There is a certain class of persons who wish to rid themselves of the types. Sikes insists that even the brazen serpent is called in by our Lord by way of illustration only, and not as a designed type. Robinson, of Cambridge, when he began to verge toward Socinianism, began to ridicule the types, and to find matter of sport in the pomegranates and the bells of the high priest's garment. At all events, the subject should not be treated with levity and irreverence: it deserves serious reflection.

With respect to the expediency of employing the types much in the pulpit, that is another question. I seldom employ them. I am jealous for truth and its sanctions. The Old dispensation was a typical dispensation; but the New is a dispensation unrolled. When speaking of the typical dispensation, we must admire a master like St. Paul. But to us modesty becomes a duty in treating such subjects in our ministry. Remember, "This is none other but the house of God! and this is the gate of heaven!" How dreadful if I lead thousands with nonsense-if I lose the opportunity of impressing solid truths-if I waste their precious time!

A minister should say to himself: "I would labor to cut off occasions of objecting to the truth. I would labor to grapple with men's consciences. I would show them that there is no strange twist in our view of religion. I must avoid, as much as possible, having my judgment called in question: many watch for this, and will avail themselves of any advantage. Some who hear me are thus continually seeking excuses for not listening to the warnings and invitations of the word; they are endeavoring to get out of our reach; but I would hold them fast by such passages as, What shall a man give in exchange for his soul!'"

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Many men labor to make the Bible THEIR Bible. This is one way of getting its yoke off their necks. The MEANING, however, of the Bible is the Bible. If I preach then on imputed righteousness, for instance, why should I preach from, "the skies pour down righteousness," and then anathematize men for not believing the doctrine, when it is not declared in the passage, and there are hundreds of places so expressly to the point?

Most of the folly on this subject of allegorical interpretation has arisen from a want of holy awe on the mind. An evil fashion may lead some men into it; and, so far, the case is somewhat extenuated. We should ever remember, however, that it is a very different thing to allegorize the New dispensation from allegorizing

VOL. XV.-8

the Old: the New is a dispensation of substance and realities.

When a careless young man, I remember to have felt alarms in my conscience from some preachers; while others, from this method of treating their subjects, let me off easily. I heard the man as a weak allegorizer: I despised him as a foolish preacher: till I met with some plain, simple, solid man, who seized and urged the obvious meaning. I shall, therefore, carry to my grave a deep conviction of the danger of entering far into typ ical and allegorical interpretations.

Accommodation of Scripture, if sober, will give variety. The apostles do this so far as to show that it may have its use and advantage. It should, however, never be taken as a ground-work, but employed only in the way of allusion. I may use the passage, "There is a friend that sticketh closer than a brother," by way of allusion to Christ; but I can not, employ it as the groundwork of a discourse on him.-Cecil.

AN EXPOSITION OF ISAIAH XVIII, 4; OR, GOD CONSIDERING WHAT HE WILL DO FOR HIS PEOPLE." I will consider in my dwelling-place like a clear heat upon herbs, and like a cloud of dew in the heat of harvest.”

Preachers should be very sparing of their animadversions on the translation of the Scriptures in common use; not only because they tend to shake confidence and awaken suspicions in their hearers, but because they are generally needless. It is not illiteracy that commends the present version; the ablest scholars are the most satisfied with it upon the whole. Yet, while the original is divine, the rendering is human; and, therefore, we need not wonder if an occasional alteration is necessary. This is peculiarly the case where the sense is very obscure or even imperceptible without it.

If the words as they now stand in the text remain, his "dwelling-place" is heaven, and the meaning is, that he would there consider how to succor and bless his people, for he careth for them: but a word must be supplied to show the import-"I will consider in my dwelling-place" how I can prove "like a clear heat upon herbs, and like a cloud of dew in the heat of harvest." But the margin, and Lowth, and every modern expositor, make his "dwelling-place" not the place of his consideration, but the object: and read, “I will regard my dwelling-place like a clear heat upon herbs, and like a cloud of dew in the heat of harvest." Now what his dwellingplace was we can easily determine. It was Zion-" whose dwelling is in Zion." "This is my rest forever here, will I dwell, for I have desired it." And Watts has well added

"The God of Jacob chose the hill

Of Zion for his ancient rest;

And Zion is his dwelling still,

His Church is with his presence blest." And his concern for the welfare of the one is far surpassed by his regard for the other. And how is this regard exercised? Here are two images.

