the exact moment that his spirit departed; it was about eleven o'clock. "Eternal love, free grace, his Saviour's precious blood, Gave him pure joy in life, sure hope in Jordan's flood, (1 Cor. xv. 55). VERSES FOUND IN WILLIAM'S HAND-WRITING AFTER HIS DECEASE, ON PSALM XCII. " 'Behold, the day is almost gone, The night is quickly coming on. O, praise our mighty God with me: His love, how boundless and how free! "'Tis good upon a harp to sing The goodness of our glorious King; And with our timbrels to proclaim The wonders of his glorious name. "What blessings doth the Lord impart To those who trust him in their heart! In hopeful peace I close my eyes, Awaiting goodness from the skies. "If I should leave this world to-night, May I with gladness take my flight; And, when I wake, O, let me be With thee to all eternity!" O what almighty power was that Which satisfied four thousand souls! Seven loaves, and fishes few, sufficed For him who all the earth controls. And still for spirits famishing He freely gives the heavenly bread; And countless multitudes in bliss Have with that precious food been fed! There's nothing else can satisfy The cravings of th' immortal mind: No other bread can fill the heart That seeks eternal joys to find! Blest Saviour of my fainting soul, Vouchsafe to feed me with thy love; Till, no more hung'ring or athirst, I join thy marriage-feast above! Miscellaneous. OMISSIONS OF PORTIONS OF THE MARRIAGE SERVICE. It is evident that any minister is acting illegally, and is liable to punishment, who omits any portion of the prescribed form of the marriage service according to his fancy or discretion. It is, nevertheless, an offence which has certainly been very frequently committed; and it was, probably, for that reason that the first section of the statute 6 and 7 Will. IV., c. 85, expressly enacts that, after the 1st day of March, 1837, "all the rules prescribed by the rubric concerning the solemnization of marriages shall continue to be duly observed by every person in holy orders of the church of England, who shall solemnize any marriage in England". If, therefore, any custom might have appeared to sanction a departure from the prescribed form, such custom has been recently repudiated by the legislature; and the clergyman would not only be liable to punishment, but, as it seems, would be wholly without excuse, who, following his taste or fancy, should now offend in this manner.-H. W. Cripps, M.A. London: Published for the Proprietors, by JOHN HUGHES, 12, Ave-Maria Lane, St. Paul's; and to by procured, by order, of all Booksellers in Town and Country PRINTED BY Rogerson aND TUXFORD, 246, STRAND, LONDON. black; the lids of the eyes are shell-like, and dyed with the stibium; and the pupil is for a full eye, and coloured black. A singular effect is produced by the pupil not being so large as the eye; but this was, no doubt, very different when the monument was in situ, as the height must have rendered it less striking. The chin is peculiarly double and full, although the rest of the face indicates youth; but it would appear from the Egyptian monuments that some of the tribes of central Asia-the Cheta, for example, a people in the vicinity of Mesopotamia-had this physical development. There is a smile upon the features; and the whole bears much relation to the Egyptian sculptures in part of the treatment; while, on the other hand, it is unequivocally of the same school as early Persian art, and the rigid works of the Archaic-Greek school, executed prior to the Persian invasion of Greece." THIS verse, and the chapter from whence my text has been selected, seem generally to produce in my mind most solemn feelings and thoughts. Who was this man that was dead? He was a good man. A lion killed him. Why did the lion kill him, if he were a good man? He had disobeyed the command of the Lord. God sent him to a place called Bethel to proclaim against the sins of Jeroboam; and he went boldly and proclaimed against the sins of Jeroboam, before all his nobles and princes. And this so displeased the king, that he stretched out his hand to seize the prophet; but his hand dried up-be had no power in it. Then the king, feeling he had done wrong, besought the prophet to pray to God for him, that his hand might be restored; and the prophet prayed, and, wonderful as it may seem, the king's hand was restored him again, and became as it was before. And here the prophet leaves us an example, the very thing that Jesus told us, namely, that we should do good to our enemies, that we should love them that hate us, and do good to them that despitefully use and persecute us. Like this prophet, you ought to do good for evil; yea, if any one has done you evil, do not wait for an opportunity, but try whether you can find one to do him good for the evil. Well, after the prophet had delivered his message, and when he was about to depart, the king asked the prophet to go to his palace and take some refreshment. But no, said the prophet, I am told by the Lord to eat no bread, and drink no water in this place. "So he went another way, and returned not by the way that he came to Bethel." But there were some