from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels :

Having departed first from him. His heaven, if he could bestow it upon them, his presence, his service, his attendants, would be as much their aversion then, as they are now. All such may conceive something of the unhappy state they are in, and the curse they are under at present, by considering that heaven itself would be a curse to them.

42. For I was an hungred, and ye gave me no meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me no drink :

43. I was a stranger, and ye took me not in: naked, and ye clothed me not: sick, and in prison, and ye visited me not.

44. Then shall they also answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungred, or athirst, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, aud did not minister unto thee?

With astonishing blindness they wondered to the last to be charged with any neglect of, or disregard to, him. And we are here given to understand, 1st, That many live and die in utter ignorance of themselves. 2ndly, That faith worketh by love. And 3rdly, That where there is no lively working for Christ's sake, there is no faith.

45. Then shall he answer them, saying, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye did it not to one of the least of these, ye did it not

to me.

46. And these shall go away into everlasting punishment: but the righteous into life eternal.

It is dangerous presumption, to say that the words everlasting and eternal, as applied to life or punishment, have different meanings, when the original word, aivov, is the

same.

From this whole passage it is alleged, that Christ, in the most decisive manner, lays the salvation of men upon their works. To affirm that they will not be rewarded according to their works, would certainly be great ignorance of scripture. But then those works must either be absolutely perfect in themselves, to merit a reward, or be

washed in the blood of Christ, and only good as springing from a root of faith in him, and from love to him, which are evidently supposed to be the ground of the works here mentioned. And who then will abide by the former plea ? Lord, it is of thy grace that we do anything that is good, and of thy mercy that we are accepted. Purify our hearts by faith, that, in the sense of thy undeserved goodness to us, we may abound in acts of mercy to all men, especially to them who are of the household of faith; and inherit the kingdom prepared from the foundation of the world, for all that unfeignedly love thee in Jesus Christ.

SECTION LXVII.

Chap. xxvi. ver. 1-16.

A WOMAN ANOINTETH CHRIST'S HEAD.

THE FOURTH DAY OF THE HOLY-WEEK, OR WEDNESDAY. Mark xiv. 1-11; Luke xxii. 1-6; John xiii. 1—30.

1. And it came to pass, when Jesus had finished all these sayings, he said unto his disciples,

Either what he had to declare in the course of his ministry, or since his last coming to Jerusalem.

2. Ye know that after two days is the feast of the passover, and the Son of man is betrayed to be crucified.

A death inflicted only on slaves, and the worst of malefactors. Mark with what ease and calmness he speaks of it, knowing that for this end he came into the world. Nevertheless, there was one thing, and but one in all nature, that could put his fortitude to the trial, as you will find in this chapter and the next.

3. Then assembled together the chief priests, and the scribes

and the elders of the people, unto the palace of the high priest who was called Caiaphas,

4. And consulted that they might take Jesus by subtilty, and kill him.

5. But they said, Not on the feast-day, lest there be an uproar among the people.

Nay, but it must be on the feast-day, in spite of their subtilty, that the true Paschal Lamb might be offered on the paschal feast; and the same will of God, which delivered him into their hands, appointed also the time.

6. Now when Jesus was in Bethany, in the house of Simon the leper,

7. There came unto him a woman having an alabaster box of very precious ointment, and poured it on his head, as he sat at

meat.

The most precious thing she had, or could think of, to show respect to Christ. There are two other instances of the same kind recorded besides this, Luke vii. John xii., and all of women. The tender passions, in which they excel, exert themselves with equal force when they are sanctified by grace.

8. But when his disciples saw it, they had indignation,

St. Mark also says, some had indignation; which shows it to be a different action at a different time, from that, John xii., where Judas only is mentioned as finding fault, together with the reason of it, namely, because he was a thief. But that censure did not belong to the other disciples, and therefore it is omitted here.

8. Saying, To what purpose is this waste?

They were not capable at this time of entering into the spirit and temper with which the action was performed. So we, with our cold hearts, may be too apt to censure what Christ highly approves.

9. For this ointment might have been sold for much, and given to the poor.

10. When Jesus understood it, he said unto them, Why trouble ye the woman? for she hath wrought a good work upon me.

Let us all think how we may give him occasion to say so of us, that we have wrought a good work upon him. him. He will set a high value on a single word spoken for him. 11. For ye have the poor always with you; but me ye have. not always.

Notwithstanding, he has told us in the foregoing chapter in what sense we have, and must have, him always with

us.

12. For in that she hath poured this ointment on my body, she did it for my burial.

This was a word to the disciples. They thought not of his death, and much less that it was so near at hand.

13. Verily I say unto you, Wheresoever this gospel shall be preached in the whole world, there shall also this, that this woman hath done, be told for a memorial of her.

Great was her faith and love; and Christ would have the memory of the action preserved for our sakes, and to show how well pleased he is with the open expression of our love to him. We shall not grudge to be at some cost for him if we have ability. The disposition of our heart may be this box of ointment, if we have no more.

14. Then one of the twelve, called Judas Iscariot, went unto the chief priests,

You verily think you abhor Judas and his treachery, and that you would not have sold Christ for the world. But remember every sinner sells him over and over again, and many times for much less than thirty pieces of silver.

15. And said unto them, What will ye give me, and I will deliver him unto you? And they covenanted with him for thirty pieces of silver.

The price of a servant, Exod. xxi. 32. Can you be so undervalued?

16. And from that time he sought opportunity to betray him. When the consent of the will is gained to evil, the opportunity only remains to prevent the accomplishment of crime and, if grace prevent not, it will quickly be found. Edit.

SECTION LXVIII.

Chap. xxvi. ver. 17—25.

CHRIST COMMANDS THE PASSOVER.

THE FIFTH DAY; OR, THURSDAY.

Mark xiv. 12-72: Luke xxii. 7—71; John xiii. 1–38; xiv.xviii. 1-27.

17. Now the first day of the feast of unleavened bread the disciples came to Jesus, saying unto him, Where wilt thou that we prepare for thee to eat the passover ?

18. And he said, Go into the city to such a man, and say unto him, The Master saith, My time is at hand; I will keep the passover at thy house with my disciples.

Christ came into the world for this time, and came to it with infinite love and compassion for thee, that thou mightest say, with the same cheerfulness and resignation, at the hour of death, "My time is at hand."

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"I will keep the passover at thy house." Should we think it an honour, and be glad to entertain Jesus? He offers it to every soul. Let us hear his voice, and open the door, and behold he comes. Rev. iii. 20; John xiv. 23.

19. And the disciples did as Jesus had appointed them; and they made ready the passover.

20. Now when the even was come, he sat down with the twelve. 21. And as they did eat, he said, Verily I say unto you, that one of you shall betray me.