First, "like a clear heat upon herbs." The margin again says, "Like a clear heat after rain;" and I wish, says the excellent translator of Isaiah, who has adopted it, that there was better evidence in support of it. The reason is, that he probably feared, as others in reading it may fear, that "a clear heat upon herbs" would be rather unfavorable, and cause them to droop, if not to die. And this would be the case in some instances; but not in all; and it is enough for a metaphor to have one just and strong resemblance. Read the dying words of David: "And he shall be as the light of the morning, when the sun riseth, even a morning without clouds: as the tender grass springing out of the earth by clear shining after rain." Now after rain "the clear shining," or "clear heat upon herbs," would produce immediately fresh vigor and shootings. Even in our own climate the effect upon the grass and plants is soon visible; but in the East the influence is much more sudden and surprising, and the beholders can almost see the herbage thrive and flourish. Thus the Lord can quicken his people in his ways, and strengthen in them the things that remain and are ready to die. And when after the softening comes the sunshine, they grow in grace and in the knowledge of their Lord and Savior. Their faith groweth exceedingly, and the charity of every one of them toward each other aboundeth. They bear much fruit. Thus we read of "increasing with all the increase of God." This figure, therefore, expresses growth and fertility.

But the second holds forth refreshment, seasonable refreshment, "like a cloud of dew in the heat of harvest." How cooling, useful, welcome, delightful such an appearance is, ask the laborer in the field, in the Eastern field, bearing the burden and heat of the day. God, as the God of all comfort, realizes the truth and force of this image in the experience of his tried followersFirst, in their spiritual exercises and depressions arising from the assaults of temptation, a sense of their unworthiness and imperfections, and fears concerning their safety and perseverance. And, secondly, in their outward afflictions. These may be many; and if our strength is small, we shall faint in the day of adversity. But when we cry, he answers us, and strengthens us with strength in our souls. He gives us a little reviving in our bondage; and in the multitude of our thoughts within us his comforts delight our souls. He is able and engaged to comfort us in all our tribulation. By the supply of the Spirit of Jesus Christ; by his word; by his ordinances; by the preaching of a minister; by the conversation of a friend; by a letter, a book, a particular occurrence of providence, a time of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord--and a cloud of dew be furnished in the heat of harvest.

Such is the God of love to his people. His consolations are not small; his grace is abundant; his care unceasing. Well may his children trust in him, knowing that he will send "the clear shining" of the sun after the rain, and also the "cloud of dew in the heat of harvest."

THE TEST AND THE EVIDENCE OF THE REALITY OF FAITH.-Does a man seek a proof of his acceptance? The reference is to facts in his own moral condition. He is to look for it in a change which is taking place in his character; a new direction of his desires; a new regulation of his affections; an habitual impression, to which he was a stranger before, of the presence and the perfections of the Deity: and a new light which has

burst upon his view respecting his relations to this life and that which is to come. He is to seek this evidence in a mind which aims at no lower standard than that which will bear the constant inspection of infinite purity; he is to seek it, and to manifest it to others, in a spirit which takes no lower pattern than that model of perfection-the character of the Messiah. These acquirements, indeed, are looked upon, not as a ground of acceptance, but a test of moral condition; not as in any degree usurping the place of the great principle of faith, but as its fruits and evidences. As these, then, are the only proofs of the reality of this principle, so they are the only basis on which a man can rest any sound conviction of his moral aspect in the sight of the Deity; and that system is founded on delusion and falsehood which, in this respect, holds out any other ground of confidence than the purification of the heart and a corresponding harmony of the whole character. Such attainment, indeed, is not made at once, nor is it ever made in a full and perfect manner in the present state of being; but, where the great principle has been fixed within, there is a persevering effort, and a uniform contest and a continual aspiration after conformity to the great model of perfection. Each step that a man gains in this progress serves to extend his view of the high pattern to which his eye is steadily directed; and as his knowledge of it is thus enlarged, he is led by comparison to feel more and more deeply his own deficiency. It thus produces amazing humility, and an increasing sense of his own imperfection, and causes him continually to feel that, in this warfare, he requires a power which is not in man. But he knows also that this is provided as an essential part of the great system on which his hope is established. Amid much weakness, therefore, and many infirmities, his moral improvement goes forward. Faint and feeble at first as the earliest dawn of the morning, it becomes brighter and steadier as it proceeds in its course, and, "as the shining light, shineth more and more unto the perfect day.”—Abercrombie.

