versities of Cambridge and Oxford." It was begun by royal authority A.D. 1607, and completed in 1611. The Bible, first printed. The Bible was first printed in English by Miles Coverdale, a native of Yorkshire, who completed his work A.D. 1535, and dedicated it to King Henry VIII. It was printed at Zurich, and introduced into the parish churches of England and Wales, A.D. 1537. The Bible was divided into chapters and paragraphs by Cardinal Hugo de Sancho Charo, about A.D. 1240. In 1557 appeared the first edition of a New Testament in the English language, divided into verses. PERIOD I. CHAPTER I. THE CREATION. GENESIS I. The first book of the Bible. The First Book of the Bible * is called Genesis; it comprises a period of about 2360 years. Why it is so named. It is so named, because it contains an account of the birth or creation of the world. Its contents. Its contents are: The creation of the world; the fall of man; the deluge; the dispersion of mankind; and the lives of the patriarchs. How the world was created. The world was created by the word of God in six days: (1.) On the first day God created light; *From the Greek yéveos, birth. (2.) On the second day the air ; (3.) On the third day He separated the land from the sea, and created flowers, herbs, and trees; (4.) On the fourth day He created the sun, moon, and stars; (5.) On the fifth day the fishes and birds, both of which were made "out of the waters." (6.) On the sixth day God created reptiles, the beasts of the earth, and man,—all of which were made "out of the dust of the earth.” What God did on the 7th day. On the seventh day God "ceased from His work," and ordained it to be a Sabbath, or day of rest for ever. The Sabbath is observed by Christians on the first day of the week instead of the seventh, in commemoration of the Resurrection of Christ on that day. A.M. 1.] CHAPTER II. THE FALL OF MAN. B.C. 4004. GENESIS III. The first man. The name of the First Man was Adam. Adam in Hebrew means red, earthy. St. Paul says; "The first man is of the earth, earthy." 1 Cor. xv. 47. How made. His body was formed from the dust of the ground, into which God breathed the breath of life. Where placed. The man was placed by God in Paradise, the beautiful garden of Eden, to "dress it and to keep it." Eden is generally supposed to have been in Armenia, near the source of the rivers Tigris (Hiddekel), Euphratés, Phasis (Pison), and Araxés (Gihon.) Gen. ii. 10-14. The two chief Two remarkable trees grew trees thereof. in the middle of this garden,-one [B.C. 4004. called the Tree of knowledge of good and evil, and the other the Tree of life. Man's food in Eden. Man's food in Paradise was the fruit of the garden, any of which he might freely eat, except that which grew on the Tree of knowledge. knowledge. The tree of The TREE of KNOWLEDGE was for a test of Adam's obedience. a test. How it was So long as he abstained from it, he would know how good a thing it is to obey God, but the moment he tasted of it, he would know to his sorrow the evil of disobedience. Tradition says the tree of knowledge was one of the apple species, but there is no authority in Scripture for this hypothesis. The tree of life, The TREE of LIFE was so why so called. called, because if Adam eat thereof he would live for ever. Adam alone. Adam was alone in the garden, till God made a woman to be his companion. The woman, how made. The Woman was made from |
