and sorrowed much, and long, on the consideration that of the thousands of the rich and talented part of mankind, how few there were that knew any thing savingly of our Lord Jesus, or that espoused his cause, from his becoming incarnate, to this period in which I live; but in general they were opposed to the revealed truths of the gospel. This was a cause of much and long regret, until it pleased the Lord to satisfy my mind on this head. It was on a Lord's-day morning, that I awoke early; it being winter, I lay musing on the things respecting Christ and my soul, until I became in a kind of stupor; neither asleep nor awake. I found myself in conversation with a person whose face I could not properly discern, yet I considered him to be no other than our Lord Jesus. The conversation was most divine on his part, and very blessed and encouraging in its effects on me, I said, Lord, how is it that so few of the rich and noble of the world believe the gospel, whilst such an innumerable host of the great, slight or reject it, and hold in contempt and derision the poor people of God.' He answered, the writings of the heathens had been opposed to the gospel; they professed morality, were excellent in their language, and none more than Cicero. His voice and speech was so powerful, so impressive, that but few could withstand him : the wise of this world had imbibed this spirit; it had gone on as a flood and deluged the world in every age; it deceives the souls of men; they reject the simplicity of the gospel, and confirm each other in deadly errors. He said much on this subject, by which I was informed more particularly of the spirit of the world, both as it respects ancient authors and modern divines; and was led to remember how impressive the teachings of the Holy Spirit was, when he set forth Christ crucified before me, which removed sin and guilt, which the writings of unregenerate men can 64 never do. all power: I had power to lay down my life, and to take it again: no creature hath that power: when your soul leaves your body, it goeth hither or thither as God is pleased: you are at his will, and have no power to reanimate the body: I am the resurrection and the life I had power to reanimate my body, rise from the dead, and ascend into heaven.' I then said, He shall feed his flock like a shepherd, he shall gather the lambs in his arms, and carry them in his bosom, and gently lead those that are with young." I then opened my eyes, was greatly refreshed, felt my understanding enlightened into the power of God over his creatures and that he knew my thonghts, and as he mentioned Cicero three times, I felt anxious to see something of his writings; and as soon as I could, I bought Cicero on Old Age, and perceived that if I had seen it some time before, it would have captivated my mind, as Homer and Seneca had done. How few of the learned in any age have been favoured like Paul to count all the wisdom of the world but as dung and dross, to the excellency of the knowledge of Christ. Truly did the Lord say this spirit hath deluged the world; yes, by thousands more than were deluged when Noah and his family were saved. And thus it continues to go on, but it can afford no succour in death. He also said, I have But, as I before noticed, after the circumstance of Mr. Hervey I became restless, I thought I must leave service and follow my trade, which was soon accomplished. I got work in Fair Street, Horslydown; and lodgings in Great Eastcheap. Here I continued six months; during which time I spent many unhappy hours in the evening on the seats of London bridge, sorrowing and groaning over my sad state. Many were the sighs and groans, and prayers, and tears, that escaped from my troubled and sin-burdened spirit. I could not continue here; I must leave London, and seek rest in the country. This was helped forward through the continual rioting occasioned by the high price of bread. Volunteers paraded the streets; the Surry light-horse drove the mob from Mark Lane into the Borough. On one of those evenings, as I was going from my work to my lodgings, I was met by the mob and the soldiers on the Borough side of the Thames; I stood up close to the wall, hoping to escape notice; but as soon as the soldiers came, one of them bid me go on, and before I could move, he struck me over the head with his sword, which forced my hat over my eyes, and the mark of his vengeance was seen on my hat as long as I wore it. I went on to the second passage on the right, and then turned in, which as soon as the trooper saw, he bounded his horse over the pavement, and into the passage after me; he then stretched forth his arm, and made a tremendous cut at me but a kind and merciful providence urged me on out of his reach, else it might have proved fatal. As soon as the troop was passed, I hurried home greatly distressed, not only through the blow on my head, but through fear of death on my heart; the fear of death was a heavy burden, and then I saw how narrowly I had escaped it. On the following Monday 1 left London; I was in Kingsland Road, near where the canal now is, when the clock struck twelve, and at that moment there came on me the spirit of meekness and sorrow for sin, such as I felt on reading Hervey: I leaned over the railing, and wept most bitterly. My mouth was opened, as I felt my heart enlarged, to pour out my complaint before the Lord; and surely Jacob was not more earnest, nor more blessed, when at Bethel, than I was that day. remembered every past circumstance, and desired his care and protection for the future; and as I knew nothing of what was before me, nor I where I might be cast, I was the more earnest, and sensible that only God could perserve me, and keep me from sin. The effect of this stayed long with me, and was the second token for good. THE SOUL'S SONG AFTER AFFLICTION. My Dear Friend in the