KENILWORTH CASTLE. (Kenilworth Castle.) IN a former number (564, p. 33), an account was given of Kenilworth castle, with a view of a small part of the ruins: another view, taken from a more distant point, with a few additional particulars, may not be deemed uninteresting here. This castle is a prominent object as the traveller approaches the small market-town of Kenilworth; and, as the neighbouring country is of an undulating character, and generally well-wooded, in many positions views are obtained in which the surrounding scenery blends well with the grey walls of the decayed fortress. When thus looking upon it, the mind naturally reverts to the scenes which have been here witnessed; and the stirring strifes and gorgeous revelries of former days, as the thoughts dwell upon them, seem strangely con VOL. XXI. trasted with the peaceful repose which now reigns here. There are the memorials yet seen, as in the former paper it was noticed, of the mighty forces brought into action in the famous siege, with the huge stone balls-some almost too heavy for a single man to lift-which were then hurled against the defences; but now no engine of war appears. There are the places yet pointed out, where the gayest pageants were presented in royal visits; but now the spectacles, the crowds are gone. There is silence in those massive towers, through those splendid halls. Truly, here is a lesson read to us: "All flesh is grass, and the goodliness thereof as the flower of the field": "Their glory, and their multitude, and their pomp, and he that rejoiceth," are passed as a shadow. It is remarkable that the older portions of this magnificent pile are in better preservation than A A those of more modern erection. Thus the building called "Cæsar's tower" has been less injured by time than the additions made by the earl of Leicester several centuries later. The stone of which these last are composed is of a more friable nature, and the architecture, if more adorned, of less massive solidity. The later history of Kenilworth castle may be briefly summed up as follows: After the restoration of king Charles II., it was granted to Lawrence Hyde (second son of the celebrated lord chancellor Clarendon), created viscount Hyde of Kenilworth, and earl of Rochester. It subsequently descended to an heiress, and by her marriage passed, in 1752, into the possession of Thomas Villiers, baron Hyde, son of the earl of Jersey, who in 1776 was advanced to the earldom of Clarendon. In this family it still remains. PASSAGES OF SCRIPTURE ARRANGED No. XI. | Father which seeth in secret, himself shall reward thee openly" (Matt. vi. 3, 4). AdditionalMatt. vi. 1-6. 7. He chastens us. "Ye have forgotten the exhortation which speaketh unto you as unto children: My son, despise not thou the chastening of the Lord, nor faint when thou art rebuked of him; for whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth. If ye endure chastening, God dealeth with you as with sons; for what son is he whom the father chasteneth not?" (Heb. xii. 5-7). 8. He pities us. "Like as a father pitieth his children, so the Lord pitieth them that fear him. For he knoweth our frame, he remembereth that we are but dust" (Ps. ciii. 13, 14). 9. He spares us. "They shall be mine, saith the Lord of hosts, in that day when I make up my jewels; and I will spare them as a man spareth his own son that serveth him” (Mal. iii. 17). 10. He remonstrates with us. "Hear, 0, heavens, and give ear, O earth; for the Lord hath spoken: I have nourished and brought up children, and they have rebelled against me. The ox knoweth his owner, and the ass his master's crib ; but Israel doth not know, my people doth not consider" (Isa. i. 3, 4). "Do ye thus requite the DUTIES Lord, O foolish people, and unwise? is not he thy Father that bath bought thee? hath he not made thee, and established thee?" (Deut. xxii. 6). Additional—Mal. i. 6. GOD, CONSIDERED IN HIS DIFFERENT RELATIONS PART I. "Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life."-JOHN vi. 39. "Blessed Lord, who hast caused all holy scriptures to be written for our learning, grant that we may in such wise hear them, read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest them, that, by patience and comfort of thy holy word, we may embrace and ever hold fast the blessed hope of everlasting life, which thou hast given us in our Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen."-COLLECT FOR THE SECOND SUNDAY IN ADVENT. I. God our Father. 1. He is our Father. "Call no man your father upon the earth; for one is your Father, which is in heaven" (Matt. xxiii. 