161 
The first month amongst the Babylonians was the month of 
the altar of the Creator,* and two gods presided over it, 
Anu the primordial God, analogous to the Ouranos of the 
Greeks, and Bel , to whom is ascribed very specially the 
formation of the organised universe. 
The grand spectacle of the Heavens must very early have 
fixed the attention of man, especially in those regions of 
the earth where the serenity of the air facilitated the observa- 
tion of the stars. It was necessary for the purposes of agri- 
culture that they should distinguish the seasons, and know 
when to expect their return. Hence arose the division of 
the year into the twelve months and the formation of the 
Zodiac (as is well explained in the works of Laplace.) These 
are some of the reasons which induce me to believe that 
astronomy was largely cultivated before the Flood ; but I now 
direct attention to the above information derived from 
most recent and authentic researches into the elaborate 
astronomical system of the Chaldeans, of which the above 
forms a part. We look back over an interval of between 
4,000 and 5,000 years, and find man believing in one Supreme 
God, the first ineffable cause ; too high to be understood or 
worshipped ; and in an Architect God , more or less identified 
with the former (see my previous paper on Egypt), afterwards 
called SrnuiiovpyoQ, the craftsman or skilled workman. 
To the Creator (in some sense one with the above) they 
dedicated the beginning of their year, and raised their altar 
for sacrifice. 
Th q first elaborate study of the Heavens was made by men 
in a state of high civilisation ; having no other conception 
than a religious history of mankind, and familiar in their 
traditions with thoughts of the Creation, of the Deluge, and of 
other events recorded in the book of Genesis which they 
stereotyped in the Zodiac. f 
The Creation of Man. 
D^nbw (Elohim). 
Now what is meant by Elohim ? Does this plural and yet 
(in its construction) singular word refer to some corresponding 
revelation of the Divine nature to our first parents ? 1 find in 
the Jewish commentators Dr. Sola, Lindenthal, and Dr. 
Raphall the following (Gen. p. 4) : “ When organised nature 
is called into existence, the words used are. Let the earth 
* “ In Accadian ita bara zaggar , the last word zaggar is given as an 
epithet of the god Bel.” Lenormant, Origines de V Histoire, p. 242. 
t See Appendix B. ; also Laplace, Ex. du Systeme du Monde , p. 367, 
ct seq. 
