part in the rejoicings of that day? Then consecrate all your powers to the service of Jesus, and he will give you a crown of life that fadeth not away."

3. When the Redeemer has finished his reign on earth, a scene of the deepest interest will ensue. He will cause the graves to open, and all that sleep in the dust of the earth to come forth; he will separate the righteous from the wicked; he will call the angels of God to draw near; he will summon the inhabitants of every world he has formed to approach and witness. his proceedings. All his conduct towards the human family, from the day that Adam was created till the judgment trump was blown, he will cause to pass in review before the assembled universe. The wisdom and holiness, the mercy and truth, the perfection and beauty of all his dealings with the children of men, will stand out in the light of eternity; and from the countless throng of holy beings will burst the acclamation, "Amen! Alleluia!"

Then, before he pronounces on the impenitent the irrevocable sentence, he will cause all the treatment he has received from them to pass in review before the vast assembly-the conduct of those who set at nought and sold him, pierced and nailed him to the tree; the quibbles of infidels who denied his truth, and labored to falsify his word; the "hard speeches" which bold blasphemers had spoken against him; the deep-laid schemes to injure his cause and destroy his kingdom; each guilty soul, on the left hand of the Judge, will see his most secret crimes, and his longforgotten acts of impiety, rising in dark array before the eyes of the immense assembly. O Daniel! is this the "shame and everlasting contempt" foretold by

thee? Lord Jesus, is this the "resurrection of damnation"? Unthinking traveller to eternity, is it in view of this, that Jesus warns you to "prepare to meet your God"? Is it in view of this, that he entreats you to "flee from the wrath to come"? Careless sinner, you came from God, and to God you are going; from his presence there is no escape. "If you ascend into heaven, he is there; if you make your bed in hell, behold, he is there." You are going to meet him; 0, how unprepared! Yet meet him you must; the grave cannot hide you; rocks and mountains cannot cover you; death and hell can furnish no hiding-place from God. And yet you may meet him in mercy. O, look to Calvary! Who is that, with the nail-prints in his hands, and the spear-wound in his side? It is Jesus, who died for sinners. Escape for your life to him, in whom alone there is redemption.

Impenitent man, what you do must be done quickly : you stand on critical ground; you live in a most eventful age. Look abroad through the earth, and behold the footsteps of the Almighty. The arm of the Lord is awake. He is sweeping the nations and shaking the earth. Your father never saw a day like this. God's purposes are ripening fast; his church is fast filling up. Soon the door will be shut. God lifts his hand to heaven, and declares he "will make a short work in the earth.' The sinner that will not bow he will kill with death." The soul that will not surrender he will consume with the "breath of his mouth, and the brightness of his coming." Already you have trifled with his mercy long; already the cry of your sins has gone up before God; already the tempest is gathering; the dark cloud is seen, and the distant thunder

is heard.

But you are not yet lost. There is yet

is the rainbow of mercy, in token that as yet the storm is stayed. Delay not a moment. Fly to Jesus, and your soul shall live.

BEL AND NEBO.

A WESTERN gentleman, of wealth and respectability, said to a clergyman of his acquaintance, "There are portions of the Bible that seem to me to have little or no meaning. Can I believe that such passages are a part of the inspired word of God?"

“Please mention the passages to which you refer,' said the clergyman.

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"One of them," answered the gentleman, "is found in the commencement of the forty-sixth chapter of Isaiah. It runs thus: Bel boweth down, Nebo stoopeth; their idols were upon the beasts, and upon the cattle your carriages were heavy loaden; they are a burden to the weary beast. They stoop; they bow down together; they could not deliver the burden, but themselves are gone into captivity.' I can see no

:

meaning in this passage."

"Shall I give you a brief exposition, which I think will render the text plain and interesting?"

"I shall be gratified to hear you," added the gentleman.

"Observe, then," said the minister, "that Bel and Nebo were the two principal idols of Babylon. Their kings and heroes often bear names and titles in which there is a reference to these notable idols, as Belshazzar, Nebuchadnezzar, Nebuzaradan, &c. They had, it is

true, other inferior deities, which they worshipped; but Bel and Nebo were the great chiefs among their imaginary gods. The kings of Babylon had been a dreadful scourge to the surrounding nations. They had slaughtered their population; they had plundered their temples and their treasuries, and had carried all the wealth which they could thus collect to Babylon. And the glory of these conquests they ascribed to Bel and Nebo. When they were about engaging in some important military expedition, they invoked the aid and benediction of Bel and Nebo; and when their incursion into a neighboring nation had been successful, they crowded the temples of Bel and Nebo, and offered sacrifices of thanksgiving, and paid to these idols the most costly honors. At length, the king of Babylon invaded Judea. As he made war under the patronage of Bel and Nebo, the conclusion was, that, whenever he conquered, these idols of Babylon had proved too mighty for the god of the conquered people. When Jerusalem fell into the hands of the king of Babylon, these idolaters did not wish to believe the truth. They did not wish to believe that Israel were smitten for their sins against God. They loved darkness. They loved to believe a lie. They exulted in the opportunity of blazing abroad, that now the idols of Babylon had proved too strong for the God of Israel. The city called by his name was destroyed. The beautiful house built for his praise was burned with fire; and his people were carried into captivity. And now they devised honors for their favorite idol beyond all parallel. The king, the princes, and the people, all combine. 'Nebuchadnezzar the king made an image of gold,. whose height was threescore cubits, and the breadth