when our bodies go to their dust, O take our souls to sing Thy praise for ever, "with angels and archangels, and all the company of heaven." SLADE ON THE PSALMS. February 11th. "ASK, AND IT SHALL BE GIVEN YOU; SEEK, AND YE SHALL FIND; KNOCK, AND IT SHALL BE OPENED."-Matt. vii. 7. HOWEVER early in the morning you seek the gate of access, you find it already open; and however deep the midnight moment when you find yourself in the sudden arms of death, the winged prayer can bring an instant Saviour near, and this wherever you are. It needs not that you ascend a special Pisgah or Moriah. It needs not that you should enter some awful shrine, or put off your shoes on some holy ground. Could a memento be reared on every spot from which an acceptable prayer has passed away, and on which a prompt answer has come down, we should find Jehovah-Sharmah, "the Lord hath been here," ascribed on many a cottage hearth, and many a dungeon floor. We should find it not only in Jerusalem's proud temple, David's cedar galleries, but in the fisherman's cottage by the brink in Genesareth, and in the upper chamber where Pentecost began. And whether it be the rocky knoll where Jacob lay down to sleep, or the brook where Israel wrestled, or the den where Daniel gazed on the hungry lions, and the lions gazed on him, or the hillsides where the Man of Sorrows prayed all night, we should still discern the prints of the ladder's feet let down from heaven, the landing-place of mercies, because the starting-point of prayer. "Ye souls that are weak, Much to do more: HAMILTON. Lo! here's a foundation February 12th. "AND WHEN HE HAD SO SAID, HE SHEWED UNTO THEM HIS HANDS AND HIS SIDE. THEN WERE THE DISCIPLES GLAD, WHEN THEY SAW THE LORD. ' -John xx. 20. UNBELIEF had so sealed the eyes of the disciples, that they knew Him not, nor received His word of peace until He shewed them His hands and His side-a token of surpassing condescension to their weakness, equalled only by the surpassing love so plainly written in those cruel scars. Let me gaze with the wondering disciples. By those pierced hands and that wounded side do I recognise Thee, O my Saviour, who didst bleed for me! These are the marks of the dreadful battle, and Thou hast borne them with Thee to the heaven of heavens, where, in the midst of the throne, Thy redeemed ones behold a "Lamb as it had been slain." Let me never forget what sin cost my Lord; what a price He paid for my ransom ; what a penalty I should have suffered, had He not borne it; for the bodily sufferings represented by these scars, were but the smallest and lowest part of His sufferings on earth, when He was made "a propitiation for our sins." Therefore may I never think lightly, talk lightly, or feel careless about this evil and abominable thing, sin. "Then were the disciples glad, when they saw the Lord;" and glad also may they be who have not seen, and yet have believed. 66 FROM "GOOD WORDS." "Rock of Ages, cleft for me, Let me hide my self in Thee! Let the water and the blood, Save me from its guilt and power." 66 February 13th. BUT AS IT IS WRITTEN, EYE HATH NOT SEEN, NOR EAR HEARD, NEITHER HAVE ENTERED INTO THE HEART OF MAN, THE THINGS WHICH GOD HATH PREPARED FOR THEM THAT LOVE HIM."-1 Cor. ii. 9. In order to assist our feeble and contracted minds in forming some faint ideas of this blessedness, and to inform us who shall enjoy it, it is compared in the sacred writings to the most delightful and glorious things which come under our notice in the present world; for instance, to denote its superabounding delights, it is called Paradise, an allusion to the garden of Eden, for at God's right hand are pleasures for evermore. To signify its grandeur, magnificence, and glory, it is called a crown and a kingdom; as a crown it is unfading and incoruptible; to intimate that none shall enjoy it, but in virtue of a Redeemer's obedience, it is denominated a crown of righteousness; it is also called a crown of life, and a crown of glory. As a kingdom, it is boundless; it was prepared for believers from the foundation of the world; and it is the kingdom of their Father, who bestowed it upon them here, in right, to possess hereafter, in perfect enjoyment. To ascertain its perpetuity, it is called an everlasting kingdom, while they who enjoy it are called kings-are said to sit upon thrones, and to reign in life. To inform us who shall possess it, and in what way, it is called an inheritance, plainly denoting that none but the children of God shall ever enjoy it. BOOTH. February 14th. "AS FOR MAN, HIS DAYS ARE AS GRASS: AS A FLOWER OF THE FIELD, HE FLOURISHETH," &c.-Psalm ciii. 15-18. THIS affecting illustration of human frailty, and the transient nature of all earthly glory and prosperity, frequently occurs in Scripture; but it is here contrasted most beautifully with the everlasting mercy and truth of God. Let not man presume, who withereth like the green herb: but then let no man despair, whose nature, with all its infirmities, the Son of God hath taken upon Him. The flower which fadeth in Adam, blossoms anew in Christ, never to fade again. "OF THIS MAN'S SEED HATH GOD, ACCORDING TO HIS PROMISE, RAISED UNTO ISRAEL A SAVIOUR, JESUS."-Acts xiii. 23. JESUS is the great promise of the Bible, for in Him are contained all the promises. God our Father was, and is the great Promiser. God not only gave Jesus a Saviour to poor sinners, but, according to His promise, raised Him up from the dead, when He had made His soul an offering for sin; for He was delivered for our offences, and raised again for our justification. If God hath raised up to Israel this Saviour, what know I of Him? Have I felt my need of Him? Do I accept the Father's Saviour? Is Jesus my Saviour? and have I come to Him for salvation? 'Not all the blood of beasts On Jewish altars slain Could give the guilty conscience peace, Or wash away the stain. But Christ the heavenly Lamb Takes all our sins away; A sacrifice of nobler name, And richer blood than they. Believing, we rejoice To see the curse remove; We bless the Lamb with cheerful voice, And sing His bleeding love." UNKNOWN. February 16th. "AND TO KNOW THE LOVE OF CHRIST, WHICH PASSETH KNOWLEDGE, THAT YE MIGHT BE FILLED WITH ALL THE FULNESS OF GOD."—Eph. iii. 19. Of it can we ever weary? Its SUCH is our precious theme. greatness can we fully know? attain? Never! Its depths cannot be fathomed; its dimensions cannot be measured. It passeth knowledge. All that Jesus did for His church was but the unfolding and expression of His love. Travelling to Bethlehem, I see love incarnate. Tracking His steps as He went about doing good, I see love labouring. Visiting the house of Bethany, I see love sympathizing. Standing by the grave of Lazarus, I see love weeping. Entering the gloomy precincts of Gethsemane, I see |