doomed to prosecute his religious duties, and to work out his salvation in much sorrow; but he does not for this intermit his labours; he still sows: he still bears precious seed, although he goeth forth and weepeth. The anxieties of his state destroy not his spiritual energies; they rather bring him more frequently to the throne of grace; they teach him more experimentally the necessity of a living faith; they excite him to look more earnestly at the things unseen; and, relying upon the goodness and the truth of God, to hope even as against hope. It is with a special view to such persons, to whatever class they may belong, that the encouragement of the text has been left upon record, They shall reap in joy; they shall doubtless come again with rejoicing, bringing their sheaves with them. This forms the "II. Subject of consideration. "It is asserted concerning such persons, not merely that their grief shall be done away, but that they shall see the abundant fruit of their labours; the seed which was cast into the ground in sorrow shall yield a rich harvest. They shall reap in joy, not what they have sown, but the increase of it; they shall bring their sheaves with them. This promise is sometimes not without fulfilment even in this present world. How many Christians who, with a depression of mind like that of the Psalmist, have even watered their couch with their tears, have, like him, been enabled to testify, The Lord hath heard the voice of my weeping; the Lord hath heard my supplication; the Lord will receive my prayer. How many who, while adopting his words of affliction, My soul is cast down within me, have also been led, from a feeling of humble confidence in God, founded upon past experience, to say, Why art thou cast down, O my soul, why art thou disquieted within me? Hope thou in God, for I shall yet praise Him, who is the health of my countenance and my God. In how many instances do we find, that, before this state of probation is closed, and when that awful period is at hand, which, by bringing before us the king of terrors, would seem to give double force to existing afflictions, the light of the divine countenance appears to chase away every cloud, and to fill the heart with peculiar joy. How many a troubled and agitated spirit has then for the first time seemed to experience the full power of those heavenly consolations which banish despondency and fear, and give the assurance of victory over death and an abundant entrance into heaven! Nay, even in cases where those high consolations have been delayed to a moment when the tongue had lost its power of utterance, how often has the countenance been kindled up into heavenly expression, and the eye beamed with delight, declaring, in terms too plain to be misunderstood, that the presence of God was there, dissipating all the darkness that had hung upon the soul, illuminating the valley of death, and ~~mida the portals of the world of light. regarding instances of this na plication with strong crying and tears: it is for the honour of religion itself that there should be some proof of its consoling evidence, by imparting peace to the depressed spirit under circumstances, in which a man of the world would be thrown into absolute despair. This is to exhibit the value of religion, and the power of the gospel, and the veracity of the promises, in a way the most convincing and irresistible. It compels even scepticism itself to acknowledge, if such be the mighty influence of a near approach to the realms of immortality, upon a mind hitherto harassed by painful doubts and distressing reflections-an influence felt likewise in the immediate view of the last enemy, and while this earthly tabernacle is falling into ruins-how pure must be the felicity, how vast the happiness of the world above!"—pp. 298301. This is very delightful and very animating; and yet we cannot dismiss it without one brief remark. It may be reasonably doubted, after all, whether such cases as those to which the author alludes, can be safely regarded as coinciding with the general plan of God's dealings with mankind. There may, it is true, be more instances than we either know or suspect, in which the light of His countenance may be but partially and scantily vouchsafed, till the shadows of death are gathering round the temples of the Christian. But it will scarcely be denied, that the essential and solid comforts of religion, both in life and death, are usually proportioned to the steadiness and fidelity with which religion is cultivated. In a certain sense, indeed, it may be averred, that cases of the above description fall within the current of Divine Providence; for the notion of Divine Providence may be regarded as embracing every possible mode of administration by which the government of the world is carried on. Of Providence, thus largely considered, variety, and not uniformity, seems to be one grand characteristic; and among the manifold and diversified methods of dealing with the souls of men, that which the author has described above with such beauty and felicity, may unquestionably be one. therefore, of course, a fit and worthy subject of devout meditation. But we have considerable doubts as to the wisdom or expediency