peace and all joy. He who believes in those words is, and will be, saved.

Dear to me, also, are the teachings of the apostles of Jesus, especially when they in word, act, or life reproduce the teachings of their master; for since they apply the new revelation to their condition and the condition of the world, they show me in their example how I may practically direct my steps by the great principles which form the essence of the gospel. Thus they give me aid in the interpretation of the mind of Christ, by which difficulties in the Scripture may be removed, and additional light be cast on my duty and my hopes.

The reading of these sacred writings will be rendered easier by due regard to the statements I have made. Of special importance is a correct view as to the origin, nature, aim, and tendencies of the Bible. When your mind is clear on these points, you will have no great difficulty on others. The Bible is no common book. Its theme-religion-is, of all others, the most solemn. Its purpose-to make God known to men and to lead men to God-is, of all others, the most sublime. Its spirit-the spirit of the living God himself; its central figure-Christ, at once man's brother and man's redeemer; its field of vision-time and eternity; its circle of immediate operation-the wide earth; its forces-all of good and all of ill that man can experience or even imagine ;the theme, the purpose, the spirit, the central figure, the field of vision, the circle of immediate operation, the forces of the Bible all unite to recommend its study, and to require that its study be careful, constant, and, as far as possible, systematic. Not a little important is it that you should never degrade the Bible by making the reading of it a matter of routine, an act to be performed as a mere duty, mechanically, and as a matter of course, or when your mind and body are too jaded for other occupation. Never without the deepest reverence should the Bible be approached. Never but for a religious purpose should it be taken in hand. Nor delude yourself with the notion that it is meritorious to read the Bible. There is no merit, as there is no profit, in very much of the Bible-reading that goes on in the world. "Understandest what thou readest ?" Unless you can answer affirmatively_to_your conscience and to your God, you had better, like the Ethiopian eunuch, seek a guide. And if he is a true guide, the first thing he will teach you is to go to Christ himself for guidance and instruction, and to make Christ himself the interpreter to you of all things, whether in the New Testament or the Old. He will teach you what you are to leave, and what to take; and, before all, he will teach you that the only sure way to know God's will is to be constant in the observance of his commands.

In one respect the guidance of Jesus may be of special advantage to you. The Bible, though one in general aim and tendency, differs not a little as between the spirit of the Old Testament and the spirit of the New. There you hear wishes and prayers for the punishment and destruction of enemies; here you hear blessings invoked on friend and foe. There God often appears as wrathful and vindictive; here he is the Father of all men, the God who is love. There earthly prosperity is made man's chief reward; here eternal blessedness is set forth as man's end and aim. You read this and you read that, and if you reflect you feel no small difficulty. But whose name do you bear? Christ's. And what is Christ? "The way, the truth, and the life." Can you hesitate then whom you are to follow, and what you are to do? With this thought in your mind study the Sermon on the Mount, and you will not only understand it better, but find in it confirmations of the principle I have given, and illustrations of its import and application.

Of that sermon the beginning (and, in spirit, the end) relates to "the blessed life," the life of God in the soul of man. Here is the essence of the religion of Jesus, as well as the essence of all religion. Study the beatitudes with special care. Try to penetrate to their inmost core. Then pray to God for aid that you may receive their spirit and feel their power in your own soul. Then go forth, and in your daily life be faithful to what Christ says to you in and through them. Thus furnished with the mind of Christ, and instructed in the will of God, you will find the rest of the Bible easy as a horn-book, and extract from every part such warning, such direction, such encouragement, as will make you know that "the Holy Scriptures are able to make wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus." (2 Tim. ii., 15.)

PRAYER.

Infinite and Eternal Being! who art truth and light and holiness and love, and who hast graciously made us in thine own image, breathe forth thy spirit into our hearts, that it may renew and perfect there thine own adorable likeness. That likeness we behold in Jesus, thy Son and our example. He is the light of the world. May he become our light. We earnestly desire that we may have his spirit in us whenever we sit down to the study of the sacred Scriptures. If he hold us by his loving hand, and lead us by his wise and good spirit, we shall walk through the rich pastures and repose by the still waters of the Bible, feeding on the bread of life, and finding every Scripture inspired by thee profitable for instruction, for reproof, for correction, for training up in righteousness, that we may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works. Lead us, O thou giver of all wise counsel, O thou strengthener of man's heart in good, lead us thus to profit by the words of life spoken by holy men of old, and specially to profit by him who is himself life to the world, that we fail not of thy grace, but be welcomed of thee, through Christ, to the life everlasting. Amen.