9). "Doubtless thou art our Father, though Abraham be ignorant of us, and Israel acknowledge us not: thou, O Lord, art our Father, our Redeemer: thy name is from everlasting" (Isa. lxiii. 16). Additional-2 Cor. vi. 18. 2. He loves us. "Now, our Lord Jesus Christ himself, and God, even our Father, which hath loved us, and hath given us everlasting consolation and good hope through grace, comfort your hearts, and stablish you in every good word and work" (2 Thess. ii. 16). 3. He forgives us. "If ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But, if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses" (Matt. vi. 14, 15). 4. He gives us good things. "If ye, then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your Father which is in heaven give good things to them that ask him?" (Matt. vii. 11). 5. He guides us. "Wilt thou not from this time cry unto me, My Father, thou art the guide of my youth?" (Jer. iii. 4). 6. He rewards us. "When thou doest alms, let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doeth; that thine alms may be in secret; and thy 11. We are his children. "The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God" (Rom. viii. 16). "Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God" (1 John iii. 1). Our duty is 12. To honour him. "A son honoureth his father, and a servant his master: if, then, I be a father, where is mine honour? and, if I be a master, where is my fear?" (Mal. i. 6). 66 13. To give him thanks. "Giving thanks unto the Father, which hath made us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of light" (Col. i. 12). 14. To glorify him. "Now the God of patience and consolation grant you to be likeminded one toward another according to Christ Jesus; that ye may with one mind and one mouth glorify God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ" (Rom. xv. 5, 6). "Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven" (Matt. v. 16). 15. To pray to him. "Thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet; and, when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly." "After this manner, therefore, pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name" (Matt. vi. 6, 9). 16. To be in subjection to him. "We have had fathers of our flesh, which corrected us, and we gave them reverence: shall we not much rather be in subjection unto the Father of spirits, and live?" (Heb. xii. 9). "Surely it is meet to be said unto God, I have born chastisement, I will not offend any more" (Job xxxiv. 31). Additional-Lev. xxvi. 41-43. 1. He is our Maker. "Know ye that the Lord he is God: it is he that hath made us, and not we ourselves: we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture" (Ps. c. 3). "The Spirit of God hath made me, and the breath of the Almighty hath given me life" (Job xxxiv. 4). Additional --Ps. xcv. 6; Gen. i. 27; Mal. ii. 10. 2. He gives power to the faint. "Hast thou not known, hast thou not heard, that the everlasting God, the Lord, the Creator of the ends of the earth, fainteth not, neither is weary? There is no searching of his understanding. He giveth power to the faint; and to them that have no might he increaseth strength" (Isa. xl. 28, 29). 3. He gives songs in the night. "None saith, Where is God my Maker, who giveth songs in the night?" (Job xxxv. 10). 4. He made heaven and earth. "In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth" (Gen. i. 1). Additional-Ps. cxlvi. 6; Neh. ix. 6. 5. We are the work of his hands. "Now, O Lord, thou art our Father: we are the clay, and thou our potter; and we all are the work of thy hand" (Isa. xiv. 8). Additional-Isa. lx. 21; xxix. 23; Eph. ii. 10. Our duty is 6. To remember him. "Remember now thy Creator in the days of thy youth, while the evil days come not, nor the years draw nigh, when thou shalt say, I have no pleasure in them" (Eccles. xii. 1). Additional-Isa. li. 13. 7. To praise him. "Praise ye the Lord: sing unto the Lord a new song, and his praise in the congregation of saints. Let Israel rejoice in him that made him: let the children of Zion be joyful in their King" (Ps. cxlix. 1, 2). Additional -Ps. civ. 24; c. 3).. 8. To submit in silence. "Nay, but, O man, who art thou that repliest against God? Shall the thing formed say to him that formed it, Why hast thou made me thus?" (Rom. ix. 20). III. God our God. 3. He is merciful. "Gracious is the Lord, and righteous; yea, our God is merciful" (Ps. cxvi. 5). 