The above article contains some powerfully condensed and strikingly expressive thoughts, to which every Christian would do well to give heed. As a sufficient antidote to any theological heresy that may be found lurking in it, we simply append the following, from a good authority: "The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit that we are the children of God."

SPECIAL PROVIDENCE." He drieth the stream that woe seek the full fountain."

may

How beautiful are the manifestations of Divine providence in the Christian life! Every step along his pilgrim way gives fresh token of the wisdom, goodness, and forbearing mercy of his blessed Master. The dark places in his pilgrimage, which, in their first passage, seemed like so many valleys of Bochim to his soul, have been the very steps which led to the "green pastures," where, with enlarged faith, he may repose by the "still waters" of God's unfailing love.

The lesson may be believed when the young disciple first enters the Church, and with new born tenderness of soul receives its teachings as the holy truth of God. But its real, significant bearing upon the daily life must come home to the heart in the hour of its great need. Ah, then, indeed, it is all of grace that the light enters; for the laying down of self, calmly to repose on the bosom of infinite Love, is the life-long lesson, scarce learned, even when the distant hills of home break upon the closing eye.

To one in feebleness the winter may set in with doubt and dread, and long-waiting at home be the allotted portion. The prayer meeting, the dear Sabbath school, and the precious sermons assume a new importance. How shall life's trials be borne without their refreshing ministry? Amid the cold winds and frequent storms, how shall the Christian brother or sister bring the glad news of Zion's prosperity, how, amid the loneliness of the little circle still narrowing to closer bounds, shall the interests of Christ's Church be kept bright and warm in the soul's depths? But, O ye of little faith, the streams are dried in mercy. Deprived of the ordinances of his house he brings us to his word, and richer, clearer meaning lights up its page; we feel an individual interest in the portion, and daily bread is there for daily need. Prayer is a necessity; it covers broader fields than we have realized; the sparrow's lesson is no longer an illustration of holy writ, but a life-giving assurance that Christ brings present salvation to view. The Missionary Journal, hastily read, because outward calls are imperative, opens with unwonted delight, and we feel identified with the self-denying ones that have borne the burden and heat of the day. Not theirs only is the duty to watch and wait; we must see to it that no shadow darkens their way which we may prevent. Do we not count our temporary privations as dust in the balance, compared with their life-consecration to the service of God? Ay, do we not trace with them the drying stream that impels to the fountain?

Among the pleasant incidents of her Christian experience, which a dear mother used to relate, was a little anecdote of Chloe Spear, a colored woman, who for many years was a devoted member of good old Dr. Baldwin's Church, in Boston. It always interested us by its characteristic language and pathos, but now it seems forcibly to illustrate the truth under consideration.

Chloe had been sick some time, and none of her dear Christian friends that she prized so much visited herbut to use her own words-" she think it strange, they talk so kind to her, they so much in her mind, and why they not come? Ah, she think she make idol of them; she set them up above the neighbor and the colored friend. Then by and by the Lord show her how he enough in himself for her little soul, and she feel strong in him, and put the friend all away, and the Lord give her joy. When she staid on him, she think of the kind neighbor that come in, and do many thing to comfort her poor old body, and she tell them how she hope the Lord give them good hope in his mercy to pay them

for their kindness to aunt Chloe. Now she have a text come to her mind, and she never know what that mean till the Lord bring her in a strait place: 'Make to yourselves friends of the mammon of unrighteousness, that when ye fail they may receive you into everlasting habitations.'' About Chloe's application of this text, I think she meant to imply that the instrumentality of the world was sometimes actually connected with our progress in piety, or, rather, was made subservient to it; she always said, "receive you into their houses"-but I was afraid to change the text to her repeating.

