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ties. I believe that the Assyrians and Chaldeans and all the 
children of Shem believed in the existence of one over-ruling* 
O 
power, but acknowledged him by different attributes, and at 
intervals neglected the worship of the Creator for the love of 
the creature. Let us take the family of Abraham as an ex- 
ample, and see how, with the exception of the Patriarch him- 
self, who “ believed in God, and it was counted to him for 
righteousness,” not forgetting Lot, they all possessed idols 
which they no doubt worshipped and adored. Firstly, we find, 
when Abraham sent Eliezar his steward to Mesopotamia, to the 
family of Nahor, to take from them a wife unto his son Isaac, 
both Laban and Bethuel his father, the nephew of the Patriarch, 
avowed the existence of Jehovah ; but we find afterwards, 
when Jacob went to that family on the same errand for his 
own espousals, the belief in the true God was mixed up with 
idolatry. In one place Rachel calls upon the name of the Lord, 
and in another we find her setting her heart on her father's 
idols and taking them to herself. It must also be believed 
that if the Ninevites had not really acknowledged the omnipo- 
tence and over-ruling power of God, the prophet Jonah would 
not have been sent to call them to repentance.* Secondly, 
let us notice the striking constant rebellion of the Israelites, 
how they from time to time forgot the divine truth, and imitated 
their heathen neighbours in the worship of false gods, and in 
the very presence of the Almighty, so to speak, provoked 
Aaron to make them gods ; and from time to time afterwards 
they forsook the true worship of Jehovah and adored the 
images of the heathen, and actually “ sacrificed their children 
to idols, and they did according to all the abominations of the 
nations which the Lord cast out before them.” We also know 
that until the birth of the twelve Patriarchs, the Holy Land 
was only promised to the children born of Chaldean mothers ; 
and both Abraham and Isaac particularly prohibited their 
children from taking unto themselves wives from the land of 
promise, whose people had been cursed through Canaan ; but 
they were to marry from the family of Nahor, who was blest 
through his forefather Shem. How truly and literally that won- 
derful prophecy of Noah has been verified through the offspring 
of his three sons, Shem, Ham, and Japheth ! Have not the 
Canaanites lived under the curse, and suffered utter annihilation 
for their awful vices and wickedness, fulfilling the prophetic 
* It is an extraordinary fact that the Assyrians or Chaldean Christians up 
to the present day commemorate the repentance or “ supplication of the 
Ninevites ” by fasting and prayer for three days every year. 