of presenting this sort of experience, (if we may venture on the term,) as something which may be expected to occur in the ordinary course of things. It is From the sixteenth sermon, On the Resurrection of the Just, we select the opening, which is eminently solemn and impressive: "To a mind which is disposed to serious meditation, how many subjects of deep interest are suggested by the condition and destiny of man! If we look back for a few years, not one of the many millions, who at this day inhabit the earth, had been called into being the world was to us as if it existed not; and after the lapse of a very few years, another race will have succeeded, and we shall have passed into that invisible have now gone to the house appointed for all | living. And what then has become of them? Has the principle of life been destroyed with the corruptible body? Has the body itself perished in the grave? and is nothing left for us but to contemplate with sad, or even hopeless forebodings, the dark night of futurity? The gospel invites us to better contemplations: it rolls back that thick mist which hangs over the tomb, and tells of life and immortality in the regions beyond it. It bids us extend our views to the day which is emphatically called the day of the Lord it points out to us the Son of God descending in the clouds of heaven, and exhibits to us the glorious spectacle of them which sleep in Jesus, as they are summoned from their graves and assembled before Him. It gives the assurance that of those who have departed in the faith of Christ, and those who, possessing the same faith, are alive at the period of this mighty consummation, not one shall be wanting: they shall all meet their Lord in the air, and shall from that moment be with Him for ever."-pp. 332–334. In commenting on the text of the seventeenth sermon, (Psalm lxviii. 17, 18,) the preacher appears to have found a sense of one phrase which, we are persuaded, never was in the mind of the inspired writer. "He (the Messiah) entered into heaven not as a Mediator only, but as a victorious sovereign: Thou hast led captivity captive; that is, Thou hast brought into subjection to thyself those who had been hitherto in bondage: thou hast rescued them from their servile state, and hast made them the happy subjects of thy just authority: thou hast broken the yoke from their necks, and hast subjected for ever the enemies who oppressed them."-p. 238. We have no doubt that Mr. Dealtry will perceive, on reconsidering the passage, that he has given to the expression, thou hast led captivity captive, a somewhat more emphatic meaning than it will bear. The Messiah is doubtless here spoken of as a victorious sovereign; and, like other conquerors, he is represented as triumphantly leading into captivity a train of captives; that is, a multitude of the enemy whom he had made prisoners of war. That such is the import of the phrase, may be seen by reference to Judges, v. 12. Arise, Barak, and lead thy captivity captive: (αιχμαλωτισον αιχμαλοσίαν σε. Septuag.) where there can be no doubt that "thy captivity" signifies nothing more than, the crowd of captives whom thou hast taken.* In the sixty-eighth Psalm, v. 18, and in Ephes. iv. 8, the expression is essentially the same. The simple meaning of the passage is, that the Messiah went up with all the attributes and circumstances of victory: and if the word captivity, or dixuana, is to be considered as having any particular reference, it must be to the adversaries, whom the Redeemer had disarmed and bound,-not to the multitudes whom he had released from bondage, and transferred to his own dominion and allegiance. We cannot, in common justice, omit the latter portion of the eighteenth sermon, on Levit. 3 which may be produced as a very bright specimen of pulpit eloquence. The ex long, but will, we trust, be found most a justify the space we have assigned to it "But why do I speak of David or St They show us but imperfectly the way in God is to be sanctified; after all their ments in spiritual knowledge, and all the festations vouchsafed to them of the and holiness of God, they were still on the outward courts of that temple within His glory is enshrined, and were long dently for larger views, and more ab revelations. Would you see how the ought to be sanctified? let then the cur drawn aside, which hides the view of th holy place: let us go within the veil; follow the enraptured prophet to conte the visions of God; and what do we there among the sons of light, the pure of immortality? The Lord sitting up throne, high and lifted up, and His train the temple; above it standing the seraph burning ones, each having six wings twain covering their faces, as unable upon the brightness which surround throne, and filled with reverential awe presence of their God; and with twain ing their feet, to denote the depth of the mility, and their unworthiness to be em in His service; and with twain flying proclaiming their readiness to obey Hin one crieth unto another and saith, Holi holy is the Lord of hosts, the whole earth of his glory. And is it thus then, ye light, that elevated as ye are above the tion of humanity, uncontaminated by s assailed by temptation, unredeemed blood of the