pollution of the world, is in the midst of its throne. He who is light, and in whom there is no darkness at all, who charges the angels with folly, and declares the heavens unclean in His sight, fills with the sunshine of His presence the whole of that blessed scene. "There shall in no wise enter into it anything that defileth, neither whatsoever worketh abomination, or maketh a lie: but they which are written in the Lamb's book of life."

III. The negation implies that it is a realm EVER BEAUTIFUL IN ASPECT. Darkness hides the beauty of the world, but light is the creator and minister of beauty. All the variegated colors of the summer's landscape we owe to the sun; and all the exquisite forms of life owe their existence to his renewing power. The sun is Nature's great painter. All the pictures of loveliness that charm us as we walk the galleries of life, have been photographed by his smiles and tinged by his hues. What, then, will be the beauty of a world where there is no night—a world of perpetual sunshine? All natural beauties will be there. The shores and the seas, the meads and the mountains, the rivers and the ravines-all, in fact, beneath, around, above-will be one grand universe of beauty. All artistic beauties will be there. The very instinct of genius is to invent, imitate, and create, and there genius will flourish in perfection. May it not be that numbers will there be employed in copying the forms of loveliness around them with pencils more delicate, lines more life-like, hands more skilful, than our Raphaels and Rubens, our De Vincis and Correggios? May it not be that numbers will be there employed in weaving the sounds of Nature into melodies more soulstirring and divine than ever struck the lyre of our Handels or Mozarts ? May it not be that numbers will be there hymning their praises in strains of seraphic poetry, compared with which the epics of Milton and the lyrics of Cowper are but the vapid fancies of childhood? Genius, there, will undoubtedly be active, and all her productions will be

distinguished by the highest perfection of beauty. All moral beauties will be there. The beauty of holiness, the beauty of the Lord, will adorn every spirit. All will be endowed with those attributes of moral loveliness that will command the admiration of each and all. Thus all will rejoice in each other, and all rejoice in the Lord whence all their beauty came.

IV. The negation implies that it is a realm of EVER UNCHECKED PROGRESS. Night checks the progress of life. The processes of life, it is true, go on in the night, but they are slow and feeble. Life cannot bear the darkness long; its pulse grows feeble under its ebon reign. Its tide ebbs under its cold breath. Take a vigorous blooming plant from the light, and shut it up in the dark, how soon it will lose its vitality, become delicate, colourless, and die. Were our sun to shine on without setting from year to year on this earth, who could say how high the tide of life would rise in every living thing. In the world where there is "no night," there will be no check to the advance of life. The vital energies will always be increasing. Sinew and soul, character and conscience, will be ever growing in force. “From strength to strength," all these proceed. No blight to wither, no shadow to chill there. But all the influences that play around existence there, inspire, invigorate, and uplift. Night checks the progress of labor. We go forth unto our labor until the evening; then night shuts us in. We retire to unconsciousness and inaction. Are there not twelve hours in the day? "If any man walk in the day he stumbleth not, because he seeth the light of this world; but if a man walk in the night he stumbleth, because there is no life in him. The night cometh when no man can work." But in a world where there is "no night," there is no checking of labor. Our range of action would be unrestrained. We shall be always abounding in the work of the Lord.

V. The negation implies that it is a realm EVER JOYOUS IN SPIRIT. Darkness is depressing. Hence it is often used as the emblem of misery; the scene where the wicked are

punished is spoken of as "outer darkness." Even the irrational creatures around us feel the depressing influence of a gloomy day. Under the dark clouds and murky sky, the cattle cease to gambol on the hills, and the fowls of heaven

cease their music in the groves. All feel the pressure of darkness. Light is the condition and emblem of joy. A bright day sets the world to music. What happiness, then, must there be in a world where there is no night. In what does its happiness consist? The context answers the question. The absence of all evil. No pain, no sorrow, no death, no hunger, no thirst, no temple, no night. The presence of all good. The river of life, the tree of life, companionship with the holy, fellowship with God, oneness with Christ. This is Heaven. Such are the ideas suggested by this nightless world. It is a scene where the vision is ever clear, where the character is ever pure, where the aspect is ever beautiful, where the life is ever advancing, where the joy is ever rising. We say ever, for there is "no night" there. The sun never sinks beneath the hills, nor does a cloud ever intercept his rays. Up in the meridian for ever, he shines, flooding the universe for ever with brightness. How great the soul for which such a destiny is prepared! Art thou a candidate, my brother, for this blessed world? The world in which thou livest is leaving thee. Those that link thee here. are falling one by one. Thy home, perhaps now so sweet, will soon grow desolate, and if thou remainest long thou wilt feel thyself alone here, a stranger in a strange world; and that not for long. Thou must leave it. Yet thou must live, live when stars have gone out, and suns are burnt to ashes. Art thou a candidate for the nightless world? Oh, that the view of this heaven would entrance thee to-night. Holy Jerusalem; Home of the sainted dead; Paradise of the beautiful; Throne of the Eternal; break forth now from the dark heavens of our depraved souls, that we may have such a view of thy matchless grandeur that shall make us feel how little this life is, and how sublime the destiny which we may reach.