4. He will be our guide. "This God is our God for ever and ever he will be our guide even unto death" (Ps. xlviii. 14). 5. We are the Lord's. "Whether we live, we live unto the Lord; and, whether we die, we die unto the Lord: whether we live therefore, or die, we are the Lord's" (Rom. xiv. 8). Additional-1 Cor. iii. 23. Our duty is 6. To obey him. "Obey my voice, and I will be your God, and ye shall be my people; and walk ye in all the ways that I have commanded you, that it may be well with you" (Jer. vii. 23). Additional-Jer. xi. 4. "Exalt the Lord our God, and worship at his holy hill; for the Lord our God is holy" (Ps. xcix. 9). 7. To exalt him. 8. To make no molten God. "Turn ye not unto idols, nor make to yourselves molten gods: I am the Lord your God" (Lev. xix. 4). IV. God my God. 1. He is my God. "Bless the Lord, O my soul. O Lord my God, thou art very great: thou art clothed with honour and majesty" (Ps. civ. 1). O God, thou art my God" (Ps. lxiii. 1). 2. He will not fail me. "Be strong, and of a good courage: fear not, nor be afraid of them; for the Lord thy God, he it is that doth go with thee: he will not fail thee, nor forsake thee" (Deut. xxxi. 6). 66 3. I am his. his" (Cant. ii. 16). My duty is My beloved is mine, and I am 4. To love him. "Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind" (Luke x. 27). 5. To hope in him. "In thee, O Lord, do I hope thou wilt hear, O Lord my God" (Ps. xxxviii. 15). "Why art thou cast down, O my soul? and why art thou disquieted within me? Hope thou in God; for I will yet praise him, who is the health of my countenance, and my God" (Ps. xlii. 11). 6. To sing unto him. "I will sing unto the Lord as long as I live: I will sing praise to my God while I have my being" (Ps. civ. 33). Additional-Ps. cxlvi. 2. 7. To praise him. "I will praise thee, O Lord my God, with all my heart; and I will glorify thy name for ever" (Ps. lxxxvi. 12). 8. To seek him. "O God, thou art my God: early will I seek thee" (Ps. lxiii. 1). 9. To fear him. "Thou shalt rise up before the hoary head, and honour the face of the old man, and fear thy God: I am the Lord" (Lev. xix. 32). 10. To wait for him. "I am weary of crying: my throat is dried: mine eyes fail while I wait for my God" (Ps. lxix. 3). 11. To exalt him. "Thou art my God, and I will praise thee: thou art my God, I will exalt thee" (Ps. cxviii. 28). 12. To extol him. "I will extol thee, my God, O King; and I will bless thy name for ever and ever" (Ps. cxlv. 1). V. God, the God of Israel: 1. He is the God of Israel. "Thus saith the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, Go and tell the men of Judah, and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, Will ye not receive instruction to hearken to my words? saith the Lord" (Jer. xxxv. 13). 2. He is the Holy One of Israel. "Thou shalt call a nation that thou knowest not; and nations that knew not thee shall run unto thee, because of the Lord thy God, and for the Holy One of Israel; for he hath glorified thee" (Isa. lv. 5). 3. He is the God of Jacob. Tremble, thou earth, at the presence of the Lord, at the presence of the God of Jacob" (Ps. cxiv. 7). 4. He is the mighty One of Jacob. "All flesh shall know that I the Lord am thy Saviour and thy Redeemer, the mighty One of Jacob" (Isa. xlix. 26). 5. He will bless Israel. "The Lord hath been mindful of us he will bless us : he will bless the house of Israel: he will bless the house of Aaron" (Ps. cxv. 12). 6. He will redeem Israel. "He shall redeem Israel from all his iniquities" (Ps. cxxx. 8). 7. He will give strength to his people. "O God, thou art terrible out of thy holy places: the God of Israel is he that giveth strength and power unto his people. Blessed be God" (Ps. lxviii. 35). "The Lord's portion is lot of his inheritance" 8. Israel is his portion. his people: Jacob is the (Deut. xxxii. 9). 9. Israel is his treasure. "The Lord hath chosen Jacob unto himself, and Israel for his peculiar treasure" (Ps. cxxxv. 4). 10. All who are Christ's, and believe, are Abraham's children. "If ye be Christ's, then are ye Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise" (Gal. iii. 29). "Know ye, therefore, that they which are of faith, the same are the children of Abraham" (Gal. iii. 7). AdditionalRom. iv. 11. 11. Israel to be saved. "Israel shall be saved in the Lord with an everlasting salvation: ye shall not be ashamed nor confounded, world without end" (Isa. xlv. 17). Israel called upon 12. To hope in God. "Let Israel hope in the Lord; for with the Lord there is mercy, and with him is plenteous redemption" (Ps, cxxx. 7). 