eternal Son of the Father thus that ye veil your faces before the the divine presence, and attest your hu and declare your obedience, and extol tl ness of the Most High? What then sh the depth of that reverence, and the na that adoration with which we, the gui spring of transgression, with subjects 1 titude and love which angels feel not, a not feel, should come nigh unto the When we can say that Christ hath le and washed us from our sins in His ow and of enemies and aliens hath made u AND PRIESTS UNTO GOD; how should ou tion take if possible a yet higher tor theirs, and the voices of the seraphin selves be lost in the louder praises of somed and the redeemed of the Lamb! "There is, with careless and unre minds, an easy way of avoiding all con which tend to the enforcement of a h or to the demand of holy worship, by forth the conditions and circumstances upon earth. You make no allowance,' i for human infirmities and the necessa tracting cares and occupations of this pursuits, or you would never expect t is to conduct himself in any respect he will among the inhabitants of heaven, v views will be enlarged and his faculties and his soul purified from the dross of contaminations. What resemblance c communications, no pleasure in meditation on the things of God; contented, as it should seem, to merge the realities of the spiritual life in a routine of ordinances and forms, in themselves a dead letter if unaccompanied by grace and power from on high? Whence is it in all cases where God is not sanctified in them that come nigh Him, that to such persons the worship is unblest? Is it not because there is wanting the preparation of the heart? Is it not behaving qualified themselves to profit by the orcause men go to the house of God without dinance, and especially without serious mediprofess to offer up their petitions? Would an tation upon the holiness of Him to whom they earthly potentate consider himself honoured by the civil professions of men whose whole conduct declared that they had little respect for his person, and little regard for his authority? And is it with such hollow and unmeaning ceremony that we treat Him who is the bless state, that while we admit to the full extent the infirmities of human nature, and not only acknowledge but contend that this life is a seene of probation, and that, so long as we continue upon earth, we shall never be perfect like the inhabitants of heaven, yet is it incumbent upon each of us to cultivate as much as possible the spirit and the dispositions to be found in those pure and peaceful regions: and no reasoning, grounded upon human infirmities or. human trials, with a view to qualify the duty which we owe to the Almighty, or to defend any mode of worship which does not sanctify God in them that come nigh Him, will bear the test of fair examination. When we hear a good man under the Old Testament dispensation, or a true Christian in later days, speak ing of his trials and his weakness, we know that his language is consistent with the purest spirit of devotion, and the most sincere dedication of himself to the service of God; and that while it denotes his own deep humility, it im-ed and only Potentate, the Creator, Preserver, plies also an ardent aspiration after views more exalted, and affections more heaverly, and worship more worthy of the Lord; but to plead the infirmities of our nature or the concerns of this life, as an excuse for coming nigh to God with cold hearts and wandering desires, and unhumbled and irreverent dispositions, is to set aside every conclusion of sound reason. "If we acknowledge the power and holiness of the Supreme Being, and consider the relation which we bear to Him, is it possible, we may ask, that we can be too devoted in our services, too fervent in our prayers, too earnest in our praises? The question is not whether our hearts can burn with holy love like the seraphim, or our lips, like those of the prophet, can be touched as with a live coal froin the altar; but whether, upon the plainest principles of duty, it is not incumbent upon us to summon to the service of God all the powers of the mind, and to dedicate to Him those bodies and spirits which are His? Has God said, and that not merely in the way of peremptory command, but because His holy nature absolutely requires it, I will be sanctified in them that come nigh me; and are we to delude ourselves with the notion that the worship of the heart is of little moment in His sight, or that He will accept of an inferior oblation? Whence is it, my brethren, that the service of our Creator, that sacred employment of the hallowed courts of the Lord, which seems to bring together in the common sacrifice of praise and thanksgiving the whole family of His household, both in heaven and in earth, should with so many of us amount to little more than a service of compliment without any exercise of faith, any warmth of love, any aspirations of affectionate desire towards that high and holy One whose name we invoke, and to whom we proffer our allegiance? Whence is it that the soul, which was created and Judge of the world? Can this be the import of the solemn declaration, I will be sanctified in them that come nigh me? "Whether we contemplate