There is a world where all is night; a sunless, moonless, starless night. God deliver you from this night.

SUBJECT:-The Wicked Husbandmen; or, the efforts of Mercy to redeem, and the appearance of Justice to punish.

"Hear another parable: There was a certain householder, which planted a vineyard, and hedged it round about, and digged a winepress in it, and built a tower, and let it out to husbandmen, and went into a far country: and when the time of the fruit drew near, he sent his servants to the husbandmen, that they might receive the fruits of it. And the husbandmen took his servants, and beat one, and killed another, and stoned another. Again, he sent other servants more than the first: and they did unto them likewise. But last of all he sent unto them his son, saying, They will reverence my son. But when the husbandmen saw the son, they said among themselves, This is the heir; come, let us kill him, and let us seize on his inheritance. And they caught him, and cast him out of the vineyard, and slew him. When the lord therefore of the vineyard cometh, what will he do unto those husbandmen? They say unto him, He will miserably destroy those wicked men, and will let out his vineyard unto other husbandmen, which shall render him the fruits in their seasons. Jesus saith unto them, Did ye never read in the scriptures, The stone which the builders rejected, the same is become the head of the corner: this is the Lord's doing, and it is marvellous in our eyes? Therefore say I unto you, The kingdom of God shall be taken from you, and given to a nation bringing forth the fruits thereof. And whosoever shall fall on this stone shall be broken: but on whomsoever it shall fall, it will grind him to powder. And when the chief priests and Pharisees had heard his parables, they perceived that he spake of them. But when they sought to lay hands on him, they feared the multitude, because they took him for a prophet.”—Matt. xxi. 33—46.

Analysis of Homily the Six Hundred and Forty-seventh. NEXHAUSTIBLE was the mental wealth of Christ. His mind was an overflowing fountain of knowledge. "Hear another parable," says He. Already they had heard from His lips much more than they desired, yet not half what they needed, and nothing compared with what He had to impart. Students in the school of Christ, for centuries or millenniums indefinitely, must expect to hear another parable from their Great Master. Luke represents this parable as having been spoken to the people; Matthew and Mark as having been addressed to the Pharisees; but the fact that the former evangelist mentions (Luke xx. 19) the "chief priests and

scribes

as listeners on the occasion, obviates the apparent discrepancy.

The two great subjects which the Heavenly Artist throws on this parabolic canvas are-the efforts of Mercy to redeem, and the appearance of Justice to punish. The materials of this parable are taken from the beautiful passage of Isaiah v. 1-7.

I. THE EFFORTS OF MERCY TO REDEEM. The "householder" is the Great God, who is here represented as mercifully employing means for the cultivation of His vineyard. The parable suggests several thoughts concerning those merciful efforts.

First They were abundant. The abundance appears (1)

From the favorable condition in which the vine was planted. "The householder hedged it round about, and digged a winepress in it, and built a tower, and let it out to husbandmen." We are not sure that these separate figures are intended to express separate ideas, probably they are used only to give a full expression to the wonderful care which the householder employed in order to secure all the conditions of fruitfulness. The abundance appears (2) From the agents employed to secure its cultivation. "He let it out to husbandmen." The "husbandmen" are supposed to represent the regularly established priesthood. They were appointed for the very purpose of taking care of God's vineyard. (Malachi ii. 7, Ezekiel xxxiv. 2.) From Aaron down they covenanted with God to do this; it was their solemn obligation. Beside the husbandmen, there was another class of agents employed in this work of cultivation, called "his servants.” "When the time of the fruit drew near, he sent his servants to the husbandmen, that they might receive the fruits of it." "How, it may be asked," says Trench, "are these 'servants' to be distinguished from the husbandmen? Exactly in this; that the servants, that is the prophets and other more eminent ministers of God in His theocracy, were sent-being raised up at particular times, having particular missions, and their