29 And he called his name Noah, saying, This same shall comfort us concerning our work and toil of our hands, because of the ground which the LORD hath cursed. m 30 And Lamech lived after he begat Noah five hundred ninety and five years, and begat sons and daughters: 31 And all the days of Lamech m ch. 3. 17. & 4. 11. tain by the inspired declaration, Heb. 11. 5, that 'by faith Enoch was translated that he should not see death.' The Chaldee version renders the passage, 'He appeared not, and yet the Lord killed him not.' cordance with the fact. The prediction thus understood he maintains has been verified by the event; that the earth from the time of the flood was in a good degree restored from the curse laid upon it at the fall, and is still enjoying the effect of the blessing bestowed up may doubtless be urged against this view of the subject, yet if the prediction be construed as announcing a gradual amelioration of the state of the earth to be effected through this lapse of many ages, the proposed interpretation may be considered as less liable to exception. For it is certain that the invention of the arts and implements of husbandry, and the improvements made by one age upon another rendered the toil and work ofmen's hands less and less burdensome. By the art of taming and managing the beasts of the field, and pressing them into our service 29. Called his name Noah, saying, &c. The original terms for Noah (on Noah. Very specious objections noach, rest) and comfort ( nahham, to comfort or refresh) have so much resemblance to each other that we are probably to regard the language as an instance of that paranomasia, or play upon words, which is of such frequent occurrence in the sacred writers, and of which a striking parallel is to be noted Gen. 9. 27. The name was doubtless bestowed by the prompting of the spirit of prophecy. But in what precise sense the prediction was to be fulfilled in No-in every department of agriculture, have ah, is a point not very easily determined. The opinion of Bp. Sherlock is that the curse upon the earth inflicted in consequence of Adam's sin had, in connection with the progressive in--a prerogative especially secured in the crease of corruption and crime, been grant made through Noah, chap. 9. 2 growing more and more severe ever -the most laborious part of the work is since the fall, so that the work and transferred upon them, and by that toil necessary to raise from the ground means man's dominion over them se a sufficient sustenance for life had be- far recovered. By the improvements come an almost intolerable burden. also which in later times have resulted And he supposes that the words of La- from an investigation of the laws of mech refer to a general expectation motion and a dexterous application of that by the intervention or instrumen- the mechanical powers, one man can tality of some distinguished personage now perform with ease what formerly the rigour of the curse was to be great- surpassed the united efforts of many, ly abated, and the earth restored in a and a great part of the labour of life measure to its primitive fertility and ease has been thrown back upon inanimate of cultivation. This personage he con-matter itself. In attributing such an ceives that Lamech, under divine sugges-import, however, to the name Noah, we tion, recognised in his new-born child, are not to conceive of him as the effiand bestowed upon him a name in ac- cient agent by whom such a signal Of 1. And it came to pass, &c. A more exact rendering of the two first verses is the following ;-'And it came to pass when men began to multiply on the face of the earth, that daughters were born unto them, And the sons of God saw the daughters of men that they were fair,' &c. The same construction in the original occurs 1 Sam. 13. 22. Josh. 17. 13. 2 Kings 3. 5, in all which cases 'and' is rendered that.'- -T When men began to multiply. Men had multiplied long before this, for it was now above 1500 years since the creation; the meaning therefore is, when the human race had greatly multiplied. Heb. 'when the Adam began to multiply.' 32. And Noah begat Shem, Ham, and Japheth. That is, began to beget; for his three sons were not all begotten or born in one year. these, Japheth was undoubtedly the eldest, and therefore born in the five hundredth year of Noah's life. And as Shem begat Arphaxad two years after the flood when he was one hundred That is, corrupt men, men paryears old, ch. 11. 10, he must have taking in an eminent degree of the nabeen born about two years after Ja- ture of fallen Adam, in allusion particupheth, that is to say, when his father larly to the descendants of wicked was five hundred and two. Yet as Cain. This appears from their being Ham is invariably named between the distinguished from the 'sons of God' other two, we incline to the belief that in the ensuing verse, who although by he was born between them, though of nature equally the heirs of corruption, the precise time of his birth we are not yet being descended from the line of informed. Shem is named first from Seth were in the main a class of perhis superior dignity as the progenitor of sons possessing the fear and observing the church and of Christ, and perhaps the worship of Jehovah. They were from his obtaining the birthright, though those upon whom 'the name of