present at the sacrifices who ought not to have been there: there were some young men there whose father had been a prophet, and still went by the name of an old prophet, that dwelt in that place. How his sons came to be present at these sacrifices I do not know; how they came to be mixed up with this multitude, who were not offering prayers or sacrifice to the Lord, I do not know. However, these young men went back to their father, and told him that the old prophet had been to Bethel, and was gone back again. He asked them which way he went; his sons told him which way. He then said to his sons, "Saddle me the ass": they did so, and he rode after the man of God. And the prophet that dwelt in Bethel came up to the other prophet, the man of God, and found him. Here was the good old man, away from the noise of the town; he had come away from the sacrifice, against which he had been ordered by God to speak; he had delivered the From "Sunday Services at Home, for young Children"; edited by the countess of Ducie. London: Hughes. 1852. We noticed this book when it first appeared. It has now reached a second edition. There is much in it to interest and profit the young reader. and we heartily hope that the valuable lessons so conveyed may, by the divine blessing, be rendered effectual.-ED. not. And prophecy God had told him to deliver. He knew there was much iniquity, much idolatry there; he left it as soon as he could; and he sat down under an oak. It is very pleasant to sit down under a tree, especially in a hot day, and then quietly to meditate. I dare say this was what the prophet did. He was meditating: he thought of the sin he had witnessed, of the sins of Jeroboam, of the idolatry of the people; and I dare say he uttered a prayer to God that he would turn the hearts of the people back again, that he would change the heart of the wicked Jeroboam, who so much tempted Israel to sin. I dare say thoughts of this kind were in the mind of the good old man when the prophet of Bethel came up to him and said, "Art thou the man of God that camest from Judah?" when he said, "I am." Then said this wicked prophet, "Come home with me, and eat bread." "No," said the good old man, "I must God told me, Thou shalt eat no bread, nor drink water there, nor turn again to go by the way that thou camest." What did the other prophet "He said unto say? He told a direct falsehood. him, I am a prophet also as thou art; and an angel spake unto me by the word of the Lord, saying, Bring him back with thee into thine house, that he may eat bread and drink water." But, the bible adds, "he lied onto him." And, sad as it must be to read," he went back with him, and did eat bread in his house, and drank water. it came to pass, as they sat at the table, that the word of the Lord came unto the prophet that brought him back"- -came in truth this time; "and he cried unto the man of God that eame from Judah, saying, Thus saith the Lord, Forasmuch as thou hast disobeyed the mouth of the Lord, and hast not kept the commandment which the Lord thy God commanded thee, but camest back, and last eaten bread and drunk water in the place of which the Lord did say to thee, Eat no bread, and drink no water; thy carcase shall not come unto the sepulchre of thy fathers." No further punishment did God denounce upon the prophet; but this was, no doubt, a severe rebuke to him. He remembered he had done wrong; he knew he had broken the command the Lord bad given him, and had eaten bread and drank water there. He left the house, he left the wicked prophet, he went away on his journey towards his home. How different his feelings must have been now to those with which he first left Bethel! Then he had obeyed the word of the Lord; he had delivered the message with which he was intrusted; he had refused the king's invitation, and he went away happy. So will you always go away pleased when you have been enabled to overcome any temptation. You will always feel a peculiar joy and pleasure when you overcome a temptation. This man, however, now went back, under a deep consciousness of having done that which the Lord had told him positively not to do, and judgment he saw suspended over him, as if written on the clouds of heaven: Thy carcase shall not come unto the sepulchre of thy fathers." He understood what it meant. He understood that some mischief was to befal him by the way. lion met him." And what took place? "When he was gone, a "A lion!" What were his thoughts when he saw the lion approach him? Generally, a lion will go away from a man: gene a man. rally, a lion, unless he is hungry, will not attack But "a lion did meet this prophet by the way." Who could have brought the lion there? He was not hungry, for we read he did not eat the man; he did not eat the carcase or the ass. He killed the prophet; that was all. Who could have brought that lion there, just to that place, just to kill that prophet, and no more? The Lord did it. He told the prophet he should not return alive to the land he had left; it was, therefore, the Lord that brought that lion. How does this show to us the truth of the scripture, where it is said that "God knows the cattle