the character of Almighty God, the precepts which He has given for our observance, or the example of saints and angels, they all urge upon us the duty of meeting Him in the institutions of His worship with the deepest reverence, and the most active devotion of every faculty of the soul. May the spirit thus inculcated, and thus set before us, be universal in the assemblies of His people! May the ministers of Christ present before God no other fire than that which they have taken from the altar! May holiness and majesty, and come near Him by the people be filled with a due sense of His the mediation of His Son, through faith in His. name, with those dispositions of reverence and presence could not fail to inspire! For be it godly fear, which the visible symbols of His impressed upon every heart which is capable of being moved by a sense of the divine presence, that God marks all the wanderings of and observes every heavenward affection, and our minds, and hears every sigh of the contrite, that through the intercession of Him who His loving-kindness to them that fear Him: on made atonement for transgressors, He reveals these He confers benefits according to the sure testimony of His holy word, even with prodigality of blessing: such is the favour with which he regards the spirit of reverential fear, that the sacred writers seem almost at a loss and all its variety of application. The secret of for expressions to describe it in all its fulness, the Lord, they tell us, is with them that fear him. The eye of the Lord is upon them that fear him: His angel encampeth round about them them that fear him: The mercy of the Load is 200 stimulated by motives of fear as well as of higher principles: there is the end of Nadab and Abihu to show that God is jealous of His honour, and will avenge the breach of it: but the people of that world have holiness inscribed upon their hearts. To be reminded of His majesty they need not, for they ever behold Him upon His throne: to be reminded of His purity they need not, for in that region all is pure: to be told of the relation in which he stands to them they need not, for this is the subject of their ceaseless song; and His love is in place of every lower consideration to stimulate them to heavenly musings, filling them with a delight suited to the nobler faculties and capacities of their heavenly natures, as they walk through the boundless fields of their blessed meditations. "Such too in its nature, though lower in degree, is the character of our service on earth! May the Spirit of that Saviour, by whom alone we have the liberty of access to God, purify our minds, and qualify us to worship Him in the beauty of holiness! So may we bow with reverence in His holy temple! So may we sanctify Him in all His ordinances below, till we are translated into that place where every thought and every feeling is in unison with His glorious perfections, and joy and bliss shall be our portion for ever."-pp. 387-396. We now take leave of Mr. Dealtry for the present, with sentiments of deep respect for the qualities both of heart and head which this volume discloses. We cannot, however, part with him without expressing a lurking surmise that he has not yet put forth all his power. If we were cross-examined as to our reasons for this notion, we should, perhaps, be grievously puzzled to produce them. All we can say is, that such is the impression with which we have risen from the perusal of these discourses. And if this suspicion be well-founded, if it be true that he has ever "checked his thunder in mid volley," we have only to entreat, that when he appears again before the public, he will cast aside all fears and scruples, that he will gird on all his might, and display all his resources. We recommend to him this entire freedom of speech, because we apprehend that we may do so with perfect safety. The "dicendi quodcunque animo fragrante liberet, simplicitas," is not, we trust, likely to betray him into any extravagance of which he will have occasion to repent. His mind appears to be well regulated and happily balanced: and the present performance warrants us in believing that he may be fearless of peril or failure in the most ardent and prodigal devotion of his powers to the inculcation of divine truth. When a man is writing controversy, indeed, it behoves him to be on the watch against the strange fire and dangerous combustion of those worldly elements, which will often mix themselves with holier views and feelings. Even when he is engaged in enforcing Christian obligations, and enlarging on Christian principles and motives, his zeal may be so intense as to consume and dissipate all the more solid and useful qualities of the mind, if its original fabric be not tolerably durable and substantial. But Mr. Dealtry is not an angry polemic, nor a wild and feeble enthusiast. He may therefore safely venture to trust himself to the impulses of his hea From the British Critic. BY THE REV. JOHN KEBLE. "They shall spring up as among the grass, a Instinct pure, or heaven-taught ar Winding shore or deepening glen Teaches truth to wandering men- O'er the moist and reedy grass. Up the stony vale I wind, For the shades I leave behind, Of the greenest darkest tree, From the Christian Observer. TRUE AND FALSE REPOSE IN DEATH.