for "lo! they that are far from thee shall perish. But it is good for me to draw near to God." I find that this is the way to lasting prosperity: I see that by these means I shall have the benefit of the wisdom which is withheld from the wicked, "for he shall guide me by his counsel:" and I shall receive of that God whose service I have chosen, durable riches and righteousness.

If we should demand, what are the immediate benefits of this intercourse with Heaven: they are to be seen in all the communications of the Holy Spirit; not merely in external guidance, but in that devotion of the heart, in that purity of principle, in that elevation of character, which distinguish the people of God. If it be good to derive strength from the Lord; to be furnished with all might in the inner man, so as to be victorious in the day of trial; this is the privilege of them that draw near to him: "they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength: they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint."

If it be good to have an abiding sense of the Divine presence, to behold by the eye of faith Him that is invisible, to dwell upon the perfections of his nature, to catch some resemblance of his image, and to be animated by those hopes and expectations which serve to raise this mortal creature above the regions of mortality; these also are the blessings and benefits bestowed upon them that draw near to God. Let us draw nigh to him, and he will draw nigh to us. And if God draw nigh to us, it is a pledge that he will give to us every blessing of which we stand in need, and that no good thing will be withheld from us.

The Psalmist points out, in two important particulars, the benefits resulting from this from this communion with God; one with relation to

the present life, and one with reference to the future.

If there be a period when consolation is more especially needed, and the presence of Jehovah is most peculiarly to be desired, it is in the solemu hour when this earthly tabernacle is dissolving, and the spirit is upon the verge of the eternal world. How valuable at such a moment is the favour of God! how welcome at that hour must be the light of his countenance to the departing soul! It is upon that moment that the Psalmist fixes, as offering the best and brightest evidence of the happiness of those who draw near unto God. He speaks with the devotional elevation of one whose energies were all absorbed in the love of his Divine Protector; who felt that heaven itself would cease to be a place of hap piness, if that countenance should be withdrawn which enlightens the chamber of death! "Whom have I in heaven but thee? And there is none upon earth that I desire besides thee. My flesh and my heart faileth, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion for ever." With the last struggles of mortality he connects the entrance into life: his heart is strengthened, in the decay of nature, by that God who is waiting to receive him to the arms of his mercy and to be his everlasting portion.

And is it not good, then, to draw near to God? Is it an object of desire to be relieved from misery and pain, to be delivered for ever from the touch of evil, and to be blessed in eternal felicity? Is it the wish of our minds, to be released from the fear of death, to finish our course with joy, and to have an abundant entrance into the kingdom of our Father-to walk in his heavenly courts, and to dwell in his glorious presence? This is the sure reward of them that seek him: this is the portion of those that draw near to God: he will bless them in time, he will bless them to all eternity.

This subject may be made useful to us by leading us to examine the state of our souls, and the nature of our religious services. Does He who searcheth the heart and trieth the reins, discover in us those principles, and that sincerity of devotion, which the Psalmist possessed? Would not many blush with shame if the thoughts and inclinations which distract their minds, even in the hour of solemn worship, were exposed to the view of each other? In what light, then, will our service appear to the Searcher of hearts, to whom all desires are known, and from whom no secrets are hid? Consider the qualifications required by the Apostles of Christ, in those that draw near to the Lord. They are to approach him with a lively faith in the Saviour of sinners, with deep humility and contrition of soul; they are to humble themselves in his sight, that he may lift them up; and they are to be sincere and upright before him. If we come in a right spirit, we have every encouragement to approach the Throne of Grace. A new and living way has been consecrated for us by the death of our Saviour, so that we may have boldness to enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus. Let us draw near, then, by that living way, with a true heart, in full assurance of faith. It is by Jesus Christ alone that we have access to the Father; by that Saviour to whom the Psalmist looked forward as the propitiation for sin, and in whom he believed as the Way, the Truth, and the Life. By nature and practice we are all afar off from salvation: but we are brought nigh by the blood of Christ; by his death, and passion, and mediation; and through faith in his name may we now be reconciled to God, and God to us. Thus only can we be enabled to meet him in his ordinances, and to walk with him in the way of his command

ments.

To such, then, as are strangers to

the grace of God and to the manifestations of his Spirit, we would say, Seek ye the Lord while he may be found seek him through the intercession of his Son: it is good to draw near to him; but it is a fearful thing to continue strangers to his love: to such he will declare, on the last day, "I never knew you: depart from me, ye workers of iniquity."

And to them that are travelling under the guidance of their Lord, and in the way of his appointments, I would address the exhortation, "See that ye walk circumspectly." Many circumstances will arise to tempt you back to the world, and to shake the stedfastness of your minds. This every Christian has found. The service on which you have entered requires you to be vigilant, and to persevere: but to do this, in all cases it is necessary to draw near unto God. If we could inquire of those holy men, who stood in the first ranks of the army of Christ, and had trial of bonds and imprisonment, and the extreme violence of bodily suffering, they would tell us, that although these things are in themselves not joyous but grievous, yet are they compensated even now by nearness of intercourse with God. His Spirit helps our infirmities: his love comforts our hearts; and we rejoice to know that nothing shall separate us from his favour. And if, like some of the disciples of old, any of you should incline to walk no more with him, think what dangers you incur, and what privileges you abandon; how great and precious are the promises which you slight, and the blessings that you relinquish! The ways of Wisdom are ways of pleasantness, and all her paths her peace: she gives the promise of the life that now is, and of that which is to come; the promise of all that can make life desirable, of all that can afford tranquillity in death, and happiness beyond the grave. Continue then to walk in the truth :

stand fast in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made you free: and then that gracious God whom you serve will vouchsafe to you his presence, will guide you by his counsel, and receive you to his glory. "Blessed is the people whose hope is in God: they shall walk, O Lord, in the light of thy countenance in thy name shall they rejoice all the day, and in thy righteousness shall they be exalted."