on a thousand hills"; he knows "the birds of the air, and calls them all by their names"! How this shows us that God knows everything-that he could turn his eye in a moment to a particular part of the secluded forest, and cause that lion to go to that path, to kill that individual for his one act of disobedience. Well, the lion slew the prophet; and you will find in the twenty-eighth verse it says that, when the wicked prophet heard it, he went and looked after the prophet, and found his carcase cast in the way, and the ass and the lion standing by the carcase the lion had not eaten the carcase, nor torn the ass." That was a wonderful thing: he had only killed the man. There was not even a scratch on his face that we read of. As if God had said, That is my servant; I love that man : he has been a faithful servant, but in this instance he has disobeyed me: punish him I must; but still, for the love wherewith I have loved him, I | will not let the lion tear or touch him, I will only let him take his breath. And, what is more, the Lord made the lion stand by the carcase and keep the beasts of prey from it. Though God permitted the lion to kill his servant, he made him stand by like a noble watchman, like a conquering warrior, and would not let a tiger or wolf come out of the wood and touch it. No; he made the lion stand by his servant till some one took him away. Nor did the lion touch the ass; for how was the dead prophet to be taken back to the city but on the ass? The ass, which had so often carried the prophet when living, was to be the funeral-bier of his favourite master. Thus it was. The man found the body, and he laid it on the ass, and brought it back to the city to mourn and bury him. We are told this wicked prophet buried him in his own tomb, and said to those around him, "When I am dead, then bury me in the sepulchre wherein the man of God is buried; lay my bones beside his bones." The wicked do not want anything to do with the righteous while they live, but they like to go where they go at death: they like to be with them after death. They do not want to follow their righteous way of life, though they would willingly have their bliss after death. Therefore this man said, "Lay my bones beside his bones." And what was the mournful feeling they had as they buried him? We are told, They mourned over him, saying, Alas, my brother!" Tell me what would be the feelings of your friends if soon called to bury you? Would they do it with tears? Would they do it mournfully? Would they be able to say, Well, a child of God has died; one that was ready for glory; one that has gone, through the merits of Jesus, ever to surround his throne? Should we mourn thus? Should we say, Alas, my sister! alas, my brother! he was one that feared the Lord, that loved Jesus, that remembered the Creator in the days of his youth? Should we so mourn and grieve over you, if you were so carried off, and say, Well, I am sure I am very sorry; she was growing up in the fear of the Lord; she was trying, with all her night and power, to love her Saviour; I am sorry she is gone? Would this be the feeling if you were to be now cut off? Should we mourn over you, because we knew "there was some good thing in you towards the Lord God of Israel?" While we mourned thus, should we look at each other and say, Well, never mind, let us dry our tears; though lost to us, he is gone to heavento that gracious Saviour who shed his most precious blood in order to wash our souls from sin? While we mourned over your death, should we rejoice you are in glory? Should we thus mourn and rejoice? Ask yourselves, if you had been or were to be cut off as suddenly as this good old man, would you go to be for ever with the Lord, or with the devil and his angels? One thing let me remind you. Here was a prophet, and a good man, cut down. For what? One sin-one sin. If this prophet were so punished for one sin, how will you be punished for all your sins, unless you believe? Unless you repent and turn to the Saviour, how will you escape the wrath of Almighty God? How will your sins escape his vengeance, when you see that for this one sin this good man was cut down so suddenly? You must repent, you must believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, you must go to him with full purpose of heart, and entreat him to change your heart, to put away your sins, to give you grace, and sanctify your souls. If not, when you die, you will not go where this good man, after he was cut down, went; for, after leaving the city, and before the lion met him, no doubt he spent the whole of that time in asking pardon; no doubt he spent the whole of that time in prayer, in entreating the Lord to forgive that sin of disobedience and all his other sins, to blot them out with that blood of the Messiah who was then to come, even that same Saviour to whom we now must apply, if we would have pardon and live. May the Lord, for his great name's sake, grant to you his Holy Spirit, so that you may see clearly and feel deeply the iniquity of even a single sin, and by his grace be kept through faith unto salvation, for Jesus' sake. PRAYER. O most gracious