But it was otherwise with what are called heathen nations. Each had its peculiar god, and also its different forms of worship; and they lived happily with each other on the score of theology. And here we may observe, how unfortunate it has been for the human race, that the Lord did not either give his law sooner, or not at all; for it is plainly to be seen, that if the first commandment had been given by the Lord before men had followed other gods, idolatry would have been prevented, and Jehovah’s watchfulness over the worship he had established, would have been productive of universal happiness. But, on the contrary, the command being given so long after, and that, too, when religious systems were flourishing, and temples crowded with devout worshippers, the worst consequences have followed. The worshippers of Jehovah, whether Jews or Christians, have, by the Bible itself, become intolerant and persecuting; and never have they failed, when power would admit, to destroy the enemies of their God without mercy: so that the first commandment, by coming too late, has proved the greatest curse that ever afflicted the human family. And hence the folly in believing that Infinite Wisdom and Goodness would permit false religion to progress so long before the true one was made known to the human race. After the moral law, or the ten commandments, had been given by the Jewish God, on the mount, amid thunder and lightning, we have it recorded that Moses was ordered to go up to the top of the mount, and there, with the Lord, he staid forty days and nights; during which time Aaron, his brother, remained with the whole of the Children of Israel in camp, at the foot of Mount Sinai. And now, candid reader, prepare your mind for an account of what took place on the mount, between Jehovah and Moses; and when you have read it, and maturely reflected on what is recorded, then I say, ask yourself whether there is one word of truth in the account of this strange interview between Moses and his God? Compare it with any of the absurdities to be found in the _Koran_ of Mahomet, and discover, if you can, whether the latter is less true than the former. The Bible record states, that Moses was ordered to ascend the mount, on private business with the Lord, and to leave Aaron in charge of his chosen people till his return. The account clearly states, that Moses was then and there to receive instruction how to fit up and ornament the Tabernacle that was to accompany the Children of Israel in their journey to the promised land. And here we may notice, “_That in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, and all things therein_”; yet it required forty days to plan and fit up this moveable church; and before it was finished, the chosen people, with Aaron at their head, became idolators; so that before the Lord and Moses (both hard at work) had completed the church, they lost the congregation. This, to make the best of it, was a dreadful blunder.