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ence at the throne of mercy, and among their fellow creatures, which they have exerted for the best interests of the human race. Wherever such characters are found, they are public blessings; and Britain has been favoured not only with a bright cloud of witnesses to the truth, but also with a glorious host of eminent benefactors to the world. Let us revere their memory, and endeavour to acquire all the information concerning them, which we can procure from the scattered fragments of well authenticated tradition. But let all the glory be ascribed to the God of grace, the source of all good and happiness." (p. 179.)

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"Thou understandest my thought afar off."—Psalm cxxxix. 2.

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Keep thy heart with all diligence, for out of it are the issues of life."-Prov. xi. 23.

WHILE, even to the gaze of those

The most beloved and dear,

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Thou wouldst not, that each secret thought
Should undisguised appear,

As in thine open word and deed,
Thy fancied character they read,———
Tell me, my soul, dost thou forget,
Though from each human eye
All sacred are thy thoughts, within
That hidden sanctuary-

Tell me, my soul, dost thou forget,
There is an Eye that reads them yet?
Dost thou forget, that He-the Pure,
The High, and Holy One-
Not e'en the angels guiltless deems,
Who bow before His throne,
And veil their heads with wings of light,
In fear and awe, at His dread sight?

Dost thou forget, that to His ken

Thy thoughts do open lie,

As doth the sun's meridian path
In the emblazon'd sky?

When hidden from the gaze of men,

There is an Eye that reads them then!

No artful gloss with Him avails;

By no disguise conceal'd,

All, in their native worth or guilt,
Thy motives lie reveal'd:
Then, cherish not one thought of ill,
There is an Eye that reads it still!

And watch and pray, that every thought
From guilt may be refined:

Well pleas'd, He marks the virtuous aim,
The struggle of thy mind-

The precious one within to free
From taint of earth's impurity.

Oh, watch and pray!-that thou may'st keep
Thy heart a temple pure;

Where all things lovely, sacred, true,
In peace may dwell secure;-
And fearless then thou may'st avow,
There is an Eye that sees me-now.

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THAT the love of Jehovah is everlasting, and His mercy free and unpurchased-that He is eager to receive and ready to pardon the sincere penitent, without money and without price, is, I think, unquestionably the doctrine of Nature and of Reason, and above all, of the Scriptures. It is a doctrine so consolatory, and elevating, and ennobling-so calculated to raise us above this world's pleasures, and trials, and troubles-so much in accordance with all the hopes and aspirations of the human soul, and with the highest attributes of the human nature, that it seems to me strange and wonderful, that it should ever be doubted that it should require any proof. But the majority of professing Christians have set limits to the mercy of Jehovah; have denied, and do deny, that his grace is universal, and free, and unpurchased. It therefore demands a proof. I hope to be enabled to show, that it is written in the Scriptures, and imprinted upon the heart of man, in characters clear as the sun-beam. First, let us examine the Volume of Nature. The whole earth is full of the goodness of God, the universe is filled with the proofs of His love; spring's soft showers, summer's fervent heat, autumn's fruitful abundance, and winter's snow and cold, alike display His providence. The corn and the grape, the vegetable and the fruit, the lily of the valley and the daisy of the mountain, the beauteous rose and the fragrant violet, and every floweret of the vale, and every blade that springeth from the verdant earth, all—all alike proclaim His goodness, and wisdom, and power. "The heavens declare the glory of God, and the firma

ment showeth His handy work"; the glowing splendour of the sun, the mild radiance of the moon, and the glittering of the million stars that stud the firmament of heaven, every one of which is itself a world or a sun- -all proclaim His power, and wisdom, and love. "His sun shineth on the evil and on the good, His rain descendeth on the just and on the unjust," "causing the grass to grow for cattle, and herb for the service of man.' The earth rejoiceth, the mountains shout for joy, and the morning stars sing forth the praises of their Creator. View the animal creation, from the humble emmet to the mighty elephant; from the minutest animalcule, which the microscope of the philosopher can but just enable him to discern, to the huge and monstrous whale; from the torpid and almost lifeless polypus, up to man, the mighty monarch of the whole; contemplate the cattle "upon a thousand hills," and all the million tribes of living creatures that inhabit even this small speck of earth; see how all their bodies, and powers, and faculties are adapted, in the best and wisest manner, not merely for their existence, but for their enjoyment, and comfort, and happiness; even the insect which fluttereth but for a day and dieth, hath his organization as complete, and all his powers as adapted to his span of life, as hath the huge leviathan or the majestic lion. Let man consider his own frame, how admirably adapted is every part and member of his body to its particular use and service; let him consider the wonderful construction of the eye and the ear, and the beautiful regularity with which the heart, and the lungs, and every part of his body, perform their functions; he but willeth, and his limbs move; again he willeth, and they are still as death; he willeth to speak, and words are uttered; he willeth to be silent, and his mouth is shut. Let him reflect upon the powers of his mind, and reason, and intellect, and upon the exquisite pleasure which he deriveth from the exercise or the employment of them, and he must acknowledge with what power, and wisdom, and goodness, and love, he hath been created. Again, contemplate the affections of the human heart. Who can see the fond mother hanging over her darling babe, that draweth from her breast the nourishment of its little life-who can witness the affection and the love of the tender female, soothing, with her devoted care, the fevered brow or the afflicted soul of a beloved father, or husband, or brother-who can contemplate the