God, whose ear is always open even to an infant's prayer, listen to us who now call upon thee in Jesus' name. Thou art a holy God; but we are sinful children; we displease thee every day. O pardon us for our dear Saviour's sake. We ask thee, O Lord, to take away from us every evil temper, all self-will, all pride. Make us dutiful and obedient children. Give us thy Holy Spirit, that we may love thee with all our hearts, with all our minds, with all our souls, and with all our strength. And thus, becoming each day more teachable and more humble, may we be always followers of God as dear children. And now, O God, accept our praises as well as our prayers. We thank thee that we are taught while young the way to heaven. Do thou help us to show our gratitude to thee, and to those who teach us, by trying to walk in that way. We praise thee for thy holy word. O teach us to love what thou hast commanded, and to desire what thou hast promised. Above all, we bless thee for the gift of thy own dear Son. May thy goodness in giving him up for us all, and his love in dying for our sins, never be forgotten by any child now before thee. And now, O Lord, make us remember all that we have heard. Guide us into all truth. Make us wise unto salvation; for all we ask is through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Ghost, be with us all evermore. Amen. "It is indeed from the statements of scripture that the obtaining this peace is what all may have, what all Christians ought to have; and let us point out to you how this peace may be obtained. If you would enjoy this peace, you must cultivate a devotional habit, a habit of communion with your Father which is in heaven. We can hardly doubt that one great reason why Christians make so little progress and have so little enjoyment is, that they are so scant in their private devotions. God is ready to bestow great blessings; but then they must be asked for. This is the condition of bestowment: Open thy mouth wide, and I will fill it :' these are the Lord's own words. We have but to enlarge our desires, and God will increase his supplies. Let none of us then wonder if we have not much of that divine peace which passeth all understanding,' and if, in consequence, we be often overcome by temptations and disturbed by fears, because we are little in the habit of secret prayer and meditation. It is a good thing to be diligent in public worship; but nothing can make up for negligence in private. You may learn and obtain much in church, and so forsake not the assembling of yourselves; but it is, after all, in the closet that you may expect the best lessons, and the finest glimpses of immortality. See to it, then, ye who name the name of Christ, that ye be frequent and fervent in pri vate prayer to God. Thus the Lord himself shall bless you with peace. And who would be without this peace? Is not the night gathering? Is not the storm rising? Who would be without this peace? It is but a little while, and each of us will be summoned to leave the world, and appear before God. And what shall then comfort and sustain us. what, but a full persuasion that our sins are blotted out, and our persons accepted; That God is on our side, and that heaven is our portion? And this persuasion is the peace of God;' a peace which God bestows on those who wait upon him diligently, hearkening to the voice of his word.' Mysterious it is that there should be any peace which is not to be shaken amid the throes of dissolution and the terrors of judgment-mysterious indeed, but not incredible. Mysterious; for it is a peace which passeth understanding.' Not incredible; for thou, O God, hath promised to keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed upon thee; yea, even in the hour of death, and in the day of judgment.'" (Rev. H. Melvill). H. S. PREPARATION FOR DEATH: A Sermon, BY THE REV. F. O. MORRIS, B.A., Vicar of Nafferton, Yorkshire. HEB. ix. 27. "It is appointed unto men once to die.” THERE is no one thought, which, with the blessing of God, can do more to keep men in the way of holiness than an expectation of the same blessing of the Lord, tend by death; and this thought will likewise, with its usefulness to convince the heart more and more of sin, as necessarily setting before the mind its awful consequence and consequences. So in like manner the same thought will, by the grace of God, do much towards convincing the mind of the vanity of the world, even in its best estate, and by consequence to the weaning of the soul from its follies, vanities, and sins. The good things of this life are given to all men without distinctionto the bad as well as to the good. This should show us how little value should be set upon them; and they who daily look upon themselves as dying will the most easily learn the lesson. Again, the expectation of death will tend much to engage your hearts to the pursuit of everlasting happiness. We read, in God's word, that those his servants who now inherit the promises "all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off, and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims upon earth." They felt that they had but a short time to stay |