the this is not mentioned in the history. In Lord was called,' as mentioned in the like manner, Abel is named before previous chapter. The object of the Cain, Jacob before Esau, and Isaac be- sacred writer is to trace back to its føre Ishmael. He is called Shem, fountain-head that universal degenerawhich signifies a name, because the cy and corruption of manners which name of God and the distinction that resulted in bringing the deluge upon the accrued from it, was always to remain world of the ungodly. From his statein his posterity till He should come out ment it is plain that it commenced in of his loins whose name was to be promiscuous intermarriages, or less above every name; so in putting Shem lawful connections, between the seed of first, Christ was in effect put first, who in the righteous and of the wicked. 'If all things must have the preeminence. I there had not been so deep a deluge of garded with a lustful eye, as Eve saw the forbidden fruit. Heb. 'daughters of the Adam.' That is, daughters of the profane and impious race of Cain, children of the old Adam, such as had nothing in them but the nature of men, fallen men, who had lost the image of God and minded only earthly things. Thus, 1 Cor. 13. 3, 'Walk ye not as men?' i. e. as carnal unregenerate men. - They took them wives of all which they chose. Or, Heb. ' which they ་ often has the sense of liking, delighting in, being pleased with. Thus Isa. 14. 1, ' For the Lord will have mercy on Jacob, and will yet choose Israel;' i. e. will yet delight in. So the phrase 'my chosen,' Isa. 42. 1, is interpreted 'my beloved,' Mat. 12. 18. Comp. Zech. 1. 17.-3. 2. Prov. 1. 29.-3. 31. Ensnared by the beauty of these fair daughters of men, and overlooking every higher consideration, they rushed thoughtlessly into the most dangerous connections. Instead of giving reason time to deliberate and weigh the consequences, they surrendered themselves to the impulses of a headstrong passion, and deaf to advice or remonstrance took all that they chose, choosing only by the eye and in obedience to their corrupt affections; and perhaps disdaining to govern themselves by the limitation of one woman to one man. Such unequal yokings have always sons of the Elohim. Chal. 'sons of the eminent ones.' That is, the descendants of Seth, Enos, and the oth-liked or loved.' The original for 'choose' er pious patriarchs who were separated from the posterity of Cain and formed the visible church. The appellation no doubt has reference to Gen. 4. 26, where the same class of persons are said to be called by the name of the Lord;' i. e. to be the sons and servants of God in contradistinction from others, the seed of Cain, who are merely called 'men.' The term Elohim is occasionally applied to persons of distinguished eminence in place or power, such as judges, magistrates, &c. but is here probably used to denote a distinction of a moral kind, such as resulted from their likeness to God, their main taining his worship, and obeying his laws. The persons designated included, it may be presumed, all, or nearly all, those enumerated in the preceding chapter as forming the line of the faithful from Seth to Noah, who though pious and devout themselves, were yet unfortunate in their children. They unhap-been among the most fruitful sources of pily swerved from the precepts in which they had been trained, forsook the counsels of their fathers, relaxed the strictness of their walk, and, yielding gradually to temptation, formed unhallowed connections with the worldly and profane, and thus opened the floodgates of a universal corruption of morals. - Saw the daughters of men. Re evil, and upon no conduct of his people is the stamp of the divine displeasure more unequivocally set than upon this. See Deut. 7. 3, 4, 2 Cor. 6. 14. 1 Cor. 7. 39. Professors of religion in marrying both themselves and their children should, as a general rule, make conscience of keeping within the bounds of profession. The bad will sooner corrupt the good than the good reform the bad. Those that profess themselves the children of God should not marry without his consent, which they have not if they join in affinity with his enemies.' Henry. d Ps. 78. 39. This acceptation of the original word, however is not sustained by adequate authority, though adopted by Pagninus and favoured by Grotius. The rendering which we have given above is by far the most probable, implying that the spirit of God speaking by the ministry of such prophets as Enoch and Noah, as well as by his inward operations on the conscience, should not always strive to bring men to repentance. A parallel mode of speech we find Neh. 9. 30, 'Yet many years didst thou forbear them, and testifiedst against them by thy Spirit in thy prophets: yet would they not give ear.' The language plainly implies that ample time and opportunity had been already afforded for this purpose, 'the long-suffering of God had waited,' but all to no effect, and now an end is determined to the divine forbearance. Still, as the justice of heaven is reluctant to take its course, it shall not be immediately exe 3. The Lord said; i. e. to himself, purposed, resolved.— My Spirit shall not always strive with man. Heb. 177 shall not judge, i. e. contend in judgment, as the word signifies Eccl. 6. 