WHOEVER takes up a copy of our Bible must have often noticed that comparatively a small part of the entire book is occupied with the New Testament.

More than three-fourths of it contains the Old. And it is very probable, that on account of this great disproportion between the lengths of the Jewish and the Christian volumes, people sometimes adopt the habit of applying the word Bible, which properly belongs to the two, only to the former. Now it appears true, that whenever a fact of this kind is presented to us, it is our duty, not merely to look at the fact, but to try and find out what God intends that we should learn from it; for it is thus that all our knowledge comes: we have some bare facts given us, and we have to deduce from them the law which binds them together.

When we think of Judaism as represented in the Old, and Christianity in the New Testament, and understand that the one was a preparation and discipline for the other, being, in St. Paul's words, the "Schoolmaster to bring us to Christ," we learn generally, that Christianity by itself, properly speaking, is a very simple truth, soon told; whereas, the probation and the previous teaching, that render our hearts in a fit state for the reception of this one truth, are of a very varied nature; and therefore occupy more space, from their multiplicity,

than the Gospel, or good news, which is Christianity proper, and which can scarcely be stated in any other form than in the words of Our Lord himself, "Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends. Ye are my friends, if ye do whatever I command you." and hence we see at once, why the Old Testament is a larger book than the new; because, namely, the preparation for the Gospel is a larger thing than the Gospel itself.

Indeed, but few men take sufficient notice of the apparent necessity there is for a lengthy discipline, to precede our capacity for any truths; which is however, of universal prevalence. We see that the man is first the child: that he must almost painfully acquire the elements of learning, before his mind can take in what educated minds do take in. And in our spiritual as in our animal or intellectual existence, it is the same: an infancy must precede a manhood; and it is not till we have been prepared and proved and strengthened and chastened, that we come fully to appreciate that simple yet marvellous fact, that God so loved us as to become incarnate and die for us. It is none the less observable in the outward profes sion of Christianity by nations. We, when we look at the exceeding beauty of the Gospel, its vivid truthfulness, its entire adaptation to men's deepest

wants, are sometimes disposed to wonder why every human being with his reason unimpaired, does not immediately leap forward and embrace an offer of unlimited goodness and unquali. fied mercy. But in truth, our wonder may, after all, proceed from our forgetfulness of this, that outward professional Christianity, no less than inward spiritual faith, demands a preparation. And I do not doubt that it would be found, on inquiry, that Judaism has ever been, in some way or another, the "Schoolmaster," to bring the nations of the world into a fit state for receiving Christianity; SO much so indeed, that perhaps the system of Mahomet, which is nothing but a distorted Judaism, even though it be accompanied by errors and falsehood, may yet, in the providence of God, at the present day be bringing many, otherwise darkened Pagans, to be ready at the proper time to enrol themselves as servants of the Nazarene.

Much remains to be written and learned of this important part which Judaism has played in God's government of the world; and there are few, who may not apply the preparatory lessons there taught, to even their own particular cases, or those of the men with whom they are brought into

converse.

This, then, is the general notion we should have of Judaism, and the Old Testament in which it is expressed, that it was intended to prepare for Christianity; and if we read the first volume of the Bible under this impression, many things, which at first seemed strange and inconsistent, will stand out as parts of a great plan, which can only be understood when looked upon in its entire form-as lines and shadings of a great picture, but of no value unless the whole purpose of that picture be taken into the account.

