glorious cause of the Gospel. When he was tied to the stake, and was just going to be put to a cruel death, the Lord, who has promised never to leave, or forsake his people, supported him in his last agonies. There was no murmur, no grief, at being called upon to suffer in the cause of his beloved Master; but, in his last prayer, he blessed the Lord who had brought him to see that day, and that hour; and the last words he spoke were, Glory to the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost."

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T. Pray, who was this good man, William, and how long did he live?

W. O, he lived a long time ago;-he was alive at the time of the first Apostles of our Lord. His name was Polycarp. He was made a Bishop by St. John himself, and had always great delight in talking over the sayings of that "disciple whom Jesus loved."

T. Well, the last words of his prayer certainly show us that the way in which we express the glory of the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, is the way in which the first Christians did it. And we trust that "as it was in the beginning, and is now, so it ever shall be, world without end."-But now let us see what comes next;

THE PSALMS.

W. Yes, but before we begin them, the Mister says," Praise ye the Lord :"-to which the people answer, "the Lord's name be praised." Now these words are used to put us in mind that we are getting to that part of our worship which consists in praising the Lord. We have, already, confessed our sins, and come (if we have come aright) in sincere penitence to God, through a Saviour's all-atoning merits. For his pardoning mercy, and for all his mercies we have need to" praise the Lord;" and the Minister, therefore, calls upon us to do so; then rejoicing in the glorious work, we, one and all of us, exclaim,

"The Lord's name be praised."-Then we begin to praise the Lord in those beautiful words of Scripture which are called "the Psalms." And here too we should seek to have our hearts and minds engaged in the service. In reading them, the Minister takes one verse, and the people another, and so we are all employed in the work of praise.

T. Yes, and very noble that does sound, if all the people join heartily and devoutly. But many poor creatures can't read, and so they can't join.

W. No, that's very true. But then, as the clerk generally leads the people, those who cannot read may still carry their minds along with the praises thus publicly offered,-if the clerk reads in a distinct and devout manner. However, I hope, if Sunday-schools and day-schools go on and prosper, our congregations will, in time, be all able to read, and so all join in the service, and make it just what it ought to be, and what it was certainly intended to be.

T. And they tell me, that in many of these schools, the children learn to sing too; so that, in time, we may expect the whole congregation to join in singing the praises of God, instead of leaving this part of the service to only a few of the people, as is too much the way now-a-days. When a psalm is given out, the clerk says, "Let us sing to the praise and glory of God." This shews that we should all join if we can: it is not, "Let us listen, whilst others sing;"-but it is, "Let us sing."

W. To be sure; and, as God's goodness is shewn to us all, we certainly ought, all of us, to join in showing forth his praise. It is true, that if we have never learned to sing, and never practised it, we shall not make much of it at first. At any rate, however, if we cannot join in the music, we can, as St. Paul says, "sing with the spirit, and with the understanding *."

I Cor. chap. xiv. ver. 15.

T. Why, certainly ;-and thus we may all "sing unto the Lord, and heartily rejoice in the strength of our salvation." These words you know come out of the 95th Psalm, and I have often thought how suitable it is for us to begin with this Psalm, as we do, before any of the rest. It seems to invite * us to the work of praise; to come before his presence with thanksgiving, and show ourselves glad in him with psalms." It invites us likewise to prayer as well as praise; to "worship and fall down, and kneel before the Lord our Maker."

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W. Yes; and I have been told, that, in ancient times, they used to sing this Psalm before the service began and thus all the people that were in the church, by singing this together, invited those who were in the church-yard, or about to come in, and join in prayer and praise. And some, who were in bed, when they heard this invitation Psalm, would get up, and make haste into church. In those days, you know, service began very early in the morning.

T. Well, I think, that if Christians, in those days, could delight in getting up betimes, to pay in public their morning tribute of praise to him who had preserved them in safety through the night, it is a sad thing to think of, that many, in these days, cannot get ready for morning church when it does not begin till ten or eleven o'clock !—But let us go on to talk about the Psalms. I think I can see, in these Psalms, something suitable to every state of the heart, or of the circumstances. If we are cast down with affliction or distress of body or mind, we can see that David, though a king, had his trials too; and we may learn from him, where to look for help. If we are oppressed with the burden of our sins, we may learn how David mourned for his, and repented, and found mercy. If the Lord gives us repentance for sin, and "makes us glad with the joy of his

*This was called "The Invitatory Psalm."

countenance," we are taught to give praise to him whose "mercy endureth for ever." In short, if any blessing is bestowed upon ourselves, or our fellowcreatures, we are taught, in the Psalms, to "praise the Lord for his goodness, and declare the wonders that he doeth for the children of men." The Psalms seem suited both for public worship and private meditation; and we do well to take the Apostle's advice thus to "admonish one another in psalms, and hymns, and spiritual songs."

W. Yes, certainly. And these Psalms, we may observe, contain many things relating to our Saviour, who was to come into the world more than a thousand years after they were written; and thus, having the spirit of prophecy in them, they must be inspired. In former times, people were not satisfied till they could repeat the whole book of Psalms by heart. Our blessed Lord, whilst he was upon earth, seemed to have a delight in these Psalms. When he hung upon the cross, he said a part of the 22d, and died whilst repeating a part of the 31st. Thus he, who spake as never man spake, chose to conclude his life, to solace himself in his greatest agony, and at last to breathe out his soul, in the Psalmist's words, rather than his own. There is a great deal, indeed, in these sacred hymns; they are full of instruction, and of comfort. Here we see the blessings of religion; it was this which afforded delight to the Psalmist David, when all his earthly greatness could give him none : -and his beautiful Psalms offer the same comfort to others which they afforded to himself. Excellent, however, as these Psalms are, the church does not stop here. We have other parts of Scripture read for our instruction. When we consider that there was a time when the Scriptures were not allowed to be read at all, in our language, what a blessing it is that these things are now open to us all! We can read the Scriptures at home, and they are read to us in the church. There are always

TWO LESSONS

read to us as a part of the service; one out of the Old Testament, and one out of the New; and, by going to church twice every Sunday, we hear four chapters, besides the Psalms, and Epistles, and Gospels, and all those other portions which are to be found, in different parts, all over the Prayer-Book. Why, I call this a noble, scriptural stock! Surely we cannot be thankful enough for all these privileges! With all these opportunities, it is a disgrace for a true churchman to be ignorant of the word of God. If we see our privileges, and rightly use them, we shall find great comfort, and improvement too, from what we hear. I have known many a man, and woman too, who could not read a letter of the book; yet, by constant attendance at church, they have arrived at a great acquaintance with Scripture, and have walked in its light its threatenings have alarmed them from sin, its invitations have won them to godliness, and its promises have supported them in the day of trial and affliction in the hour of death they have been supported by a reliance on that Saviour on whose merits. the church teaches them to confide; and at the day of judgment we trust they will not be forsaken.

T. To be sure, to be sure, all these blessings may be got from the word of God. It is, indeed, a glorious privilege to hear so much of the glad tidings of salvation every time we go into the house of the Lord. But how little value do we often set upon those blessings which our heavenly Father so mercifully bestows upon us! How many people have I seen, in a place of worship, negligent and careless about all these "glad tidings," perhaps whispering, and looking about them, whilst the Minister was reading to them these "words of eternal life!" Whilst God's messenger was declaring to them God's own words, they have turned a deaf ear as if