Believers in miracles should not endeavor to explain them. There is but one way to explain anything, and that is to account for it by natural agencies. The moment you explain a miracle, it disappears. You should depend not upon explanation, but assertion. You should not be driven from the field because the miracle is shown to be unreasonable. You should reply that all miracles are unreasonable. Neither should you be in the least disheartened if it is shown to be impossible. The possible is not miraculous. You should take the ground that if miracles were reasonable, and possible, there would be no reward paid for believing them. The christian has the goodness to believe, while the sinner asks for evidence. It is enough for God to work miracles without being called upon to substantiate them for the benefit of unbelievers. Only a few years ago, the christians believed implicitly in the literal truth of every miracle recorded in the bible. Whoever tried to explain them in some natural way, was looked upon as an infidel in disguise, but now he is regarded as a benefactor. The credulity of the Church is decreasing, and the most marvelous miracles are now either "explained," or allowed to take refuge behind the mistakes of the translators, or hide in the drapery of allegory. In the sixth chapter, Noah is ordered to take "of every living thing of all flesh, two of every sort into the ark--male and female." In the seventh chapter the order is changed, and Noah is commanded, according to the Protestant bible, as follows: "Of every clean beast thou shalt take to thee by sevens, the male and his female, and of beasts that are not clean, by two, the male and his female. Of fowls also of the air by sevens, the male and the female." According to the Catholic bible, Noah was commanded--"Of all clean beasts take seven and seven, the male and the female. But of the beasts that are unclean two and two, the male and the female. Of the fowls also of the air seven and seven, the male and the female." For the purpose of belittling this miracle, many commentators have taken the ground that Noah was not ordered to take seven males and seven females of each kind of clean beasts, but seven in all. Many christians contend that only seven clean beasts of each kind were taken into the ark--three and a half of each sex. If the account in the seventh chapter means anything, it means _first_, that of each kind of clean beasts, fourteen were to be taken, seven males, and seven females; _second_, that of unclean beasts should be taken, two of each kind, one of each sex, and _third_, that he should take of every kind of fowls, seven of each sex. It is equally clear that the command in the 19th and 20th verses of the 6th chapter, is to take two of each sort, one male and one female. And this agrees exactly with the account in the 7th, 8th, 9th, 14th. 15th, and 16th verses of the 7th chapter.