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Wisdom of God, with all the tender love DISC and affectionate concern of a parent, inviting men to the substantial joys and unfading pleafures of immortality, in the house of salvation. Again we are presented with the Tree of Death, and the Tree of Life. From Solomon let us pass to St. Paul. "To be carnally minded is death ; "but to be spiritually minded is life. If "ye live after the flesh, ye shall die; but if

ye through the Spirit do mortify the "deeds of the body, ye fhall live'." Behold once more the Trees of Death and Life. Such, in good truth, is the face of things every where offering itself to view; fuch is the conteft inceffantly carrying on in this prefent World, which, on the one hand, entices the children of Adam, by giving themselves up to it's enjoyments, to tafte the Tree of Death; while the Redeemer, on the other, ftill continues to cry aloud by his word, "To him that over

"cometh will I give to eat of the Tree of "Life."

DISC. The Tree of Knowlege was defigned to

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be the test of Adam's obedience, the subject matter of his trial. The World, with it's defirable objects, is the test of our obedience, the fubject matter of our trial, whether we will make it our chief good, or prefer the promise of God to it. Thus the trial of Abraham was, whether he would quit his country and kindred, and yield up his only fon in obedience to the divine command, trufting to a recompence in reverfion. The trial of Job was, whether he would ftill ferve God, when deprived of his poffeffions, his family, and his health. After this fort was our Lord Jefus Chrift himself proved by the most powerful incitements of the human paffions. Of the Tree of Knowlege Satan tempted him to put forth his hand and take and eat, that the fecond Adam might be tried after the example of the first. The difciples also are tried in like manner with their bleffed mafter. They are inftructed to renounce the World, and to deny themfelves which is only the original prohibi

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tion in other words: " Of the Tree of DISC. "the Knowlege of good and evil thou "fhalt not eat."

The apparent qualities of the forbidden tree are represented to have been these: It feemed " good for food, and fair to the

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fight, and a tree to be defired to make "one wife.” It is remarkable, that St. John, laying before us an inventory of the world, and all that is in it, employs a division entirely fimilar. "Love not the "world," fays he, "neither the things that "are in the world. If any man love the "world, the love of the Father is not in "him. For all that is in the world, the "defire of the flesh, and the defire of the "eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the "Father, but is of the world. And the "world paffeth away, and the desire there

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of; but he that doth the will of God "abideth for ever "." Here is a picture of the fatal Tree, full blown, with all it's temptations about it, drawn, by the pencil

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DISC. of truth, in it's original and proper colours. The expreffions tally, to the minutest degree of exactness. The defire of the "flesh" answers to "good for food;" the "defire of the eyes" is parallel with "fair "to the fight;" and the "pride of life" correfponds with "a Tree to be defired to "make one wife." The oppofition between this Tree and the other is ftrongly marked. " If any man love the World, the love of "the Father is not in him." And we are informed, that one leads to death, the other to life. "The world paffeth away, and "the defire thereof; but he that doth the "will of God abideth for ever." Precisely conformable, in every circumftance, was the threefold temptation of the second Adam. He was tempted to convert stones into bread for food, to fatisfy the defire " of the flesh;" he was tempted with the kingdoms of the world and the glories of them, to fatisfy "the defire of the eyes;' he was tempted to work a miracle on the pinnacle of the temple, and to fhew himfelf moving aloft through the air in the

fight of the multitude, to difplay

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pride of life." He repelled the tempter, as our firft parents should have done, and as we their children fhould do now, inftead of judging according to appearances, by a firm and refolute appeal to the Revelation of God.

Thus, whether we confider the Tree of Knowlege as to it's nature, it's fituation, it's defign, or it's qualities, it feems to have been a very apt and fignificant emblem of the Creature, or the World, with it's delights and it's glories, the objects opposed, in every age, to God and his word. To reject the allurements of the former, and obey the dictates of the latter, is the knowlege of good and evil, and the true wisdom of man. So that the forbidden Tree in Paradife, when the divine intentions concerning it are explained from other parts of Scripture, teaches the important leffon more than once inculcated by Solomon, and which was likewise the result of holy Job's enquiries: "Behold, the fear of the

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