afflicted, that the woman who had been so hospitable to him, should be thus deprived of her only son. He, therefore, mourned and prayed to his God, until the soul of the child returned to its clay. The woman was now greatly comforted and confirmed in the word of the Lord, which was spo ken by Elijah.

Here we see that the woman was supplied through a long famine, and had her son raised from the dead, because she gave the servant of the Lord a little cake first. Let others learn to do likewise. And let all the servants of the Lord learn from Elijah, to be not greedy of filthy lucre, but content themselves with a little cake.

MANY MEN OF MANY MINDS.

How various are the opinions of men respecting the mode of support. ing gospel ministers.

A thinks that preachers of the gospel should be qualified, inducted and supported, in a mode to be proscribed by the statute laws.

B is of opinion that a preacher is not entitled to any compensation for his services, unless he is poor and shiftless, and cannot live without the alms of the people.

C says, that it takes him as long to go to meeting, and hear the preacher, as it does for the preacher to go and preach, and their obligations are therefore reciprocal.

D believes a rich preacher is as much entitled to a reward for his labor as if he was poor.

E believes that a preacher should give the whole of his time to reading, meditating, preaching, praying and visiting, and therefore he ought to be liberally supported; not in the light of alms, but in that of a gospel debt. F joins with E, with this proviso; that the liberal support be averaged on all the members of the church, according to property and privilege. G also agrees with E, provided the liberal support be raised by a free, public contribution, without any knowledge or examination what each individual does.

H chooses to tax himself, and constable his own money to his preacher, without consulting any other.

I loves the preachers, and pays them with blessings, but the sound of money, drives all good feelings from his heart.

When J hears a man preach that he does not believe is sent of God, he feels under no obligation to give him anything; and when he hears a preacher, that gives him evidence, that he is in the service of the Lord, and devoted to the work, he forms the conclusion, that the Lord pays the preacher well for his work as he goes along.

K likes preachers very well, but preaching rather better; he feels, there. fore, best pleased, when the preacher fails coming, and a gap opens for himself; for he had rather work his passage, and take his turn at the helm, than pay a pilot.

Largues like a man, that the preacher ought to receive something handsome for his services, and laments that himself is in debt, and cannot communicate any thing, without defrauding his creditors: at the same time, he takes special care to keep always in debt for cheap farms, wild land, or some other articles of an increasing nature.

M is a man of a thousand. He argues that the mode of supporting ministers is left blank in the New Testament; because no one mode would be economical in all places; but that the deed itself is enjoined on all who are taught by an ordinance of heaven. If, therefore, a contribution is recommended, M will be foremost to the box. When a subscription is judged most advisable, his name will be first on the list. If averaging is considered most equitable, he will add a little to his bill, lest others should fail. And if no mode at all is agreed upon, still M, as an individual, will contribute by himself; for he reasons, that if others are remiss, it is neither precedent nor excuse for him. He does not give to be seen of men, but because his heart is in it; and these gospel debts (as he calls them) he pays with as much devotion, as he spreads his hands in prayer to God. The creed of his faith, which seems to be written on his heart, is "That, although all the money in the world cannot purchase pardon of sin, or the smiles of a reconciled God; yet religion always has cost money or worth, from Abel's lamb to the present day. And that the man who will not part with a little money, for the sake of him who parted with his blood for sinners, is a wicked disciple."

N approves of the faith and profession of M, in every particular, but reduces nothing of it to practice.

O, like his make, believes nothing, does nothing, and is as near nothing as anything can be.

THE BIBLE.

The

The Bible contains 66 books—1,189 chapters—31,114 verses. name Lord is found 6,062 times in the Old Testament. The name God, 2,725 times. The name Jesus occurs 925 times, in the New Testament, and the name Christ, 555 times. The word Selah, is found 74 times in the Bible. The word Eternity, in only one place.

There are in the Old Testament, 607,207 words: in the New Testament, 179,476; which numbers, added together, make 786,683. In this enumeration, the titles of books and contents of chapters are excluded.

The head-pieces, however, prefixed to 115 of the Psalms, and the 22 words in the 119th Psalm, are included. The number was found out, by counting one by one, pointing every 100, and then adding up: which countings employed me 130 hours, and yet, after all the pains and care taken, some mistakes may have been made; but it is believed but small. The Bible seems to be self-divided into six parts, viz:

VI. The epistolary writings of Paul, Peter, James, Jude and John, together with 22 143 3171 72,383 the book of Revelations, comprising,.....

Total, 66 1189 31,118 786,683 The middle chapter in the Bible, is the 117th Psalm. The middle of the verses, is between the 102d and 103d Psalms. The middle word is in the 60th Psalm, the 4th verse: "To them that fear thee."

The double asseveration, verily, verily, is found twenty-five times in John's gospel, and no where else. The words, Lord, God, are not found in Esther, nor Solomon's song; so, likewise, the names, Jesus, Christ, are not in the 3d epistle of John. The word baptism, with its relatives, is found one hundred times in the New Testament.