The subject we are to consider this evening, confines me to notice only some points in the historical part of the

Old Testament, in a Christian light; i. e., in such a way as may conduce to our better apprehension of Christianity. And assuredly we shall better succeed in this undertaking, if we hold firmly before us, not only the Gospel, but the palpable prejudice and errors of men, that prevent their embracing the Gospel. Now we understand the Gos pel to be an offer made to us, whereby we may become happy; presupposing us to be in such a state as that without it, we should be miserable. And it is a fact, that the Gospel is always embraced by those who are really and inwardly convinced that they cannot become happy without it; and it is a dead letter to every man who is not so firmly persuaded that he is in an awfully dangerous state. And hence, if we can look upon any fact of the Old Testament as tending to make more evident the truth, that we are individually sinners, and that the natural and inevitable consequence of sin is misery; or as St. Paul's phrase is, "The wages of sin is death"; then, I say, that this fact does come to us as worthy of a most attentive consideration, and in very deed “a schoolmaster, to bring us to Christ." It is in a sense like this, that we are told in the Epistle to the Romans "the law entered, that the offence might abound;" (Rom. v. 20.) i. e., as the Apostle himself afterwards explains his meaning, not that the law made men sinners, but made them know that they were sinners; as you will see in the 7th chapter, and 7th verse, "Is the law sin? God forbid! Nay, I had not known sin, but by the law."

The difficulty of men's becoming per suaded of the future misery attaching to all their sins, arises from the cir cumstance, that unquestionably they find many sins, both of themselves and of others, not apparently followed by any ill consequence, or at least by any which they much care about. St. Paul, in that wonderful epistle to the Romans, to which I have twice made

allusion, (chap. ii. 3.-10.) notices, with great force, this obstinate prejudice upon men's minds; and he declares that this delay in punishment, instead of proving that God will not punish, rather ought to teach us to praise God's mercy in withholding his hand for a season, in order to give us an opportunity of embracing the offer He makes to us of salvation. In truth, the reason why our sins are not instantly punished, is simply that they are not yet consummated. Effects do not usually follow upon causes immediately: and although the sinner does not see the misery consequent upon his sin, yet the very hardness of heart and obtuseness of perception through which he continues to repeat "Tush! God doth not care for it;" is the very process going on, leading eventually to the miserable condition threatened as the future consequence of his sin, and which he is trying to persuade himself will not come, because it is deferred. As well might we, when we cast the corn into the ground, doubt of its future conversion into bread, because we have to wait for many processes to be undergone, as doubt of our sins at length blossoming into misery because our present hardness and indifference are preparing us for it.

Still the fact is, that men will and do, in their inward souls, conjure up all kinds of doubts and questions respecting the righteous judgment of God. And, such being the fact-account for it as we best may-anything in the book of God's revelations, which tends to shake these doubts, or answer these questions, however distasteful it may seem to us, is really an useful and a valuable piece of discipline; and we should always read it ourselves, and teach it to others with reference to the doubts and prejudices it is intended to

remove.

Remembering therefore, what the lesson is that we are required to learn, viz: that consummated sin does inevi

we

tably meet with fearful misery, open our Bibles, and find horrible stories of God's own avenging hand, sweeping away a whole world by a flood, a whole country by fire, and several nations by the sword; and that the extermination was complete and unsparing. And, that we may be in no doubt why these awful judgements were inflicted and recorded, we read that in the first instance, the flood of waters, "God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagi nation of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually," Gen. vi. 5. That is, all amendment or conversion was impossible; every thought of every man was only evil continually. The sin was consummated; and therefore the vengeance fell as a matter of course. So too, in the account of the destruction of the cities of the plain, it is said that because "the cry of Sodom and Gomorrah was great, and because their sin was very grievous," Gen. xviii. 20, God overthrew them with so terrible a destruction. There was no mercy, no more withholding the hand, no more long-suffering. The waited-for time of fruit had come.

that

Therefore, in teaching Christianity out of such instances as these, I conceive that we ought to draw attention to the great principle of the heinousness of sin; and bring our learner to try and think of some particular sin of his own, one which he well remembers, but of which he has never yet felt any very dreadful consequences. I do not, by any means, consider it necessary that sin should be told to us; the lesson will be learned as well, perhaps a great deal better, if we advise him to ponder it in his own mind, and tell it to God. But, having induced him to hold that one sin plainly before himself, ask him, why he does not tremble for its consequences. It is highly probable, that most persons would not know why, and we may then give the reason. It is because, having committed that sin,