beloved Jesus, In my other communication I intimated you might expect one more, containing a little information respecting the glorious Lord's gracious dealings with me in my late affliction. Cause abundant, I have devoutly to adore the blessed God of salvation for his marvellous lovingkindnesses displayed towards me, wrought within me, and enjoyed by me, when it was to me a day of no inconsiderable, personal and domestic trouble. To enumerate all the sweet benefits I then received would be a work, delightful truly; but is vastly too mighty for powers so puny and unanswerable as mine. I will, however, make an effort to rehearse a few of the loving, the precious, the attractive acts of the Lord towards his poor unworthy servant when in trouble. Among the benefits then conferred, and the mighty acts of rich grace then wrought, the one consisting in a lively sense possessed that I richly deserved the rod, ought to be gratefully acknowledged. The good Lord, by the powerful operation of his good Spirit, gave me impressively to see and afflictingly to feel, not only my native vileness, my total depravity, my hell-deserving character as a sinner; but, also, my apathetical carelessness, my shameful ingratitude as a saint. That one sovereignly elected, vicariously redeemed, effectually called, everlastingly to be actually saved, should have been so carnal and grovelling, was made by God to my soul a humbling consideration. So much so, that the tongue of my soul was lovingly, precious promises applied--and the sweets of sacred relationship substantiated. A heart-felt sense of Jehovah's incomparable favour in his dispensations, however painful they may be, acts with all the spell of a heavenly charm upon the heart, and binds it to him in the most powerful union and most blessed communion. And this, my dear friend, I can say, all thanks to triumphant grace, from personal experience. My dear and honoured Lord caused me to lie passive in his hands; he shewed me he designed my good and his own glory; made me satisfied with the method that his wisdom and love in union had fixed upon to accomplish that two-fold end: so that while his hand was upon my person, he put my own hand upon my mouth, his constraining love into my heart, and then all was precious indeed. Strike Father, for thy ungrateful son very much needs thy correcting rod.' This consciousness inspired by God, accompanied with faith, discovered to me the great wisdom of my adorable Lord in laying the rod on the right back. No redeemed, no heaven-born,. no glory-destined expectant of bliss more unthankful; consequently, none of all the faithhousehold more needed chastisement. This I felt; it was God's rich gift to a poor worm. Oh! precious and powerful grace of God, which desposed my heart to welcome the rod from God; so that while I smarted under it, I discovered that its very ini ictions were expressions of gracious purposes, and wondered, not that God should afflict me so much, but that he should afflict me so little and so seldom. To be afflicted, is one thing; to see covenant love in the afflictions with which we are exercised, is another. My covenant God gave me to see that the dispensation in question, was the effect of his love, not of his wrath. This revelation, I found had in it all the sweetness of omnipotent attraction. You cannot imagine how wonderfully this discovery won my affections over to love a correcting God and Father in Christ. Indeed it formed such a blessed union between God's rod and my soul, that I felt real love to it, and solidly satisfied with it. Thus I was reconciled, charmingly reconciled, to the will of the Lord God Almighty; and learned that it is far better to have his rod, accompanied with manifestations of his love, than to be without the rod and denied those manifestations. The elements of such experimental instruction, are invaluable; the effects of such divine teaching, truly glorious: while both the one, and the other, are alike the sublime results of purposes executed-redemption glories revealed-adoption interest discovered December, 1841.] He The good Lord was pleased, when afflictions were accumulating, to keep my soul at rest in himself. My affliction was not only personal, but domestic. At the time I was seized with affliction, my dear child Arthur was very bad; another of my dear children was taken very ill at the time I was: two days after my dear wife sickened, and was forced to go to bed. Dear Arthur is now no more. Under these circumstances I first became acquainted with the peculiar feelings of parent bereft of a tenderly loved child. was gone; I seemed to be rapidly going; two more of my dear family very ill. Try, my dear friend, to imagine what were likely to be the overwhelmed state of my feelings thus circumstanced. In one room dear Arthur lay dead-in another I lay expecting death-in another lay my dear wife, and dear Ebenezer, exceedingly ill. This was to flesh and blood greatly trying; yea, almost overpowering to enfeebled nature: yet, Oh! marvellous to tell-too marvellous fully to be made known there was a rainbow on the cloud, N N a voice of love from it, and resplendent beams of everlasting kindness breaking through it, which irradiated all the surrounding gloom with a lustre magnificently glorious, attractively soft, bland, and winning, which drew me to a rest of soul in the matchless Jesus, when passing through great individual and family affliction. You may, my dear friend, be ready to ask, Had you no feelings of dissatisfaction at the movements of God? no violent assaults from Satan? no distress from the presence and opposing character of corruption?' With regard to corruption, and its workings, the conquering grace of God so wonderfully subdued it, that it was not allowed to interrupt the repose I had in Jesus. In regard to the devil, the " Captain of the Lord's hosts" so