and so forth, was his refuge.

9

He had lain down to.

rest upon that soft pillow of carnal security which the Devil and his agents so eagerly sow to all armholes (Ezek. xiii. 18.)-a pillow on which so many sleep the sleep of eternal death!-Having found the cause, I endeavoured to shake his fearful confidence, to batter to the ground the building the Devil had persuaded him to raise on the sand, (Matt. vii. 26, 27) but he seemed little affected by any thing I could say. I thought what struck him most was this......... When he urged his having no blemish on his character, making that a foundation for his hope, I was enabled to remind him of what had taken place before his own eyes only last year. I said, true, I doubt not your · character before men may be without a blemish, but do you remember I suppose her character was without blemish too? Yes, he said. And yet she told me on her dying bed that she had lived 30 years (which I believe was about her age) without God in the world. I said more upon this fact. It was a striking case. ̈ A confession much to be remembered, as the confession of one on whom no outward flaw rested a confession called forth by the sight of sin as seen in its true light-the transgression of the law of an holy God. I left him, however, with a cold, yet somewhat hopeful expression, I know this Sir: if you are right, I am wrong. The next time I called, (perhaps a fortnight afterwards, for I had not much time to spare, nor was he then very ill) his state of mind was much altered. It was not then, 'If you are right I am wrong."

To be Continued.

WEAK GRACE VICTORIOUS.

PART 1.

PRESERVATION AND FINAL VICTORY OF WEAK GRACE.

A bruised reed shall He not break, and smoking flax shall he not quench, till he send forth judgment unto victory. Matt. xii. 20.

We need not take our rise higher than verse 17, where the quotation out of Isaiah xlii. begins, where you find God, like a herald, proclaiming his Son to the world under the name of his servant; "Behold my servant whom I have chosen, my beloved in whom my soul is well pleased; I will put my Spirit upon him, and he shall shew judgment to the Gentiles." We have here, 1st. His election of him, God chose, called him to his mediatory office. 2nd. The agreeableness of the person to God, "in whom my soul delighteth." 3rd. The ability and assistance God gave him, "I will put my Spirit upon him." 4th. The work he should do, "he shall shew judgment to the Gentiles." Verse 19, his coming is set down, "he shall not strive nor cry, neither shall any man hear his voice in the streets." The meekness and tenderness of his carriage, "he shall not cry." He shall not be contentious with the people, of which a sign is an immoderate raising of the voice, and clamour against them.

In explaining the text, take notice of,

1st. The object,

A BRUISED REEd. Hierom takes it for a musical instrument made of a reed, which shepherds used to have, which, when bruised, sounds ill, and is flung

B

away by the musician, as disdaining to spend his breath upon such a vile instrument that sends forth no pleasant sound. But Christ will not cast off poor souls that cannot make so good music in God's ears as others, and answer not the breathings of the Spirit with the same life and vigour, but he will take pains with them to mend them. Bruised reeds-such as are convinced of their own weakness, vanity, and emptiness.

The SMOKING FLAX. As of the wick of a candle, wherein there is not only no profit, but some trouble and noisomeness. Though the soul is noisome by reason of its corruption, yet he will not blow out that expiring fire, but blow it up, and cherish it; he will not rigidly oppress and throw off those that are weak in grace, and faith, and hope, but he will heal them, nourish them, inflame them. Though he walk in the way were bruised reeds lie, he will step over them, and not break them more; he will not tread upon a little smoking flax that lies languishing upon the ground, and so put it out with his foot, though it hurts the eyes with its smoke, and offends the nostrils with its stench. Smoking souls, that have some weak desires towards heaven, some small evaporations of their spirits toward God, he shall not quench them.

2nd. Christ's ACT. He shall not break nor quench; he shall mightily cherish, support the reed, inflame the flax.

3rd. The CONTINUANCE of it; "till he sends forth judgment unto victory." In Isaiah it is, till he bring forth judgment unto truth; but Matthew alters it, and instead of truth puts victory. Judgment is taken several ways. For wisdom, as Isai. xx. 1, "the Lord

venient season.

Some

will wait that he may be gracious, for he is a God of judgment," that is, of wisdom to give in the most conSometimes for righteousness, as Isai. lix. 9, "Judgment is far from us, neither doth justice overtake us," that is, there is no holiness in us. times for the overthrow of a man's enemy; as John xii. 3, "Now is the judgment of this world, now shall the Prince of this world be cast out," that is, now shall Satan be conquered; also Isai. xlii. 3, “He shall bring forth judgment unto truth," that is, he shall govern in righteousness. Now Christ's government being chiefly in the souls of men, he shall assist and encourage that which is better; as governors ought to be encouragers of the good, and discouragers of the bad. Matthew explains this, and shows the consequence of this government, if it be in truth it will make the better part victorious. Some by judgment understand the Gospel, the new evangelical law, "the isles shall wait for his law;" so Christ will not rest till He makes the Gospel glorious, and advances it in the world above the lusts and idolatries of men which then overflowed the world. Some by judgment understand grace, which is the draught and copy of the Gospel drawn in the soul.

Implanting grace in the heart is the main design of the Gospel; and grace is nothing else but a moulding the soul into the form of that law and doctrine of Christ; as Christ will make the Gospel glorious above all the carnal reasonings of men, so he will make grace, which is the end of the Gospel, victorious above all the corruptions of men. In this latter sense we shall now handle it-Christ shall make those beginnings of grace and infused habits to obtain

a perfect conquest. By his governing of it, he shall make the conquest over corruption perfect.

Doctrine. True though weak grace shall be preserved, and in the end prove victorious.

Seeds of grace, though mixed with a mass of corruption, cannot be overcome by it, as gold cannot be altered in its nature by the dross, or transformed into the nature of the rubbish in which it lies. Grace is surely weakest at the first infusion, when it is newly landed in the heart from heaven, when the Devil and wickedness of man's nature have taken the alarm, and drawn together all the armies of hell to hinder its progress; yet though it be thus, in so weak a condition, having got but little footing in the heart, and a man's own inclination not well reconciled to it, and the corruptions that held the empire before having received but their first wound, and grace also as yet but in a strange soil, not naturalized at all: yet is grace then so strong that all the legions of hell cannot totally worst it; though it be like a grain of mustard-seed newly sown yet it springs up into a mighty tree, for as the weakness of God is stronger than men, so is the weakness of grace stronger than sin in the event and issue.

(To be continued.)

THE RELIGIOUS PUBLICAN.

I AM of opinion that in every lawful calling God has his witnesses, and faithful servants, to convince us that those callings which are most abused, and the greatest sources of iniquity, may be sanctified.

It happened in one of the midland counties of