest we be scattered abroad upon the face of the earth." While many thought, perhaps "God may change His mind, and may try to drown us; then, if the waters should come again, we can climb this high tower and be safe."

L. That was very foolish, because they could not be safe anywhere, unless God wished it.

P. But it was more wicked to be afraid that God would not keep His word. Noah was alive then, and saw the changing minds of the people. Oh, how sorry he must have been! Perhaps he would go about from one to another, and say to them, "Do not forget God!" With tears in his eyes, he would say, "Remember-God never changes! Remember-God is good!" But, when he heard of this bad plan, how must it have grieved his heart!-he would cry to them once more, "Oh! trust in God your Father. Remember-God is good!"

But ah, no! It was not easy to stop the evil, now that it had begun. Their hearts grew prouder, and they thought to themselves,

* It is suggested to parents and teachers that these lessons should, generally, be imparted to the children before reading the passages selected, the object of the lessons being, to give such explanations, descriptions, and development of principles, as may form a fit introduction to the reading of the Sacred Word, and may increase the child's interest therein,

"We can build!—we can build a very high tower-a tower wonderful to see! We would rather trust to our own selves than to God! If we depend upon ourselves, we shall know that we are safe."

Ion. What proud people, papa! But there are no people so foolish, in these days.

P. Yes, Ion, there are. Mind that you are not one of them. There are many people who build a tower of Babel for themselves-a great tower, which will end in confusion.

L. Tell us of some, papa, please.

P. There are some people who think to themselves, "We know a way to heaven-we know how to get up there, and be safe. We will do many good works to our fellow-creatures; we will be kind and good, so as to be fit to enter heaven! We will depend upon our own selves.” Poor people! they do not remember God; they forget that there is only one way to be saved. They forget that Jesus Christ has said, "I am the way. By me if any man enter in, he shall be saved."

L. And in another part of the chapter it is said, "He that climbeth up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber."

P. That is true. Now let us think of the tower which is drawn in the picture. Noah could not prevent the people from building it. There was a man called Nimrod, "a mighty hunter," who urged the people to build, and his word was stronger than Noah's. Everywhere people talked of the great tower; and thousands came to work. On they went, like mad people, sparing no pains to make a wonderful place. All day they would work in great crowds, while the wide plain of Shinar was perhaps covered with women, children, and men busy in making bricks. "Ah!" they would say, we will make thick and strong walls, for instead of stone we will have brick, and we will make our mortar of pitchy stuff and slime, so that the water may never soak through! What thick and wonderful walls we will make! We shall get on very fast, for all the world is at work!”

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W. But all the world is not strong enough to fight against God.

P. No. No one would ever think of such a thing. I do not suppose that they were so foolish as to think that. The truth is they did not think at all-they only talked about the tower. How delighted they would be! "Come!" they would say to each other, "sing and make merry! Come! look, and see how tall it is!" So, every day, they made more bricks, and baked them, while crowds of bricklayers came to fetch them, and plastered them on to the walls. Merrily they worked together, and talked of their work saying, “Look at the walls, they are getting higher still!"

But, alas! poor people, they were wasting their labour. They had forgotten the most important part of the undertaking.

W. What part was that, papa?

P. The foundation. They had not begun it properly; so it was very weak,-like a house built on the sand.

L. But the plain was not sandy, I suppose? And I suppose that they made a stone foundation?

P. Very likely; but it wanted a stonger foundation than that. The true foundation of every undertaking is the blessing of GOD. If ever you

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