this, and led them before their general. The ruthless demon in human form received them with a stern and relentless air. He decreed that all should die, and signed the fatal order, which was executed on March 10th. Four thousand men, firmly fettered, were marched to the sand hills on the sea-coast, and mowed down by the musketry amid shrieks that rent the heavens. In vain they prayed for mercy: every man was put to death. The bones of the vast multitude lie there to this day; it is a field of blood-a sad scene of Christian atrocity from which the Arab turns away in horror and disgust. Alas! Christendom calls the Napoleons, the conquerors, great and glorious. Bishops make prayers for their success, and mock Heaven by thanks for their triumphs. How infinitely antagonistic to the spirit of Him whom Christendom calls Lord and Master, who when He beheld the multitudes had compassion on them and fed them!

III. HIS BENEFICENCE TRANSCENDS BOTH THE FAITH AND NEEDS OF MEN. First: It transcends their faith. Philip said, "Whence shall we buy bread ?" and Andrew, another disciple, when he heard of the five barley loaves and fishes, said, "What are they among so many ?"

Their faith went not beyond the means they had in actual possession. For the time they seem to have had no idea that Christ was equal to the occasion; when He said, "Make the men sit down," perhaps they thought it was little less than mockery. How could starving men sit down and rest? Secondly: It transcends their needs. Jesus not only fed them, but after doing so twelve basketfuls of fragments remained. Christ always gives more than is needed. In nature we have redundancy of light, and air, and water, and fruit, and beauty. Nature, that has fed the generations that are gone, has as much, if not more, for the generations yet to come. The fragments that remain are greater than the stock that has been used. "He is able to do exceeding abundantly of all that we can think or ask," etc. His resources are exhaustless, His riches unsearchable. His blessings seem to increase by exhaustion: the more they are used, the more they seem to

multiply and grow; thus God's great universe becomes more affluent every day.

IV. HIS BENEFICENCE ALLOWS NO ENCOURAGEMENT TO WASTEFULNESS. "Gather up the fragments that remain, that nothing be lost." Use all, abuse nothing. In one sense nothing can be lost, not an atom of matter, not a thought of mind.* Frugality is the duty of man both in his temporal and spiritual concerns.

V. HIS BENEFICENCE IS A CONVINCING TESTIMONY OF HIS MESSIAHSHIP. "Then those men, when they had seen the miracle that Jesus did, said, This is of a truth that prophet that should come into the world."

First: Mere miracles would not be a sufficient proof of His divinity, because other beings besides God might perform that which man would regard as miraculous. Who can prove that no being but the Almighty could produce results that in the judgment of feeble man would be universally regarded as miraculous? In truth, if the miracle was effected to enforce a doctrine repugnant to human reason and conscience, it would be spurned as undivine and devilish.

Secondly: Miracles that are beneficent are proofs of Divinity. These proofs were now felt by the people, and they

said, "This is of a truth the prophet." This was the evidenee that Christ gave to the deputation that John sent to Him from prison. "Go and show John again those things which ye do hear and see the blind receive their sight, and the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, and the poor have the Gospel preached unto them."

*See a sermon on this in "Homilist," Editor's Series, Vol. V., Page 257.

TRUTHFULNESS, reality, are essential to moral soldiership—the very girdle to bind all the other parts of the panoply together and to protect the vitals of the soul. No man can fight this true fight who is insincere and dishonest; he must be true to the core; there must be no crack in the metal of his being; it must ring out music to every touch.

A MAN's forgiving faculty is in proportion to the greatness of his soul. Little men cannot pardon.

Germs of Thought.

Subject: The triumph of Christ's Mediatorial Kingdom.

"Gird Thy sword upon Thy thigh, O most Mighty, with Thy glory and Thy majesty. And in Thy majesty ride prosperously because of truth and meekness and righteousness; and Thy right hand shall teach thee terrible things. Thine arrows are sharp in the heart of the king's enemies; whereby the people fall under Thee."-Ps. xlv. 3-5.

MOST

POST commentators are agreed that this Psalm refers to the Messiah; it is what may be called a sacred nuptial song, celebrating in language of metaphor, and poetry, and sacred passion the spiritual union existing between Christ and His Church. The ancient prophets often used this image to denote this relationship; and the writers of the New Testament have thus consecrated the same image; Paul and John did so, and Christ Himself in His parables.