10, Neither may he contend (177) with him that is mightier than he.' As if he should say, 'My Spirit shall not perpetually keep up the process of judgment, rebuke, conviction, and condemnation.' The ancient versions vary considerably in their mode of rendering. The Gr. translates it, 'My Spirit shall not continue in these men.' Chal. 'This evil generation shall not continue before me for ever, because they are flesh, and their works most wicked; and an end shall be given unto them, an hundred and twenty years, if per-cuted; a limited respite is granted, haps they may be converted.' The which, once expired, no farther indulSeptuagint translators appear to have gence shall be shewn. taken the original 17 yadon as a verbal derivation from the noun 3 neden, a sheath; so that the true sense will be, 'My Spirit shall not for ever be ensheathed in man;' that is, The vital breath with which I inspired him shall not for ever animate its sheath of clay. This phraseology is somewhat strikingly illustrated by the following lines from a Persian historian said to have been spoken by a philosopher to Alexander the Great. 'There is a time, and Justice marks the date; Is punished, and down comes the thunder bolt.'-Cowper. This passage should be viewed in connection with 1 Pet. 3. 18-20, from which we learn that it was no other than the Spirit of Christ that through the instrumentality of the pious patriarchs preached to the disobedient spirits of the old world. We may be remindDost thou not know that man's exterior formed by the narrative (1.) That nothing Is but the scabbard to the enlivening mind? Why shouldst thou judge then of the weap on's edge When yet you've nothing seen except the case?—Anc. Univ. Hist. vol v. p. 438. God than fleshly lusts. (2.) Every more effectually grieves the Spirit of fresh indulgence of sin is a new resistance against God's strivings. (3.) When 4 There were giants in the earth in those days; and also after that, when the sons of God came in unto the daughters of men, and they bare children to them: the same became mighty men, which were of old, men of renown. come. God will so temper his judg ments with mercy, and afford the sinner such warnings and such opportunities of securing his favour, that the judgment when it comes shall find him without excuse. Let us hear then, and fear, and break off our sins by righteousness. the Spirit of God is resisted, his calls become less and less sensible, till he is finally quite withdrawn. (4.) When God strives no more, then men rush headlong into sin and ruin. How much reason have we all to pray, 'Lord, take not thine Holy Spirit from us.'¶ For that he also is flesh. Chal. 'for that they are flesh, and their works 4. There were giants in the earth in evil.' Had the sons of God kept them- those days. A term descriptive probaselves separate, and preserved their pu- bly not so much of great strength and rity, God would have spared the world stature as of great cruelty, rapine, and for their sakes, but they mingled to- violence; though the first, as a secondgether, and became in effect one people. ary sense, may still be included. Heb. God, therefore, seeing they had become nephilim, fallers, i. e. apostates virtually one, called them all by one fallen from God and the true religion, name, and that is man ( Adam), and by violence and cruelty falling without distinction, and in giving the upon their fellow-men, injuring their reason why his Spirit should not al- persons, and invading their rights; usurways strive with man, special reference pers, oppressors, tyrants, monsters of is had to their having become degener- wickedness and lust, as well as of enorate. It was for that he also, or these mous stature. They are otherwise also, were flesh'; i. e. even his own and elsewhere termed Anakim, Rephprofessing people, those who had been aim, Gibborim: thus Nimrod, Gen. denominated and deemed the 'sons of 10. 8, is called Gibbor; i. e. a mighty God,' even they too had become fleshly, one, a giant. By the Greeks, this class corrupt, profligate. The original is of men are termed Gigantes, from two peculiarly emphatic, as if such a result words, signifying to be born of the earth; would not have been to be wondered at a term from which we learn both the in regard to the Cainites, but that it origin and the import of the English was matter of astonishment and re- word 'giant.' The giants of the angret that the pious stock of Seth should cient mythology are fabled to have have thus greivously apostatised; but sprung from the earth, from some broseeing that they had in fact joined ken traditions respecting these antedithemselves to the opposite party and luvian apostates, who in the sense of become the promoters of the general being earthly, sensual, vile, despising iniquity, they must expect nothing else heavenly things, might be justly dethan to share in the bitter consequences. nominated earth-born.' C Men are worse than others just in pro- more frequent allusions to them in the protion as they ought to be better, and are original Scriptures than are obvious in dealt with accordingly. Yet his our translation, or any other. Thus, days shall be an hundred and twenty Prov. 9. 18, speaking of the young man years. The allotted term for repent- enticed into the abodes of the adulterance before the day of vengeance should ous woman, 'He knoweth not that There are |