seen in the long annual lists of self-complacent guinea subscribers, of whom many could easily give hundreds of pounds. The stinginess of professing Christians in all matters which concern God and religion, is one of the crying sins of the day, and one of the worst signs of the times. The givers to Christ's cause are but a small section of the visible church. Not one baptized person in twenty, probably, knows anything of being "rich towards God." (Luke xii. 21.) The vast majority spend pounds on themselves, and give not even pence to Christ.

Let us mourn over this state of things, and pray God to amend it. Let us pray Him to open men's eyes, and awake men's hearts, and stir up a spirit of liberality. Above all, let us each do our own duty, and give liberally and gladly to every Christian object, while we can. There will be no giving when we are dead. Let us give as those who remember that the eyes of Christ are upon us. He still sees exactly what each gives, and knows exactly how much is left behind. Above all, let us give as the disciples of a crucified Saviour, who gave Himself, for us, body and soul, on the cross. Freely we have received. Let us freely give.*

*It is probable, according to Arias Montanus and Brenius, that the words "all her living," mean "all her daily income," and not all her property.

It may be well to remark in this connection, that nothing can be more absurd than to say, as some do, that they contribute "their mite" to an object, when they probably contribute some trifling sum which they do not miss, and which bears not the most remote proportion to the widow's scale of liberality.-A man contributes "his mite" when he contributes half his daily income, and not till then.

MARK XIII. 1—8.

1 And as he went out of the temple, one of his disciples saith unto him, Master, see what manner of stones and what buildings are here!

2 And Jesus answering said unto him, Seest thou these great buildings? there shall not be left one stone upon another, that shall not be thrown down.

3 And as he sat upon the mount of Olives over against the temple, Peter and James and John and Andrew asked him privately;

4 Tell us, when shall these things be? and what shall be the sign when all these things shall be fulfilled?

5 And Jesus answering them began to say, Take heed lest any man deceive you :

6 For many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many.

7 And when ye shall hear of wars and rumours of wars, be ye not troubled for such things must needs be; but the end shall not be yet.

8 For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be earthquakes in divers places, and there shall be famines and troubles: these are the beginnings of sorrows.

THE chapter we have now begun is full of prophecy,— prophecy of which part has been fulfilled, and part remains to be accomplished. Two great events form the subject of this prophecy. One is the destruction of Jerusalem, and the consequent end of the Jewish dispensation. The other is the second coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the winding up of the state of things under which we now live. The destruction of Jerusalem was an event which happened only forty years after our Lord was crucified. The second coming of Christ is an event which is yet to come, and we may yet live to see it with our own eyes.*

*I think it right to repeat here what I said in commenting on the report of our Lord's prophecy given hy St. Matthew, respecting the destruction of Jerusalem. I believe that in the prophecy now under consideration, our Lord had in view a second siege of Jerusalem and a second tribulation accompanying that siege, as well as the first siege and tribulation when the city was taken by Titus. That such a siege is to be expected, the fourteenth chapter of Zechariah appears to me to be unanswerable proof.

I see no other way of explaining the close connection which appears in the prophecy, between the "affliction" here foretold, and the "coming of the Son of Man in the clouds with power and great

Chapters like this ought to be deeply interesting to every true Christian. No history ought to receive so much of our attention as the past and future history of the Church of Christ. The rise and fall of worldly empires are events of comparatively small importance in the sight of God. Babylon, and Greece, and Rome, and France, and England, are as nothing in His eyes by the side of the mystical body of Christ. The march of armies and the victories of conquerors are mere trifles in comparison with the progress of the Gospel and the final triumph of the Prince of Peace. May we remember this in reading prophetical Scripture! "Blessed is he that readeth." (Rev. i. 3.)

The first thing that demands our attention in the verses before us, is the prediction of our Lord concerning the temple at Jerusalem.

The disciples, with the natural pride of Jews, had called their Master's attention to the architectural splendour of the temple. "See," they said, "what manner of stones and what buildings are here! They re

glory." To interpret that "coming of the Son of Man," as the coming of the Roman army in judgment on the Jews, appears to me positive trifling with Scripture.

The view that our Lord is prophesying of two sieges of Jerusalem, and two tremendous tribulations which would fall especially on the Jews, and of His own second coming as an event which would immediately follow the second siege, makes the whole chapter plain and intelligible.

All these events ought to be deeply interesting to believers; and would be especially so to Jewish believers, like the apostles, in whose time the temple was yet standing, the Jewish dispensation not yet put aside, and Jerusalem not yet destroyed.

*It may be well to remark that the temple here spoken of, was, in a certain sense, the third temple in order which had been built at Jerusalem. The first was built by Solomon, and destroyed by

ceived an answer from the Lord very different from what they expected, a heart-saddening answer, and one well calculated to stir up inquisitive thoughts in their minds. No word of admiration falls from His lips. He expresses no commendation of the design or workmanship of the gorgeous structure before Him. He appears to lose sight of the form and comeliness of the material building, in His concern for the wickedness of the nation to which it belonged. "Seest thou," He replies, "these great buildings? There shall not be left one stone upon another, that shall not be cast down."

Let us learn from this solemn saying, that the true glory of a Church does not consist in its buildings for public worship, but in the faith and godliness of its members. The eyes of our Lord Jesus Christ could find no pleasure in looking at the very temple which contained the holy of holies, and the golden candlestick, and the altar of burnt offering. Much less, may we suppose, can He find pleasure in the most splendid place of worship among professing Christians, if His word and His Spirit are not honoured in it. We shall all do well to remember this. We are naturally inclined to judge things by the outward appearance, like children who value poppies more than corn. We are too apt to suppose that where there is a stately ecclesiastical building and a magnificent ceremonial,— carved stone and painted glass,-fine music and gorgeouslydressed ministers, there must be some real religion. And Nebuchadnezzar. The second was built by Ezra and Nehemiah. The third, if it may be so called, was enlarged and almost re-built, about the time of our Lord Jesus Christ's birth, by Herod. The enormous size of the stones used in building it, and the general magnificence of the whole fabric, are attested not only by Josephus, but by heathen writers.

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yet there may be no religion at all. It may be all form, and show, and appeal to the senses. There may be nothing to satisfy the conscience, nothing to cure the heart. It may prove on inquiry that Christ is not preached in that stately building, and the word of God not expounded. The ministers may perhaps be utterly ignorant of the Gospel, and the worshippers may be dead in trespasses and sins. We need not doubt that God sees no beauty in such a building as this. We need not doubt the Parthenon had no glory in God's sight compared to the dens and caves where the early Christians worshipped, or that the meanest room where Christ is preached at this day, is more honourable in His eyes than the cathedral of St. Peter's at Rome.

Let us however not run into the absurd extreme of supposing that it matters not what kind of building we set apart for God's service. There is no Popery in making a church handsome. There is no true religion in having a dirty, mean, shabby, and disorderly place of worship. "Let all things be done decently and in order." (1 Cor. xiv. 40.) But let it be a settled principle in our religion, however beautiful we make our churches, to regard pure doctrine and holy practice as their principal ornaments. Without these two things, the noblest ecclesiastical edifice is radically defective. It has no glory if God is not there. With these two things, the humblest brick cottage where the Gospel is preached, is lovely and beautiful. It is consecrated by Christ's own presence, and the Holy Spirit's own blessing.

The second thing that demands our attention in these verses, is the remarkable manner in which our Lord commences the great prophecy of this chapter.