gathered in his chain, that come near me he could not. If he was near enough to be in my room, he was interdicted to make any noise. I cannot but believe that his conqueor my powerful and precious Jesus, kept him at such a distance, that there was not powder in hell with sufficient strength to send one of his fiery darts into my soul! How must the devil have gnashed Lis teeth, and bitten his chains in hopeless agony, to see Immanuel dealing so gently, kind, and loving with one so worthless, vile, and ungrateful as myself! In reference to feeling at all dissatisfied with the movements of God; when I saw my dear wife taken exceedingly ill down, as was expected, with the fever; for a moment I felt a little disquieted. What, (thought I,) gracious God! wilt thou take both father and mother away, and so leave my dear children both fatherless and motherless in the world?' blessed be God, that disquietude continued only a little moment: through grace my soul speedily returned to its rest, and, so satisfied did the glorious Lord make me with his infinitely wise conduct, that I felt a solemn pleasure in leaving the full But, management of all things unto him. Such were the triumphs of grace in the subjugation of my will to the will of the Most Holy, that myself, dear wife, dear children, dear church and people, were in prayer and confidence committed to and left with him. What but grace, conquering corruption, sin, and impatience, ever could effect so splendid a victory in and over so rebellious a worm as myself? Oh! for a flaming heart, a flaming tongue, a flaming life, to express and utter the memory of Jehovah's stupendous goodness! Before I conclude, I will just say that my deliverance from disease was unexpectedly sudden and impressive. Late in the afternoon of the me. morable Sabbath, July 25, I was very bad: my throat bad, my head bad, my body strengthless, incapable alike of power to act and talk Some of my dear christian friends came to see me at this time, and saw me in this state. It was with some difficulty in utterance I said to them, all is going on right: blessed be God, I am booked in heaven, bought from hell, and destined to glory.' After this I continued in a similar state, quite as bad, for two or three hours; when, all at once, a change strange indeed took place, and in less than five minutes I felt as if I was well. I said to the nurse, 'I am well.' She supposing me to be delirious, did not believe me. I cried out, Go and tell dear wife that the disease is rebuked and fled.' My dear wife knowing how bad I was just before, could not believe the truth of the announcement. I said, and then prayed and praised for about a quarter of an hour: the consequence was that they then fully believed that some more than ordinary change, in so short a time, had been effected for me. Believe me, dear friend, for I speak soberly, and I hope adoringly also, that I was as conscious of the sudden and real going away of my disease, I as I am of holding the pen with which I am writing. I have the most satisfactory reason for believing that the fever left all at once: but some of the effects of it continued, and still continue. But Oh! praised be the blessed Lord for his wonderful goodness to such a wonderful sinner! The extraordinary interposition which I realized I regard as the effect of God having willed to answer the united and fervent prayers of my dear people. On the sabbath above mentioned, they held three special prayer-meetings, to pray for me, my family, and themselves, and, as far as I can judge their prayers had a quick return. hope, however, that God may keep them on praying and watching too; for I am jealous lest Satan in one of his least suspected forms should get an advantage of us. Unquestionably, if God hears us, the devil will try to ensnare us; if God fights for us, the devil will be sure to fight against us. And there is vastly more reason to fear the devil's calm, than God's storm; I mean God's love-storm of affliction. I intended, dear friend, to have dwelt a little on the influence of my affliction in establishing me in the divine verities, doctrines, invitations, and promises of the inspired volume of our Father's love; but paper will not hold out. Should I resume my pen, you may expect some few statements on that subject. In the mean time, "I commend you to God, and the word of his grace, which is able to build you up, and give you an inheritance among them who are sanctified." Praise God for me as well ELEANOR DANIELS' RECORD OF THE PARTICULARS OF HER TRANSLATION FROM DARKNESS UNTO LIFE. My dear friends in the Lord Jesus, Grace, mercy, and peace be multiplied to you. Having acceded to the entreaties of many friends in writing down and forwarding to you some little account of the gracious dealings of the Lord with my dear departed mother in her last moments, notwithI was in, occasioned by the Lord's standing the great grief and trouble taking away both my husband and mother in the short space of a week, only three days apart; and as you have been kind enough to insert them in your Magazine, I felt inclined to trouble you with a few lines stating the manner in which the Lord brought I may say with the poet,me to a knowledge of himself. Truly "Amazing grace! how sweet the sound, I once was lost, but now am found- The Lord was pleased to watch over me and preserve me in my natural state, till I was about the age of twenty-one, when I was dead to God and dead to myself, pursuing the broad road to destruction without the least fear. I was often warned by my mother, who feared God, but it was of little use. Sometimes I would go to hearing, but it was only lest I should be asked, if I did not, the next time I saw her. In this way I went on till I had reached the age above-mentioned. Sometimes such a thought as this would strike my mind- When I come upon a death |