Daily Bread.

FRIDAY.

"God be merciful to me a sinner."-LUKE Xviii. 13.

Merciful God, thyself proclaim
In this polluted breast;
Mercy is thy distinguish'd name,
Which suits a sinner best.

Surely, O Lord, thy goodness is greater than my sinfulness, and thy mercy surpasseth my misery; for though my sins reach even to the clouds, yet thy mercy is above the heavens. Surely misery is the proper object of mercy. Holy God, if thou help me not for the sake of my miseries which I have deserved, yet help me for the sake of thy mercies which thou hast promised in Christ, thy dear Son. Doth not his precious blood cry louder for pardon than my sins for punishment? Lord, hear the cry of that blood!-Willison.

SATURDAY.

"Thanks be unto God for his unspeakable gift."-
2 COR. ix. 15.

Honour and might, and thanks and praise,
I render to my pardoning God;

Extol the riches of thy grace,

And spread thy saving name abroad.

Many give thanks to God for meat and drink to their bodies, which indeed is the duty of all; but, alas! few give thanks to God for Jesus Christ, the only food of precious souls, and God's unspeakable gift to men! Many are foud of temporal gifts and earthly riches, which are nothing but vanity; but, ah! they are easy about this pearl of great price, this matchless gift, whose value no tongue can express, nor open up what is contained in it.-Ibid.

SABBATH.

"The hope of the glory of God."-Roм v. 2.
When thou hadst all thy foes o'ercome,
Returning to thy glorious home,

Thou didst receive the full reward,
That I might share it with my Lord;
And thus thy own new name obtain,
And one with thee for ever reign.

Faith advanceth the soul to higher projects than to seek the things of this life. It discovers a world beyond the moon; and there lies faith's merchandise. Leaving the colliers of this world to load themselves with clay and coals, while it trades for grace and glory, faith fetcheth its riches from afar. Saul did not more willingly leave seeking his father's asses when he heard of a kingdom, than the believing soul leaves prowling for the earth, now it hears of Christ and heaven. Surely," saith David, "they are disquieted in vain: he heapeth up riches, and knoweth not who shall gather them;" and afterwards, we have him with a holy disdain turning his back upon the world, as not worth his pains: "And now, Lord, what wait I for?" As if he had said: Is this the portion I could be content to set down with-to set upon a greater heap of riches than my neighbour hath? "My hope is in thee; deliver me from all my transgressions." Every one as they like. Let them that love the world, take the world; but, Lord, pay not my portion in gold or silver, but in pardon of sin; this I wait for.-Gurnall.

MONDAY.

"They seek me daily."-ISA. Iviii. 2.
O may the gracious words divine
Subject of all my converse be;
So will the Lord his follower join,
And walk and talk himself with me.

Many when God visits them, then they visit him, but not till then; when God poureth out his afflic

tions, then they pour out their supplications. This is seamen's devotion; when the storms have brought them to "their wits' end, then they cry to the Lord in their trouble." Many never cry to God till they are at their wits' end; they never come to God for help, so long as they can help themselves. But God's people are more zealous in their devotion; the others make a virtue of necessity, but these seem to make conscience of duty.-Mead.

TUESDAY.

"My soul hath desired thee in the night."-Isa. xxvi. 9. Long have I waited, Lord,

For thy salvation here,

And hoped, according to thy word,

To see it soon appear.

Thyself Jehovah's Son
Discover to my heart,

That when I have my Saviour known,

I may in peace depart.

There was a great dark cloud of vanity before mine eyes, so that I could not see the sun of justice and the light of truth. I being the son of darkness, was involved in darkness: I loved my darkness, be cause I knew not thy light; I was blind, and loved my blindness, and did walk from darkness to darkness; but, Lord, thou art my God, who hast led me from darkness and the shadow of death-hast called me into this glorious light, and, behold, I see.— Augustine.

WEDNESDAY.

"The zeal of thy house hath eaten me up."-Ps. Ixix. 9.
How shall I thank thee for the
grace

On me and all mankind bestow'd ?
O that my every breath were praise!
O that my heart were fill'd with God!
My heart would then with love o'erflow,
And all my life thy glory show.