There are three states of mind expressed in the text in reference to Christ.

I. CONFIDENCE IN THE POWER OF CHRIST TO VANQUISH THE SOULS OF MEN. The question asked by the disciples might very properly be asked to-day, What think ye of Christ? of His qualifications, capabilities, and resources? Do you think Him adequate to the work He has undertaken ? As a mediator, He is the organ of Divine power, everything about Him proves that He has moral might to govern men, and by governing them to save them. But who are His enemies?

First. The first direct and decided foe over which He triumphed, was the Jewish Church. That corrupt Church murdered the Son of God. But He was silent only a little more than forty-eight hours, and then rose to speak to men, and lives to speak through men, till all nations shall hear His voice, understand, and believe.

Secondly. The second opposition was the political power of Rome. The Jews condemned Jesus according to their law,

because He was a blasphemer; but as they had lost the power of capital punishment they appealed to Rome, saying, Help us to put this man to death. Pilate became a tool in their hands and condemned the "Just One," but He triumphed over both.

Thirdly. The third enemy to be vanquished is the ungodly world. The spirit, theories, institutions, habits, and pursuits. of unregenerated humanity are in deadly opposition to Christ. But He will conquer, "He must reign." Thank God for a moral necessity which springs from the very nature of the Godhead. Is it not delightful to believe with our hearts that the truth, simple, naked, pure, divine, has a vitality, an energy as Omnipotent as God?

II. SYMPATHY WITH THE CAUSE IN WHICH HE WAS EMBARKED. What is the cause? (1) Truth; less party zeal, and more zeal for truth. (2) Righteousness; an unjust man is not a soldier of Christ. (3) Meekness; fidelity. (3) Meekness; fidelity. Soldiers of the Cross, the Redeemer must triumph. The other state of mind implied in the language is

III. A DEVOUT APPEAL TO HEAVEN. implies

"Gird thy sword"

1. A living faith in the present Life of Christ. justified by His death, we are saved by His life."

"We are

This is

one of the most cheering and animating truths, that Christ, whose name I bear, whose cross I carry, whose crown I fight for, is sympathizing with me. It implies

2. A renunciation of all instruments except those that are His. Gird the sword of the State? No; "Thy sword," etc. Carnal weapons have been foolishly and wickedly used in the cause of Christ-cannons, soldiers; and what an insult! what falsehood!

Brethren, God has a quarrel yet with our earth which has not been settled; religion is a divine principle, and not a secular policy. Church of God, fall on thy knees, and beseech Him to come and lead His followers on to victory.

Late CALEB MORRIS.

SERMONIC NOTES ON THE VISIONS OF EZEKIEL.

No. XII.

Subject: The Dirge over the Nations.
Chapters xxv.-xxxiii.

E have seen that in many separate visions Ezekiel had wept at the approaching fall of Jerusalem. He had learned and had revealed through those visions the prolific causes-the people's sins-that were producing the ruin of the Jewish nation, and also the terrible elements of suffering and of shame there would be in that ruin. Now there is a long pause so far as any prediction about his own country is concerned. And in one protracted vision, scarcely coming before him in similitudes, but rather in the foreseeing of literal events, he gazes upon a weird panorama in which other and surrounding nations hasten to their yawning grave. So we hear what Dean Stanley calls "The Dirge over the Nations." Ezekiel's predictions concerning their doom are calculated to heighten the impression made by the prediction of the doom of Jerusalem. "They were like the tragic chorus of an awful drama which was unfolding itself to the Eastern world." And in variety of detail all these visions concerning either Jewish or Pagan nations were alike teaching the same lessons of eternal righteousness and retribution. Before attending to those general lessons we notice-

First: What was the local and temporary meaning of the vision. And we see (1) That the people of Ammon, Moab, Edom, Philistia, Tyre, Sidon, and Egypt rejoiced in the calamities of the Jewish people. Ammon is described as having looked on at the fall of Jerusalem and "clapped their hands, and stamped with their feet, and rejoiced with their heart with all despite against the land of Israel." Moab had shouted that "Judah was like unto the heathen;" and so Edom and Philistia. Tyre had laughed, "Aha," in revengeful delight at the prospect of herself being commercially replenished while her rival was laid waste. (2) That these envious peoples were destined to destruction, because of their own sins, and emphatically for this envious pride. Marked