13. To trust in God. "O Israel, trust thou in the Lord he is their help and their shield" (Ps. cxv. 9). : 14. To bless the Lord. "Bless the Lord, O house of Israel: bless the Lord, O house of Aaron" (Ps. cxxxv. 19). VI. God is love. 1. He is love. "He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love" (1 John iv. 8). 2. He loves us. "Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins" (1 John iv. 10). 3. We love him. "We love him, because he first loved us" (1 John iv. 19). Our duty is 4. To keep his commandments. "If ye love me, keep my commandments" (John xiv. 15). Additional-1 John v. 3. 5. To love one another. "Beloved, if God so loved us, we ought also to love one another" (1 John iv. 11). 6. To hate evil. "Ye that love the Lord, hate evil: he preserveth the souls of his saints: he delivereth them out of the hands of the wicked" (Ps. xcvii. 10). VII. God our King. 1. He is our king. "The Lord is King for ever and ever: the heathen are perished out of the land" (Ps. x. 16). Additional-Ps. xcv. 3; Zech. xiv. 9. make war with the Lamb; and the Lamb shall 2. He is the King of kings. "These shall overcome them: for he is Lord of lords, and King is the blessed and only Potentate, the King of "Jesus Christ, who of kings" (Rev. xvii. 14). kings, and Lord of lords" (1 Tim. vi. 14, 15). 3. He is the King of glory. "Who is this King of glory? the Lord strong and mighty, the Lord mighty in battle. Who is this King of glory? The Lord of hosts, he is the King of glory" (Ps. xxiv. 8-10). 4. He reigns and judges. "Say among the heathen that the Lord reigneth: the world also shall be established that it shall not be moved: he shall judge the people righteously" (Ps. xcvi. 10). 5. He tries men. "The Lord is in his holy temple, the Lord's throne is in heaven: his eyes behold, his eyelids try the children of men” (Ps. xl. 4). 6. He forgives, and speaks peace to his people. "Thou hast forgiven the iniquity of thy people, thou hast covered all their sin.” “I will hear what God the Lord will speak; for he will speak peace unto his people, and to his saints; but let them not turn again to folly" (Ps. lxxxv. 2, 8). 7. He gives laws. "The Lord is our judge, the Lord is our lawgiver, the Lord is our king: he will save us” (Isa. xxxiii. 22). 8. We are a crown. "Thou shalt also be a crown of glory in the hand of the Lord, and a royal diadem in the hand of thy God" (Isa. lxii. 3). 9. We are God's people. "I am the Lord, your Holy One, the Creator of Israel, your King." "This people have I formed for myself: they shall show forth my praise" (Isa. xliii. 15, 21). let the nations be glad, and sing for joy; for thou shalt judge the people righteously, and govern the nations upon earth" (Ps. lxvii. 4). Our duty is 10. To delight in his law. "Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful. But his delight is in the law of the Lord; and in his law doth he meditate both day and night.' (Ps. i. 1, 2). 11. To tremble before him. "The Lord reigneth: let the people tremble. He sitteth between the cherubims: let the earth be moved" (Ps. xcix. 1). 12. To rejoice. "The Lord reigneth: let the earth rejoice: let the multitudes of the isles be glad thereof" (Ps. xcvii. 1). Additional-Ps. cxlix. 2. 13. To pray to him. "Hearken unto the voice of my cry, my King, and my God; for unto thee will I pray" (Ps. v. 2). VIII. God our Judge. 1. He is our judge. "God is the judge: he putteth down one, and setteth up another" (Ps. ixxv. 7). "The heavens shall declare his righteousness; for God is judge himself" (Ps. 1. 6). Additional—Ps. lviii. 11; xcvi. 13. 2. He is the judge of the widows. "A father of the fatherless, and a judge of the widows, is God in his holy habitation" (Ps. lxviii. 5). Additional-Jer. xlix. 11. 3. He shall judge in righteousness. "He shall judge the world in righteousness, he shall minister judgment to the people in uprightness" (Ps. ix. 8). "The righteous judgment of God, who will render to every man according to his deeds" (Rom. ii. 5, 6). Additional-Rev. xix. 11; Gen. xviii. 25. 4. We are to be judged. "I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened; and another book was opened, which is the book of life; and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works" (Rev. xx. 12). "We shall all stand before the judgment-seat of Christ" (Rom. xiv. 10). Additional-Matt. xxv. 31, 32. Our duty is 5. To be sure that his judgment is just. "We are sure that the judgment of God is according to truth against them which commit such things" (Rom. ii. 2). "Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?" (Gen. xviii. 