* Ir the conduct of men be a just criterion of their feelings, it would appear to be the first desire of human nature that death might never arrive; the second, we might therefore conclude, would be, that, seeing death is inevitable, we may become duly prepared for its reception. This, however, though a very natural desire, is by no means always followed by a corresponding system of conduct; so that while men in general wish, with Balaam, to "die the death of the righteous," few live that life which they imagine ought to be attended with so auspicious a result. There is but one modification of human existence which we have any good reason to believe will be accompanied with either safety or repose at our departure into another world. What is the nature of that peculiar modification cannot assuredly be doubtful; for, if Christianity be a Divine revelation fitted to the wants of man, and the only system which teaches him how he may obtain acceptance with God, then nothing short of the full effects of the Gospel upon a human soul can fit that soul for its eternal change. We may be moralists or philosophers; we may be esteemed wise and amiable; we may live without reproach, and meet death without a pang; yet, amidst all, if we know not practically the necessity and the value of a Redeemer, and have not obtained a scriptural hope of an interest in his salvation, we are venturing defenceless and exposed upon a wide ocean of storms and uncertainties, and are braving all the terrors of eternity without a single well-founded expectation beyond the grave. ed forth as the natural and proper effect of a well-spent life. The propriety of such a conclusion is more than questionable; for who, that is conversant with the effects of sickness, has not observed how often there supervenes (independently of religious considerations), a languid indifference to life or death, to the world and to eternity, which is evidently nothing more than the natural effect of affliction long sustained, and of a mind weakened and worn out by the near approach of dissolution? The faculties, almost subdued by the pressure of natural causes, oftentimes leave scarcely a sufficient degree of capacity for reflection, to make it appear to the sufferer a subject of any importance what is the fate of either body or soul. Thus the mind is said to have been tranquillized, when, in fact, it was only benumbed, and rendered incapable of summoning its natural energies even to a contemplation so important and pressing as that of an eternal world' Whether this gradual insensibility, so often attendant upon sickness, is to be viewed as a merciful provision of the Almighty, in order to divest the physical circumstance of dying of a part of its terrors; or whether it was intended as a warning to early and deep repentance, before the approach of so precarious a season, it is not at present necessary to inquire. The only inference intended to be deduced is this: That, if all the terrors of futurity, all the moral pains of dissolution, all the hopes and fears of an unknown world, are so often found incapable of arousing a dying man from the natural lassitude and indifference attendant upon the slowly-approaching hour of mortality, the mere circumstance of dying in calmness is by no means a sufficient evidence of a well-grounded hope of the felicities of heaven. The inference is still more forcible, if surrounding friends, as The importance of procuring accurate ideas too often happens, have anxiously guarded every respecting religion and the mode of salvation, as connected with the safety and repose of a avenue, to prevent the intrusion of that relideath-bed, is by no means universally consi-gious instruction and advice which were necessary to open the eyes of the unconscious sufferer. dered in its full extent. There is a vague, unmeaning sort of piety-or, at least, of what unjustly bears that sacred name,-which persons in general are too often willing to consider as all that is required for sustaining with patience the approach of affliction or death. Thus, a constitutional sweetness of disposition, or the negative blessing of not having been permitted to fall into any gross vices, is frequently viewed, both by the sufferer and the spectators, as sufficient to render the hour of dissolution easy, and the prospect of futurity welcome. If tranquillity be but obtained, it is of little consequence, in the estimation of the world at large, in what manner it was procured, or whether it be true or false; and thus Moral causes may likewise combine with physical as a sedative in death. Ignorance, or unbelief, or "hardness of heart, and contempt of God's word and commandment," may spread a deceitful calm, which will but end in a sad reverse of eternal bitterness and disappointment. Allowing, however, for every limitation and exception, it may still be laid down as a universal proposition, that, where there visibly exists a firm belief in a future state of retribution, with a due sense of human sinfulness and guilt, nothing but the means of salvation revealed in the Gospel can give peace and satisfaction to the soul. If the powers of mind are |