If this view be correct-and if it be not, the church in every age has been miserably deceived-then it is clear that all the hosts of hell could never have overpowered Christ, could never have borne down to the grave that flesh in which He did not dwell, with which He did not associate, but which was His own flesh--himself as much as His divinity is His own-or himself. Nor, when they assailed Him, did He consent to die, till He had repelled their utmost hostility, and sent them conquered away; and then, and not till then, did He descend into the tomb, as freely and as voluntarily as He shortly afterwards ascended up on high. M. D.

NO TEARS IN HEAVEN. GLORIOUS thought! It thrills the soul with pleasure. Fair land, beautiful clime, where the weary earthpilgrim finds his long-sought and much-desired rest. Well may we sing as we journey on,

"There is rest for the weary On the other side of Jordan." Here sin abounds, and sickness, pain, and death reign in all lands and make subjects of all ranks. None can escape; the high, the low, the good and the evil, alike suffer these natural woes. Afflictions are to be endured, disappointments must be suffered, and fears must be entertained to the end of life. There is occasion, therefore, for tears on earth, and copious, gushing tears will unbidden flow amid the bereavements and troubles which befall us here. Nor is it unmanly in us to weep. It is humane to weep from

sympathy with those who weep in trouble. From life's introductory cry, or its dying groan, tears may well bedew the pathway of mortals. But not so in heaven: there God shall wipe away all tears from all eyes, and sorrow and sighing shall flee away. No tears shall be caused there by physical suffering. Here we suffer in the body from sickness, broken bones, dislocations, mangled limbs, bruised flesh, ruptures, tumours, heat and cold. All our members suffer when one is on the rack, or in the fire. But in that better land these ills and woes shall be unknown, and pain-tears shall never fall. Health shall be perfect and perpetual. Pain shall never enter there. Our bodies shall be made like to Christ's glorious body; sinless, spiritual, and deathless; yea, all beautiful and glorious. Let the afflicted find consolation here. Let the maimed, the blind, the deaf and sighing look up-reach forth the hand of faith, and aspire for that state of blessedness which awaits the good beyond the flood of time.

But the good man's tears will sometimes flow in contrition for sin. He may not have wronged any man; he may feel that he has lived in all good conscience before God and the world, like the young man in the Gospel, yet there has been a time when his actual sins in the sight of God made him painfully conscious of guilt and condemnation, and made his very soul tremble from fear of the wrath to come. He saw, he felt, he knew himself spiritually lost, dead in trespasses and sins, miserable in soul, benighted in mind, unfit to live, and cursed of God for

his sins should he die. The deep depravity of his nature, the enervated state of his moral faculties, and the raging lusts of the flesh, have furnished him ample occasion for contrition of spirit before God, and caused him many long hours of penitential sorrow, and like the Psalmist, he is led to say, "The pains of hell got hold upon me, I found trouble and sorrow," and "my tears have been my meat day and night." But in heaven all those tears shall be wiped away we here shed in contrition; no penitential tears shall enter there.

Here, too, the fear of future retribution will cause our eyes to shed "scalding tears." It is true some affect entire disbelief therein, while others manifest perfect heedlessness thereof. Still all who have faith in the revelation of God, in moral agency and human accountability, will feel apprehensive at times of being lost. They know they may fail of the grace of God at any period of probation; and knowing the numerous sources of danger, the potency of their spiritual foes, the allurements of vice, and the blandishments of the world, the soul is often wrung with bitter anguish and distracting fears. O what tears have fear-trembling mortals shed on earth! But these may not always flow for ourselves; Jesus wept, prayed and agonized for those exposed to the wrath to come; and St. Paul wrote to the church in

one place, that he had often told them, even weeping, that those who preached certain sins could not enter the kingdom of heaven. All true Christians feel this at times, more or less intensely; but not so in heaven; all are saved who enter there; they share its fruitions; contingency, liability and peril are past; all is fixedness and felicity for ever. Hence no tears shall there be shed in dread of coming wrath.

In this world we often shed our tears and make our moans under the trials of life. These we have as probationers. "Many are the affictions of the righteous." Temptations, doubts, cares, disappointments, loss of friends, slander of enemies, wickedness of society, sensual propensities, &c., swell the list of our afflictions on earth. These, all must encounter more or less; but in that fair land which God gives to us by promise, and for which He fits us by His grace, no such trials shall be known, They may, they must cause weeping here for a night, but joy will come in the morning. For our light afflictions here, shall work for us there a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory, while we look at those unseen realities and priceless treasures God has in store, and has promised to all those who believe on His Son, keep His commandments, and endure to the end. Z. H.

THE HOLY SPIRIT'S TEACHING.— George Muller says: "I never remember, in all my Christian course, a period now of nineteen years and six months, that I ever sincerely and

penitently sought to know the will of God by the teaching of the Holy Ghost, through the instrumentality of the Word of God, but I have always been directed rightly."

It is vain, absolutely vain, to expect these blessings from God himself without coming to Him by prayer, and seeking them at His hand through the mediation and merits of His dear Son. Seated upon His throne of grace, He says, "Come now and let us reason together." "Come unto me," said the Lord Jesus, "and I will give you rest." Ask, seek, knock, and strive. The hope of having without asking, finding without seeking, and winning without running, is a delusion of the devil which is destroying millions of souls. They have no heart to come and seek and ask, yet they persistently expect to find and enjoy, contrary to all nature, reason, and revelation. Still,

It is vain, absolutely vain, in any guise or form to come to God without faith. Faith is the work of God, and of all works the most excellent, necessary, effectual, and beneficial. "Without faith it is impossible to please God: for he

that cometh to God must believe that He is, and that He is the rewarder of them that diligently seek Him." In coming, believe in His being, wisdom, power, holiness, justice, goodness and truth, and be confidently assured it is no vain thing to draw nigh unto God. He will look upon your sorrows, and hearken to your prayers, and bless all them that seek Him, both small and great. He will, for the sake of His Son, regard those desires and efforts which have been quickened by His Holy Spirit; He will crown them with the blessings of His grace and the riches of eternal glory.

