As to method^ Cousin follows the psychological rath- er than the a priori method, but he avoids careful- ly the views of Locke and the sensationalists. His psychology is idealistic, his ontology also. What he calls *' spontaneous reason*' acquaints us with the ''true and essential nature of things." In place of '* commencing, as the Germans do, with ontology, he affirms the possibility of finding a passage fh>m the world of phenomena to real existence. Since reason receives truth spontaneously, by direct and immediate perception, he considers that we may, by means of this faculty, attain to the knowledge of essential and abso- lute existence" (Morell, Hist, of Mod. Philos. pt, ii, eh. viii). The tendency of this view to pantheism has been shown by many writers, especially by Gioberti (^Considerations star lep doctrines religieuses de M. Victor Contkk, transl. by Toumeur, Paris, 1847, 8vo). Cousin himself always strenuously repudiated the name of pantheist. It is certain that towards the end of his career he " sought more and more the support of the great Christian masters, and drew daily nearer to Pas- cal, Descartes, and Leibnitz'* (North British Review^ March, 1867, art. v). Of translations of his works, we have, by Daniel, The Philosophy of the Beautiful (N. Y. 1849, 8vo) ; by Wight, History of Modem Phi- losophy (N. Y. 2 vols. 8vo, 1852); by the same, Lec- tures on the True, the Beautiful, and the Good (N. Y. 1864, 8vo) ; by Henry, Psychology, including an Exam- inaHon of Locke's PhUosophy (N. Y. 4th ed., 1856, 8vo). — English Ctfdopcedia, s. v. ; Vapereau, Diet, des Con- temporains, 1866 ; Lewes, History of PhUosophy (Lend. 2 vols. 1867), ii, 646; Christian Spectator, vii, 89, North American Review, liii, 1 ; Ixxxv, 19 ; Edinb. Review, 1, 194 (art. by Sir W. Hamilton) ; Brit, duart. Review, v, 289 ; Westminster Review, Oct. 1858; Ripley, Specirims of Foreign Literature, vol. i ; Alaux, La PhUotopMe de Cousin (Paris, 1864).
Con'tha (Kov^a, Vulg. PhuscC), named (1 Esdr. v, 32) as one of the heads of the Temple-servants whose *' sons" returned from Babylon ; but the Hebrew lists (Ezra ii, 63 ; Neh. vii, 66) contain no corresponding name.
Covel, James, Jr., a Methodist Episcopal minister, was bom at Marblehead, Mass., Sept. 4, 1796, became a travelling preacher in 1816, and travelled chiefly in the state of New York. He was the author of a Dic- tionary of the Bible (18mo), and was a man of sound
judgment, sincere piety, and steady industry. From 1888 he was appointed principal of the Troy Confer- ence Academy, and filled the post acceptably until 1841. His last station was State Street, Troy, where he died. May 16, ISib.— Minutes of Conferences, iii, 600; Spirague, i4fmai!f, vii, 664.
Covel, John, an English divine, was bom at Homingsheath, Suffolk, in 1688, and was educated at Christ's College, Cambridge, of which he became fel- low. In 1670 he went to Constantinople as chaplain to the Bi^tish embassy. In 1687 he was made chan- cellor of York, and in 1688 master of Christ's College, Cambridge. He died in 1722. As the fruit of his residence in Constantinople, he wrote Some Account of the present Greek Church, with Rejlections on their present Doctrine and Discipline, etc. (Camb. 1722, fol.).
Covenant, a mutual contract or agreement be- tween two parties, each of which is bound to fulfil cer- tain engagements to the other. In Scripture it is used mostly in an analogical sense, to denote certun relations between God and man. (See Danville Re- view, March, 1862.)
I. Terms.— In the Old Test, t^^^^, herith' (rendered "league," Josh, ix, 6, 7, 11, 15, 16 ; Judg. ii, 2 ; 1 Sam. iii, 12, 13, 21 ; 2 Sam. v, 8 ; 1 Kings v, 12 ; xv, 19, twice ; 2 Chron. xvi, 8, twice ; Job v, 28 ; Ezek. xxx, 6; "confederacy," Chad. 7; "confederate," Gen. xiv, 13 ; Psa. Ixxxiii, 5), is the word invariably thus translated (Sept. diaBriKTj ; once, Wisd. i, 16, ovvGijieri ; Yulg. foedus, pactum, often interchangeably, Gen. ix, xvii; Num. xxv; in the Apocrypha testamentum, but sacramentum, 2 Esdr. ii, 7 ; sponsiones, Wisd. i, 16 ; in N. T. testamentum [06*9116 fadere, Som. 1, 81 ; Gr. d(wv9sTovQj). The Hebrew word is derived by Ge- senius (Thes. Heb. p. 237, 238 ; so Furst, Hebr. Handw. p. 217) from the root n^S, i q. K'la, "he cut," and taken to mean primarily "a cutting," with reference to the custom of cutting or dividing animals in two, and passing between the parts in ratifying a covenant (Gen. XV; Jer. xxxiv, 18, 19). Hence the expression "to cut a covenant" (I^^'^a T\*^'S, Gen. xv, 18, or simply n^S, with H'^'na understood, 1 Sam. xi, 2) is of firequent occurrence. (Comp. tipjcca rifivuv, rkfi- Vitv <nrov6dc,icere,ferire,percuterefcBdus. See Sle- vogt, De more Ebraeor, dissectione animalium fadera ineundi, Jen. 1769.) Professor Lee suggests (i7e6. Lex. s. V. H'^^IQ) that the proper signification of the word is an eating together, or banquet, from the meaning " to eat," which the root ms sometimes bears ; because among the Orientals to eat together amounts almost to a covenant of friendship. This view is supported by Gen. xxxi, 46, where Jacob and Laban eat together on the heap of stones which they have set up in rati- fying the covenant between them. It affords also a satisfactory explanation of the expression " a cove- nant of salt" (H^^ f^*''!'5l> ^la&rjKti akoQ, Num. xviii, 19 ; 2 Chron. xiii, 6), when the Eastern idea of eating salt together is remembered. If, however, the other derivation of ri'^'^21 be adopted, this expression may be explained by supposing salt to have been eaten or offered with accompanying sacrifices on occasion of very solemn covenants, or it may be regarded as fig- urative, denoting, either, frx>m the use of salt in sacri- fice (Lev. ii, 13 ; Mark ix, 49), the sacredness, or, from the preserving qualities of salt, the perpetuity of the covenant. (See below.)