The Bible was more than sixteen hundred years in writing. It contains a history of the world's whole age; partly in narrative, and partly in prophecy; yea, more, it assures us of soine things which took place before the mountains were made, or the hills brought forth it also reveals unto us many things that will take place after the world, and all its works are burnt up; and yet the whole of it can be read over in sixty hours. It is written in a style that no man on earth can imitate; which will forever keep it from being incorporated with human composition.

The Bible is in its parts, historical, poetical, allegorical, prophetic, receptive, and promissory. It claims the merit of being a revelation from God unto man. Of revelation, there are two kinds; oral, and written.

Oral revelation was first. In this, God revealed his will unto men; but as letters were not in use, men had no way of preserving those revelations, but by their memories; these records were so treacherous, that the revelations were greatly mutilated and perverted. It is from this source, however, that those nations, who are destitute of written revelation, got their belief of the future existence of departed souls; for I can see nothing in all the pages of nature, that proves that men have immortal souls, but what equally proves the same of beasts.

Whether the use of letters was taught at once, or whether the science was gradual, the result is equally amazing; that with twenty-two letters, all the thoughts of the human heart can be expressed. After letters came in use, the Almighty directed the hands of men to write down those rev. elations of his will, which he made known unto them; and such writings are called written revelations. These writings, collected together in one book, form the Bible, or Holy Scriptures..

About sixty years past, a very considerable revival of religion took place, on the east end of Long-Island, and some of the Indians of that place were made partakers of the grace of life. Several years afterwards, one of the natives gave the following account of himself, in his own way of speaking:

"When me first converted, me was a poor, vile, black Indian; but me love all the Christians, and all the ministers like my own soul. Afterwards me grow, grow, grow, but me no love Christians. Then me grow, grow, grow very big; then me no Tove ministers. But one day, as I was in the swamp after broomsticks, I heard a voice saying, Indian, how comes it to pass, that you no love Christians and ministers? Me answer, because I know more than all of them. The voice say unto me again, Indian, you have lost your humble. On this I began to look, and behold! my humble was gone. I then go back, back, back, but I no find my humble. Me then go back, back, back a great way, and then me find my humble; and when me find my humble, I was poor, vile, black Indian again. Then me love all the Christians and all the ministers, just as I love my own soul."

This simple narrative of the native, reminds me of the sayings of some of those illustrious worthies, whose names and characters shine with dazzling refulgence in the sacred volume.

Job was a perfect and upright man, who excelled all men on earth in his day; yet he experienced a great sight of affliction. In defending himself against the illiberal charges of his three friends, he lost sight of his

wretchedness before God. But, when the Almighty summoned his attention to behold the marvellous works of the Creator, and drew his mind near the immaculate throne of divine glory, he cried out: "behold! I am vile—I abhor myself, repenting in dust and ashes."

When Isaiah, the sublime prophet, saw the Lord on a throne of glory, and the heavenly host adoring before him, from a deep sense of his own pollution, the pensive confession flowed from his lips : am undone; for I am a man of unclean lips.”

wo is

me, for I The knowledge which St. Paul had in the mysteries of God, was ex quisite his labors in the ministry were abundant—his sufferings, for Christ's sake, above measure—his tour to the third heavens, very friendly for the health of his soul—and yet, long after this, we hear him lamenting in piteous groans, "O, wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death? I yet find a law in my members, bringing me into captivity, to the law of sin."

How very different these confessions are, from the protestation of some in these days, who affirm that they live in such obedience to the laws of God, and walk so fully in the divine light, that they have attained to the state of sinless perfection.

JEMIMA WILKINSON AND THE INDIAN

IMPROVED.

The high claims of Jemima Wilkinson (that Christ has descended the second time, and dwells in her,) are generally known. Her place of residence is in the town of Jerusalem, Ontario county, and state of New York.

A few years past, a religious Indian paid her a visit, with intention to find out wherein her great strength lay. After discoursing with her some time, in English, he changed his dialect, and spake in his own mother tongue; to which Jemima replied, in her plain manner of speaking, "thee must not speak to me in Indian language, for I do not understand it." "Ah!" said the Indian, "then I know you are not my Saviour; for my blessed Jesus understands poor Indians." How significant the words, and how marvellous the idea of the Indian !

More than a thousand different dialects now exist, among the various nations of the earth, which bear so little affinity to each other, that the people who speak one of them understand little or nothing of another. Supposing a thousand congregations, belonging to a thousand distinct nations, should assemble in some spacious plain, and the whole number of individuals, in each congregation, should lift up their voices in prayer and praise to God; is it probable that Jesus would understand them all? Like the Indian, I believe he would. Should any individual, in the vast assembly, hear all the voices, what a din of confusion would assail his ears; but