the supervision of municipal authority, to protect the rights, and to enforce the duties, growing out of this peculiar relation. But it is much more than a civil, contract. It lies at the very foundation of society: it is the parent of the state. It received its existence from the Creator; it is his institution, and designed by Him for the propagation, preservation, and happiness of our race. He originally instituted marriage to be between one man and one woman, on purpose, the prophet tells us, "that He might seek a godly seed." (Mal. 2:15.) It was not the mere temporal advantage of our race He had in view. He looked beyond mere earthly benefits; He regarded our holiness and meetness for a heavenly state of enjoyment. And will He not protect this institution against abuse? Surely He will. The seventh commandment in the Decalogue is one defence, and these Levitical statutes we believe to be another. Such they evidently are, even on the supposition that they refer to "single acts of an incestuous character;" for this view of their design brings them, as observed before, within the purview of the seventh commandment.
In truth, they constitute a law given to the