25). "Against thee, thee only, have I sinned, and done this evil in thy sight; that thou mightest be justified when thou speakest, and be clear when thou judgest" (Ps. li. 4). 6. To trust in him. "Although thou sayest thou shalt not see him, yet judgment is before him; therefore trust thou in him" (Job. xxxv. 14). 7. Not to judge one another. "Every one of us shall give account of himself to God. Let us not therefore judge one another any more" (Rom. xiv. 12, 13). Additional-Matt. vii. 1. IX. God our Master. 1. He is our master. "Be not ye called rabbi; for one is your master, even Christ; and all ye are brethren" (Matt. xxiii. 8). "Ye call me Master and Lord and ye say well; for so I am" (John xiii. 13). 2. He remonstrates with his servants. "A son honoureth his father, and a servant his master: if then I be a father, where is mine honour? and if I be a master, where is my fear? saith the Lord of hosts" (Mal. i. 6). 3. He makes us free. "O Lord, truly I am thy servant: I am thy servant, and the son of thine handmaid: thou hast loosed my bonds" (Ps. cxvi. 16). "Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free" (Gal. v. 1). "Being then made free from sin, ye became the servants of righteousness" (Rom. vi. 18). 4. He offers us rest. "Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart; and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light" (Matt. xi. 29, 30). 5. He promises eternal life. "Now, being made free from sin, and become servants to God, ye have your fruit unto holiness, and the end everlasting life. For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord" (Rom. vi. 22, 23). 6. We are his household. "Now therefore ye are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellowcitizens with the saints, and of the household of God" (Eph. ii. 19). 7. We are his servants, "O Lord, truly I am thy servant: I am thy servant, and the son of thine handmaid" (Ps. cxvi. 16). Additional-Matt. XXV. 14; Isa. xliii. 10. Our duty is 8. To praise him. "Praise ye the Lord. Praise, ye servants of the Lord, praise the name of the Lord" (Ps. cxiii. 1). 9. To serve him alone. "No man can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and should forsake the Lord, to serve other gods. The Mammon" (Matt. vi. 24). "God forbid that we Lord our God will we serve, and his voice will we obey" (Josh. xxiv. 16, 24). of servants look unto the hand of their masters, 10. To wait upon him. "Behold, as the eyes and as the eyes of a maiden unto the hand of her mistress; so our eyes wait upon the Lord our God, until he have mercy upon us" (Ps. cxxiii. 2). 11. To be just. "Masters, give unto your servants that which is just and equal; knowing that also have a Master in heaven" (Col. iv. 1). Additional-Ephes. vi. 9. ye 12. To be merciful. "O thou wicked servant, I forgave thee all that debt, because thou desiredst me: shouldest not thou also have had compassion on thy fellow-servant, even as I had pity on thee?" (Matt. xviii. 32, 33). 13. To be gentle. "The servant of the Lord must not strive, but be gentle unto all men, apt to teach, patient" (2 Tim. ii. 24). X. God the fountain of living waters. 1. He is the fountain of living waters. "My people have committed two evils: they have forsaken me, the fountain of living waters, and hewed them out cisterns, broken cisterns, that can hold no water" (Jer. ii. 13). 2. He will not forsake the poor and needy. "When the poor and needy seek water, and there is none, and their tongue faileth for thirst, I the Lord will hear them, I the God of Israel will not forsake them. I will open rivers in high places, and fountains in the midst of the valleys: I will make the wilderness a pool of water, and the dry land springs of water" (Isa. xli. 17, 18). 3. We thirst after God. "As the hart panteth after the water-brooks, so panteth my soul after thee, O God. My soul thirsteth for God, for the living God: when shall I come to appear before God?" (Ps. xlii. 1, 2). “O God, thou art my God; early will I seek thee: my soul thirsteth for thee, my flesh longeth for thee, in a dry and thirsty land, where no water is" (Ps. lxiii. 1). 4. We are called to come. Ho, every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters, and he that hath no money; come ye, buy, and eat; yea, come, buy wine and milk without money and without price" (Isa. lv. 1). Additional-John vii. 37; Rev. xxii. 17. 5. We shall be filled. "Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness; for they shall be filled" (Matt. v. 6). |