There is a zeal which is good, and which renders the soul highly acceptable to God-a zeal that never misses of heaven and salvation. This is a zeal which is a celestial fire-the true temper and heat of all the affections to God and Christ. It is a zeal wrought and kindled in the soul by the Spirit of God, who first works it, and then sets it on work. It is a zeal that hath the Word of God for its guide, directing it in working, both in regard of its object and end, manner and measure. It is a zeal that checks sin, and forwards the heavenly life. It is a zeal that makes the glory of God its chief end-which swallows up all by-ends.-Mead.

THURSDAY

"Woe is me, that I sojourn in Mesech !"-Ps, cxx. 5.
To mourn for thy coming is sweet,
To weep at thy longer delay;
But thou, whom we hasten to meet,
Shalt chase all our sorrows away.

My life is a frail life-a corruptible life; a life which, the more it increaseth, the more it decreaseththe farther it goeth, the nearer it cometh to death. A deceitful life, and like a shadow, full of the snares of death. Now I rejoice, now I languish; nowi flourish, now infirm, now I live, and straight I die; now I seem happy, always miserable; now I laugh, now I weep; thus all things are subject to mutability, that nothing continueth an hour in one estate; O joy above joy, exceeding all joy, without which there is no joy, when shall I enter into thee, that I may see my God that dwelleth in thee?-Augustine.

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In the Gospel our Lord asks these two questions: "What shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?" The parable of the rich man and Lazarus is a striking commentary on these questions. A man may be very rich, and yet very poor; or very poor, and yet very rich. He may have much on earth, and nothing in heaven. This was the case with Dives, the rich man in the parable. A man may have nothing of this world's substance, and at the same time have great treasures in heaven; which was the case with the beggar Lazarus. Let us look to these two men, Dives and Lazarus. If wealth be the great thing to be sought after and admired, a richer man will not easily be found than Dives. It is plain, from the style of his living, that he was very wealthy. The old imperial purple, which emperors and sovereign princes wore in token of their dignity and regal state, was this man's wear. Men reserve their feasts for great occasions-now and then they fare sumptuously-the rich man in the parable fared sumptuously every day.

God had bestowed this great wealth on him; but he was, notwithstanding, a godless sinner, It was not his great wealth that constituted him a great sinner. In that case, we would be led to set down all rich men for wicked men. It is a hard thing, as our Lord assures us, for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven-as hard a thing as it is for a camel to go through the eye of a needle; but the grace of God is equal to harder things than that. In heaven there are many who upon earth were rich and powerful—Abraham, Job, David, Hezekiah, and many more. The sin of the rich man in the parable consisted in this, that he did not fear, love, and obey God—that he despised, hated, and disobeyed God. He was a lover of pleasure, more than a lover of God. He made his great possessions his portion. He preferred the riches of this world-its pleasures-its pomp-to all the treasures of grace. Salvation on the one hand, and on the other the worldthese two to choose between, he fixes upon the world-he is wholly taken up with it; and there he must be left in the meantime.

would have pitied him, and given him the half of his last morsel.

It was not the poverty and affliction of Lazarus that constituted his goodness. There are many as poor and miserable as he was, who are as wicked as they are poor and miserable. It was the fear of the Lord that was in him, and by which he governed his conduct, which gave worth and excellence to his character.

Such were these two men-the one rich in the goods of this world, but without grace; the other rich in grace, but in regard to worldly substance, utterly portionless and destitute. Which of them had the better portion?

We have to consider the death of these two men. Death comes at one time or other, and closes up the history of every human being. If a man be a careless sinner, he must die-if a man be a true believer, he must die. The cup of death goes round the world-it passes from hand to hand, and no one can put it past. Lazarus was sitting in his rags, covered with his sores, and Death came with a warrant to take him, and he must needs follow. Death also came for the rich man; he, too, must go. Would he not have given all he had to have seen Death turn his back, and depart? But no; he must go, and without an hour's delay. Lazarus died first, then the rich man. The manner of their death is not told. As they were different in their lives, so also most likely in their deaths. Lazarus was a poor, but faithful servant of God, and so prepared for death; for the Lord gives his people grace to die as well as to live. He was ready, we may suppose, to bid death welcome-ready to glorify God, either by living or dying. Death, however, could scarce be but welcome to him. had nothing to leave behind that could cost him a pang at parting. He had nothing to leave but a poor, worn-out body of sin and death, in which he had patiently suffered many sore evils. He had much to receive when he departed-a hearty welcome into his Father's house-a house not made with hands eternal in the heavens. He was going to be crowned with glory, honour, and immortality.