J. M. L.

THE GREAT NEGLECT. "How shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation ?"-HEB. ii. 3.

What is neglect ? — Inattention, carelessness, the omission or postponement of something which ought at once to be attended to and done.

What great matter is awfully neglected? - Salvation- the great salvation. Not education, business nor pleasure-not the farm, the family, nor the body-but the soul, the soul's everlasting salvation; those are generally and often unduly minded, this is extensively and awfully slighted.

Who are the neglecters of the great salvation?-They who neglect

prayer, the Holy Scriptures, and the house of God, and who postpone the seeking of salvation to a future period-they who neither repent nor believe the Gospel. This large class includes persons of all ages, circumstances and conditions life; children, young people, aged men and women, the rich, the poor, learned and unlearned, religious professor and outwardly profane; although differing in other respects, they are fearfully agreed in this, the neglect of the great salvation.

How is this neglect to be accounted for?-The world is enticing, business pressing, pleasure alluring, and example misleading. Besides, human nature itself is fallen, depraved, unfeeling, unbelieving, prone to evil, and deadly set against that which is good; and "the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not." Thus the neglect of salvation is to be accounted for, though neither justified nor excused, but deeply deplored and condemned.

What will be the consequences of this neglect?-Neglect ruins. By it a business fails, a ship will sink, and a farm will yield only thorns and weeds. An infant by neglect will die, and salvation neglected, the soul will perish for ever. There is a deep yawning pit of outer darkness, fire, brimstone, and everlasting torment, and no way of escape is open to the neglecters of salvation.

What, then, should the neglecters do? They should listen now to the sound of alarm, admonition, and invitation; be awake, repent, cry mightily to God for mercy, "behold the Lamb of God," "flee from the

wrath to come," and "lay hold on eternal life." J. M.

HEAR! HEAR! HEAR! Hear-WHOM? Hear Moses and the prophets, Christ and the apostles, and such as bring the same doctrine. But should any man, or even an angel from heaven, preach any other Gospel, let him be utterly rejected and condemned. See Matt. vii. 16, and Gal. i. 8, 9.

Hear-WHAT? Good news! Glad tidings of salvation for the greatest of sinners, through the blood of the Lamb, and by the grace and power of the Holy Spirit. "Take heed what ye hear." Hear the truth as it is in Jesus Christ.

Hear WHERE? Anywhere: Church, chapel, barn, room, cottage, or in the open air. The place is of no importance-the TRUTH is of infinite consequence. Let neither prejudice nor bigotry,-indolence, fear or favour, prevent your hearing the Gospel of Christ wherever it is proclaimed. Hear it anywhere.

Hear-How? "Take heed how ye hear." Listen to the truth of God, seriously, attentively, constantly, with self-application, perseverance and practice. James i. 21.

Hear-WHEN? Without delay. "To-day if ye will hear His voice, harden not your hearts." The Sabbath-day is an especially appropriate season; but a warm heart, an anxious and earnest soul, will gladly improve every opportunity of hearing the word of God.

Hear-WHO? Who should listen to the joyful sound-the tidings of

salvation? All. It is worthy of all acceptation therefore the young, the poor, the distressed, and all who are desirous of instruction, direction, forgiveness, consolation and salvation, should listen to a preached Gospel. "He that hath an ear, let him hear."

Hear-WHY? It is a great and distinguishing privilege to hear the

Gospel. "Blessed are your ears for they hear." Besides, God has commanded it, and promised life to those who hear rightly, saying, "Hear and your soul shall live;" and "Faith cometh by hearing." But most awful threatenings are denounced against all who refuse to hear the word of God. Read Prov. i. 24; Heb. xii. 25.

ACCURACY OF THE

THE last half century has done much to demonstrate the truth and elucidate the meaning of the Holy Scriptures. Eastern travel has already achieved great things on this behalf; and there is reason to believe that we have yet received only the first-fruits; the harvest is still to come.

Of St. Luke's minute accuracy I proceed to give a well-known instance, which I would preface by a parallel example illustrative of the apparent contradictions so constantly to be met with in ordinary history. The medals struck for the coronation of Louis XIV. gave a different day from that which all contemporary historians agree in fixing for the date of that event. Of all these writers one only has noticed & circumstance which accounts for this discrepancy; for he alone mentions that the coronation had been appointed to take place on the day given by the medals, which were accordingly prepared, but that circumstances

SCRIPTURE WRITERS.

caused a delay till the date assigned by the historians. Nothing can be more simple than this; and yet, in a thousand years, had no such explanation been given, antiquarians would have been sadly perplexed in their efforts to reconcile the contradiction.

Let us now turn to the parallel case in the Acts of the Apostles. St. Luke, in the thirteenth chapter, gives the title of Proconsul to the Governor of Cyprus. In the division, however, of the Roman Empire by Augustus, this island had been reserved for his own jurisdiction; and, consequently, its governor must have borne the rank of procurator; that of proconsul being appropriated to those who ruled the provinces which the emperor had ceded to the senate. The title here assigned by St. Luke to Sergius Paulus, had for a long time perplexed commentators, who knew not how to reconcile the statement of the sacred historian with the assumed facts of the case. Some coins, however, were found,