To the Editor of the ChristianObserver. THE ambiguity of language is a common cause of controversy; and a due attention to that ambiguity may often prove a cure for it. Thus the English word, "witness," signifies properly one who bears testimony in a court of justice. But, since the English law allows no one to attest what he has not seen, the verb, "to witness," soon came to acquire the sense of seeing; and it has at length even monopolized that meaning; while we express the idea of attesting by the phrase not of witnessing, but of bearing witness. The Greek word uaplup,

however, seems to be liable to no such ambiguity, but signifies uniformly, not one who sees or looks on upon any thing, but one who bears testimony to it. Yet, because he is best qualified to bear testimony who has seen the thing which he attests, it can seldom happen that the words, paplug or paplepew, should occur, where the idea of seeing, or being, as we say, an eye-witness, may not be connected with it. In all the passages cited would seem to me (and I am supby your correspondent VERAX, it ported in this interpretation by all lexicographers), that men are called paclupes, simply because they are or may be required to bear testimony, although they are qualified to be called so by having seen the things which they testify; and in Heb. xii. 1, the controverted word can only refer, in this view of its meaning, to those persons whose history and experience have qualified them to attest the truth of those unseen and to us distant realities which are made present to our minds by faith. C. C.

among the Non-conformists; and like himself, in early youth she had chosen her own path: she had exthe Dissenters and the Church of amined the controversy, between England, with the utmost diligence, and satisfied herself that the schis

matics were in the wrong. The related wholly to discipline: but dispute, it must be remembered, her inquiries had not stopt here;

Socinianism, from which she was reclaimed by her husband. She was an admirable woman, of a highly improved mind, and of a strong and masculine understanding; an obedient wife, an exemplary mother, a fervent Christian.

and she had reasoned herself into

husband soon attracted notice, by his learning and ability. Talents found their way, in that age, less readily into public, than at present; and therefore, when they appeared, they obtained attention the sooner. He was thought capable of forwarding the plans of James II. with regard to religion; and preferment was promised him, if he would preach in behalf of the king's measures. But instead of reading the king's Declaration, as he was required, and though surrounded with courtiers, soldiers, and informers, he preached boldly against the designs of the Court; taking, for his text, the pointed language of the prophet Daniel, If it be so, our God, whom we serve, is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace; and he will deliver us out of thy hand, O king! But if not, be it known unto thee, O king, that we will not serve thy gods, nor worship the golden image which thou hast set up.' When the Revolution was effected, Mr. Wesley was the first who wrote in its defence. This work he dedicated to Queen Mary, and was rewarded for it with the living of Epworth, in Lincolnshire. It was a large parish, containing about 2000 souls: but he found them in a profligate state; and the zeal with which he discharged his duty, in admonishing them of their sins, excited a spirit of diabolical hatred in those whom it failed to reclaim. Here, on the 17th of June, 1703, his second son John, the subject of my present letter, was born.

"The wretches who hated their pastor had twice attempted, without success, to set his house on fire: they succeeded in a third attempt. At midnight, some burning pieces of wood fell upon one of his daughters, and awoke her. At the same time Mr. Wesley, hearing a cry of Fire!' from the street,started. His wife was very ill at the time, and therefore slept in another room. Bidding her and the two

eldest girls go shift for themselves, he burst open the nursery door, where the maid lay with five chil dren: she snatched up the youngest, and bade the rest follow her: the three elder did; but John, who was at this time six years old, was not awakened by all this; and in the alarm, he was forgotten. By the time they reached the hall, the flames were all round them, and Mr. Wesley then found that the keys of the door were above stairs. He ran, and recovered them, a minute before the staircase took fire. When the door was opened, a strong north-east wind drove in the flames with such violence, that none could stand against them. Some of the children, however, got through the windows, others through a little door, into the garden. Unable to do either, owing to the state in which she then was, Mrs. Wesley, after three times attempting it in vain, rushed through the flames, into the street, naked as she was, and escaped with some slight scorching of the head and face. At this time, the child was heard to cry in the nursery: until that moment he had not been remembered. The father ran to the stairs; but they were then so nearly consumed, that they could not bear his weight; and being utterly in despair, he fell on his knees, in the hall, and in agony recommended the soul of the child to God. John, mean time, who had been awakened by the light, ran to the door, and finding it impossible to escape there, climbed up upon a chest that stood near the window. was seen from the yard: there was no time to fetch a ladder; but it was happily a low house: one man was hoisted up upon the shoulders of another, and was then able to take him out at the window; a moment later, and it would have been too late the whole roof fell in; but it fell inward, or they must have all been crushed together. When the child was carried into the house where his parents were,

He