she have feel bad, but now she know better how to love; them she love Church, she hope she meet all in her dear Master's house. And by and by, brother Baldwin come, and he say, 'Chloe, why you no send your minister to come and see you when you sick? he never hear she sick, he gone away, and he think Chloe gone to the country a little while; and he so sorry, he afraid she feel hurt.' Then she tell him just how the Lord lead her. He good, his friend good, the kind lady good, but the Lord better; and she keep the lesson by her, and the Lord make her strong to go many more ways she never knew before."— Watchman and Reflector.

LOVE TO CHRIST AND LOVE OF CHRIST.-When Krishna Pal, the first convert to Christ in Bengal, was on his death-bed, all who visited him were impressed with the deep peace that reigned there. The stillness of the sick chamber, broken only by the low utterance of prayer, or the feeble voice of the dying man, as he spoke of his hopes and prospects, and of the Savior to whom he owed them all, seemed to breathe nothing but tranquillity. He was asked if he loved Jesus Christ. "Where can a sinner go," he replied, "but unto Christ?" Soon after the same question was repeated. "Yes," said he, "but he loves me more than I love him."

Is it any wonder that Krishna was ready to die? He had served the Savior twenty-two years. He had braved the hatred of his countrymen when he was baptized in the name of Jesus, and had been an earnest preacher of the Gospel.

He had won others to Christ. But he did

not hope for heaven on account of these things. It was not because he loved Christ, but because Christ loved him. "O thou, my soul, forget no more

The Friend who all thy sorrows bore;
Let every idol be forgot,

But, O my soul, forget him not,"

are the words of the beautiful hymn which he wrote, and which thousands of Christians in this and other lands have united with him in singing. But while he desired always to remember his divine Friend, he rejoiced most of all in the certainty that Jesus would never forget him. Krishna has now been more than thirty years in the glorious presence of the Savior he loved, the Savior who so loved him. Who does not wish to follow him there? Who does not desire to lead other heathen souls into the same eternal joy?--Macedonian.

WALKING WITH GOD.-To be in the habit of asking the will of God ere we act; to be in the practice of comparing the end we propose to ourselves with the sure and certain standard set down in his holy word; to make the glory of his great name, and not our own profit and pleasure, the rule of our own schemes; to try and find the path of duty, instead of the way that is good in our own eyes; to ask faithfully what is right, rather than what is pleasant; to test things by their influence on others, as well as on ourselves-this to acknowledge God-this is to commit our way to the Lord.

RAIMENT OF NEEDLEWORK.-The following is a quaint comment on the text, "She shall be brought unto the king in raiment of needlework," Psalm xiv, 14: "The work of sanctification carried on in the believer's heart is a slow and costly one, and can not be completed without many a severe prick in the process."

It was her habit to go to the adjoining towns for a few days, if she heard of revivals or special gatherings of the

Church.

THE WORLD A WORKSHOP.*

THE physical relationship of man to the earth is a question second in importance only to that of his spiritual relationship. This is the question discussed in the little volume to which we have made reference, and discussed, too, with not a little originality, enthusiasm, and eloquence. The author evidently entered upon his work con amore; with unflagging zeal he pursued it to the end, and has truly given to the world "a testimony of respect to the dignity and omnipotence of enlightened labor."