THE SINNER'S REPENTANCE.

Scriptures for Reading :—Psalm xlii.; Jonah iii.; Mark i., 1-15; 2 Cor. vii.

Godly sorrow worketh repentance to salvation not to be repented of.
(2 Cor. vii., 10.)

Go, let me weep! there's bliss in tears,
When he who sheds them inly feels
Some lingering stain of early years
Effaced by every drop that steals.
The fruitless showers of worldly woe
Fall dark to earth and never rise;
While tears that from repentance flow,
In bright exhalement reach the skies.
Leave me to sigh o'er hours that flew

More idly than the summer's wind;
And while they passed a fragrance threw,
But left no trace of sweets behind.
The warmest sigh that pleasure heaves
Is faint, is cold to those that swell
The heart, where pure repentance grieves
O'er hours of pleasure loved too well.

WHEN I rest in the bosom of peaceful nature, behold the simplicity and order and regularity of the world's wondrous march; contemplate its purity and clearness and adaptation to its end, which proceeds immediately from God's power; and then cast a glance into my own heart-into the dark, troubled depths of my passionstirred heart-what a difference! What gladness and rest in nature; but what darkness and unrest in my bosom ! What joy, what harmony there in all things; and what distraction in my own wishes, in all my feelings! How mild and beneficent is every thing there; and how much that is distracting, aimless, and unkind is there in me! How constantly, unalterably, everything there has gone its way for ages, for eternities past; how unlike, on the contrary, am I to myself from one hour to another-how variable, often contradictory, am I in my opinions and resolves! There the perfect rules; in me the imperfect! There I feel admiration, which often amounts to rapture; towards myself, on

the contrary, only discontent, which often passes into contempt for my whole nature.

If man will rightly understand the vast gulf which separates him from God, he has only to look at God's doings, and then cast a glance at his own. He will feel how little, how wicked he is, and how far he is still removed from perfection and from communion with God, of which, nevertheless, by his natural endowments, he would be capable, if he would be wise enough.

The contemptible weakness of mortals reveals itself most clearly in this that, out of harmony with themselves, they ever hesitate between the highest and the lowest, and do not know what they might attain to. For a long time they live as if there were no God in the world-as if no Jesus had taught and suffered-as if the laws of virtue were a stale dream of the imagination—as if conscience were a silly custom of education—as if this life upon earth were without issue, the grave for them had no existence, and the judgment to come were a fable. Then again, seized by the mighty power of truth, which they in vain resist, or startled and broken down by the extraordinary character of certain events, they lie crushed, repentant, filled with despair, devoid of hope,they give themselves up to despondency as though they had no strength of their own; abandon themselves with helpless devotedness to the will of God, as though it did not at all depend upon themselves whether they should be saved. They hope from God only grace, without any effort upon their part; favour with him, without striving to obtain it by imitating his perfections; they expect everything from the merits of Jesus, without trying to make themselves worthy of them; they pray for the intercessions of angels and of men, as though their virtues would not be their best intercessors. They themselves, as parents, teachers, instructors, would think little of the child that lived for years in great negligence, and then suddenly, in an important moment of life, by means of repentance, tears, and prayers, wished to obtain the same advantages, notwithstanding all his offences and imperfections, which the upright and good father has promised as the reward of the virtues and the constant efforts of a well-behaved child.

Thus, on one side, we see man scoffing at religion, reason, God, and eternity; sacrificing duties, principles, conscience, for the gratification of his pride, for wealth, pleasure, power, and respect; then, suddenly disdaining the vanity of things, running from church to church, praying, sighing, making pious ejaculations and pining for heaven. This is no wisdom-this is not the temper which Christ would call his own.

This hesitating condition, which, in both respects, is dishonouring to man, is a consequence of the discomfort left by