He

Consider these two men. On each of them we see two seals set-on Lazarus the seal of death and the seal of Christ. Death has marked him out as a victim-a tree that must be cut down in the forest of life; but the scal of salvation is also upon him, and death can do him no real harm-the second death hath no power over him. The angels wait to carry him to glory; they delight in such errands of love. The rich man has also the seal of death upon him, and likewise another seal, but not Christ's; it is the

January 23, 1846.

seal of destruction. Have we the seal of Christ upon us? If not, we are in our sins, and miserable. Yet there is hope; for now is the accepted time, now is the day of salvation.

There is something more. Where did these men go after death? Death closes each man's mortal history. It is the last page, we may say the last word, the "finis," the "amen," of all he was or did here below. You can trace his steps through childhood, through manhood, up to extreme old age. In old age you see him breathing difficultly, and moving with steps that are slow and feeble. The grasshopper is a burden to him. At the extreme verge of this mortal life, a door opens to receive him. He enters, and it closes to open no You may shout after him, but he cannot answer. He has passed into eternity through that door, which is the gate of death. All on this side lies in the light and sunshine-all beyond is thick darkness. Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, neither has it entered into the heart of man adequately to conceive, the realities of bliss and misery that lie on the farther shore of death.

more.

We know, indeed, that on the farther side lie heaven and hell. We have heard the rumour of them, and have some glimpses of both graciously revealed to us. Of the glory of heaven we cannot rightly speak; neither of the misery of hell. There is a foretaste of both in this life; but what is that to the reality?

Lazarus died, the history proceeds, "and was carried by the angels into Abraham's bosom." He has got free from all his sufferings, and arrived safely in glory. All his suffering and misery he has left behind him-his body of sin and death-his sores-his ragshis poverty-his hunger-in a word, all his misery. Heaven is no place for such. There is no room or lurking-place for them in heaven. All sin and suffering are left outside, that the joy and glory of that blessed place may be complete and uninterrupted. All shall now be well with Lazarus for ever and ever.

"The rich man also died, and was buried." Is there no more about him? There is more --but how terrible is it! "And in hell he lifted up his eyes, being in torment." His soul departed out of his body, but it could find no resting-place of peace. There was no place for it but hell, whither it went, and was in torment. How can careless sinners, who have no interest in Christ, enjoy a moment's peace? On the very edge of destruction-and yet asleep! How certainly shall every Christless sinner be cast into hell! The Lord has made this certain beyond all doubt. And what a dismal, intolerable place hell is! The terrors of hell are described in the parable; shortly, it is true, but yet in such a way as to fill the mind with a fearful idea of them. The rich man had no solacement there of any of his good things. He was able to carry nothing with him. He lifted up his eyes, being in tor

ment." Looking up, he beheld Lazarus in Abraham's bosom. He makes a request, and pleads it very urgently. We would suppose that what he sought so earnestly would be some great matter-to be delivered out of misery, or to be annihilated. What he sought was to him a great thing-to us it appears a very small and trifling matter. "Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool my tongue, for I am tormented in this flame." "But Abraham said, Son, remember that thou in thy lifetime receivedst thy good things, and Hikewise Lazarus evil things; but now he is comforted, and thou art tormented." O what torment is there in hell! One drop of cold water! we would think that a small mercy, for we live in a land of rivers of water. A draught of cold water is precious in the desert. How much more would it be in that evil place into which Dives had come. Bat there it cannot be had. As one says, and as the text plainly shows, "There is not a drop of cold water all hell over."

And then there is no escape out of that evil place. Once in hell, always in hell. "And besides all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed: so that they that would pass from hence to you cannot; neither can they pass to us that would come from thence." It is part of the misery of those who are in the torment of hell, that they have no hope of escape. A great gulf is fixed between them and glorya gulf which no one can pass. On earth men can pass from land to land, though between land and land wide and tempestuous oceans intervene. Between Britain and America a great ocean intervenes. There was a time when no one thought of crossing it, or so much as thought it could be crossed; but now men traverse it every day in their winged ships. A | highway has been opened up between this country and the most distant lands, a highway through the great wilderness of waters. no other thoroughfare almost is there a greater traffic. Man can pass from land to land to the remotest corners of the earth; but he canne! pass from the earth to any of the neighbouring stars. He may survey them through his glasses, but the gulf between them and this earth is a gulf that cannot be passed. So with that gali į which God has fixed between hell and paradise: : a very awful consideration for those who are in torment, and for careless sinners wil are hastening to that evil place.