The author's great point is, "that this mundane habitation was designed and literally fitted up for the culti vation and application of chemical and mechanical science as the basis of human development." He argues that "material natures require something to do as well as to reflect on; this is indispensable to their being-the purpose of it. Employment is, therefore, an element of existence." Is it objected to such a theory that physical industry and ingenuity are of too low and too ephemeral a nature to enter into the grand and enduring plans of the Author of the universe, but that the cultivation of mind must be the object of calling the universe into existence? The author admits this to be the end, but suggests "as matter is the agent on which God has printed his thoughts, may it not be the book from which all minds are to read and to learn? We know that he has made the elevation of human nature to depend on the study and application of principles impressed upon matter, and, therefore, it is consistent with his purposes and with his greatness to educate intelligences by it. We know not that any are or can be trained up without it; and as, wherever intelligences are, they are surrounded by it, and by displays of Divine wisdom shining forth in it, is it not reasonable to infer that it is a universal medium of mental and moral tuition? for which purpose, instead of being collected into one inhabitable body, it has been gathered into an infinite number, every one different, and a theater of different phenomena."

The theory, of which we have here developed an im perfect outline, involves a few striking and grand consequences, which, however, the author does not hesitate to accept. The first of these is, that physical and mental labor entered into the original design of man's creation, and are not, therefore, mere incidents of his lapsed condition. If by the term labor, the author simply intends activity, directed to mental and physical ends, we think the view is accordant with the teachings both of nature and revelation. When created in innocence and purity, man was placed in the garden, not merely to be regaled by its beauty, to enjoy its fruit, and to wear away time in idle pleasures, but "to dress it, and to keep it." Dr. Adam Clarke beautifully remarks upon this passage, that "even in a state of innocence we can not conceive it possible that man could have been happy if inactive. God gave him work to do, and his employment contributed to his happiness; for the structure of his body as well as of his mind plainly proves that he was never intended for a

*The World a Workshop; or, the Physical Relationship of Man to the Earth. By Thomas Ewbank. New York: D. Appleton & Co. 1855.

merely contemplative life." What then? Did no physical evil result from "the fall?" So some, overleaping a logical chasm, whose breadth can be spanned by no such legitimate sequence, are ready to conclude. The true solution of the question undoubtedly is, that while sin weakened and perverted our physical as well as intellectual and moral powers, and this made it labor to cultivate the earth-the earth itself was also cursed and rendered more difficult of cultivation. We may, therefore, safely conclude, that while toil and labor—that is, the painful and exhausting drudgery now required of us—is an infliction because of sin, physical activity, for useful and beneficent purposes, and especially for our own development and happiness, was one of the original designs of our creation. We think, therefore, with the author, that there must be something wrong in the dislike to material labor which possesses the minds of so many. We have almost suspected that the grandest conception formed of heaven, in some minds, is a place where unbounded license will be given to laziness. "If 'pride brought on the fall,' its effects are awfully felt in the low esteem in which the elaboration of matter is held, and in the presumption that it is derogatory to spiritual exaltation. Thus, the original law, 'replenish the earth and subdue it,' is regarded by most persons as a coarse, unpleasant, and unintellectual task, because its full meaning, and its bearings on our present and future destiny, are not perceived."

Another sequence of this theory, presumptive rather than demonstrative, relates to other worlds. They are supposed to have the same physical construction as ours; that is, the condition of matter in them is essentially the same as in ours, and also the physical condition of their inhabitants. Our author says: "To those who deny them to be centers of reasoning and active populations it is useless to reply till they can show for what other purposes they are made, and how this little earth, a mere atom among them, became so strange an exception. If we had had no knowledge of the existence of other orbs it would have been unphilosophical to insist there were none beside our own; but now that we know they crowd every region of space, it would be positive folly to contend that all are barren of life and intelligence, of sciences and arts, except the one given to us. It is preposterous to suppose the divine Builder erects tenements for the purpose of keeping them empty. If they are not occupied, it is because they are not prepared to be so. It may be assumed that as soon as an orb is fitted for the reception of tenants, they are put in possession of it." These premises being admitted, and having also seen that activity is an element of existence, we are brought to infer the industrial activities of the denizens of the universe, involving infinities of modes and processes, and multiplied infinities of applications and results. "Let those," says Mr. Ewbank, "who do not sympathize with the idea that occupants of worlds around us act on matter as we do in this one-which, it should be remembered, is an integral member and sample of them-look abroad, and see how the same general laws to which it is subject gov. ern others; how some in its vicinity resemble it in volume, density, duration of days and nights, etc.; how the red soil, the green seas, and northern snows and ice of