father's anxious care, the brother's endearing solicitude, the respectful and deep and hallowed affection of a child for its parent, and not admire and adore the goodness and the love of Him who implanted those affections there, and of whose love these are but the type and the shadow? And that we can and do recognise and admire and adore that goodness and love, is, I think, another and a very strong proof of its existence. And though God doth seem sometimes, for a moment, to hide his face-though man doth seem "born to trouble, as the sparks fly upward," yet what Christian is there, who hath not found his troubles to be but the chastenings of a loving Father-to be but blessings in disguise? What Christian is there, that hath not had cause to thank the Lord that he hath been afflicted-who hath not found, that all events, even those which seem to us the most afflicting, are ordered through His mercy, for our ultimate good and benefit even in this life? And though the wicked may sometimes seem to flourish on earth, and the righteous to be cast down, yet happiness is of the heart, not of the outward circumstances; the righteous poor man may be, and is, happier than the rich sinner. Riches bring their troubles and their trials; they often make themselves wings and fly away; prosperity often produces pride and presumption; and affliction, poverty, and distress, are the appointed means, of bringing man back to a knowledge of himself and to happiness. "Oh taste and see that the Lord is good,”; "that his tender mercies are over all his works." I might go on further to show, that a being who is infinite in power, and wisdom, and holiness, must necessarily be infinite also in goodness, and mercy, and love. But I fear I shall exceed my limits; enough hath, I hope, been said, to prove, that it is the doctrine of nature, of experience, and of reason-that the mercy of Jehovah is unlimited, unpurchased, and free. I shall now endeavour to show, that this is also the doctrine of the Scriptures.

When Moses was alone with the Lord in the mount, to receive the two tables of stone, we are told, "The Lord descended in the cloud, and stood with him there, and proclaimed the name of the Lord; and the Lord passed by before him, and proclaimed, The Lord, the Lord God, merciful and gracious, long-suffering, and abundant in goodness and truth, keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity, transgression, and sin;" Exod. xxxiv. 5-7.

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And this is proclaimed by the mouth of Jehovah himself, as the foundation of all his dealings with his creatures; it is proclaimed as the name, not of a national and selected deity-not of the God of the Jews only, but of Jehovah, the Self-existent, the Parent of nature, and the God of the whole universe. And the same consolatory declaration is repeated, again and again, both by Moses and by all the prophets; it is found, like a green spot in the desert, amidst the most terrible denunciations of punishment upon a guilty and rebellious people; the Father of the universe is shown to be as reluctant to punish the sinner, as he is eager to pardon the sincere peniThe following are a few of the passages which might be adduced:-" The Lord is long-suffering, and of great mercy, forgiving iniquity, transgression, and sin;" Numb. xiv. 18. "Thou art a God ready to pardon, gracious and merciful, and of great kindness," Nehem. ix. 17. "For thou, Lord, art good, and ready to forgive; and plenteous in mercy to all them that call upon thee;" Ps. lxxxvi. 5. "The Lord is merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and plenteous in mercy; he will not always chide, neither will he keep his anger for ever; he hath not dealt with us after our sins, neither rewarded us according to our iniquities; for as the heaven is high above the earth, so great is his mercy toward them that fear him; far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from us; like as a father pitieth his children, so the Lord pitieth them that fear him; he knoweth our frame, he remembereth that we are dust;" "the mercy of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting upon them that fear him;" &c. Ps. ciii. 8-17. "The Lord is gracious, and full of compassion, slow to anger, and of great mercy; the Lord is good to all, and his tender mercies are over all his works;" Ps. cxlv. 8, 9.-See also Psalm xxv. 6, 7, and 11; li. 1, 16, and 17; lxxix. 8, 9; c. 4; cvi. 44, 45; cvii. 13–15; cviii. 4; cxi. 4; cxvi. 5 and 8; cxvii. 2; cxviii. 1 and 29, &c. ❝I, even I, am he that blotteth out thy transgressions for my own sake, and will not remember thy sins;" Isa. xliii. 25. "Come now, and let us reason together, saith the Lord: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool;" Isa. i. 18; see also 16 and 17. "Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts; let him re

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