to have nothing savage or sordid about him. But the heart is a nest of serpents, and will be such while it continues to beat. If God cover the mouth of that nest with his hand they are hush and snug, but if he withdraw his hand, the whole family lift up their heads and are as active and venomous as ever.-COWPER.

Self-enjoyment. We hear a great deal about selfenjoyment; there can be no such thing; sin has destroyed every thing like it; sin has defaced the image of God, in which man was created; by sin man has lost holiness, happiness, and peace; by sin he has lost himself. Where, then, can be self-enjoyment? Sin has clothed man in the image of Satan; and he now drinks opiates to lull his immortal soul into slumber as fast as the devil can administer them.-HOWELS.

Is God on your side?-To creatures such as we are, helpless, exposed to danger on every side, and entirely dependent on God, what question can possibly be so interesting and momentous as, Whether God be on our side, or against us? "If God be for us, who can be against us?" And, if God be against us, who can be for us? Multitudes, it is feared, give themselves little concern regarding this question, and take it as a thing of course, that God is on their side, because God has assumed their nature. It is a blessed truth, indeed, that by the incarnation, sufferings, death, resurrection and ascension of the Son of God in our nature, every man living has the strongest possible warrant to come to God for salvation, and the strongest possible assurance of God's willingness to be on his side; but, alas, it does not follow as a thing of course, that God is on his side; on the contrary, all this may only serve to deepen his condemnation. How, then, can we ascertain our own state, with regard to this solemn question? Two tests whereby to ascertain it naturally arise out of what has been said; 1st, We may know that God is on our side, if we are on his side. 2d, We may know it by the value we set upon his presence. First, Are we on God's side? Many think it enough if they do not oppose the cause of God, and flatter themselves they are occupying a safe neutral position. Fully engrossed by their own concerns, and those of the world, they have neither time nor inclination to take part in the great contest that is carrying on between the hosts of God and those of Satan. But do men act thus in regard to contests of another kind? When their country is invaded by a hostile nation, or when civil dissensions break out within their own land, do they think it enough not to join the ranks of the enemy? Although all cannot bear arms as trained warriors, are not the hearts of all engaged on one side or the other, and the hands of all ready, as occasion offers, to advance that cause to which they are attached? Does not every individual so identify his own cause with that of his confederates, as to rejoice in every instance of their success, and mourn over every occasion of their defeat, as though it affected his private and personal interests? In every contest between men, indeed, there must be a large mixture of error on each side; and a conscientious mind may often be forced to remain neutral, and a Christian will ardently desire their peaceful termination. But, in the contest between heaven and hell, between holiness and sin, between God and the devil, neutrality would be criminal were it possible. We say were it possible, for in fact it is not so. There is no individual who has not some influence in the diffusion either of good or evil; and the more moral and amiable we are, while destitute of a vital principle of godliness, the deeper injury we do to the cause of the Gospel, by leading men to believe they can be virtuous and happy without God in the world." And although we may not have it in our power to engage in active services for the cause of Immanuel, we may yet discover, in our minds, such a

deep interest in that cause, as shall assure us that we are on his side. For instance, we shall grieve for the declensions of the Church, long for her revival, joyfully hail any symptoms of returning zeal and purity in ber members, and anxiously watch over her interests, as though they were our own. We shall be grieved for the affliction of Joseph, (Amos vi. 6,) and prefer Jerusalem above our chief joy. (Psal. cxxxvii. 6.) And if such be our secret emotions, we shall find some means, however small, of proving them in action. It is one of the features of the present age, that it conimpossible to discover to which of them men belong. founds these two opposite sides, so that it is often Perhaps the days may not be far distant, when the cry shall be made! "Who is on the Lord's side," who? and when adherence to that side shall require more than the passive acquiescence, the calm neutrality, with which professed Christians at present content them selves. If these days should come in our time, oh! may we be found on the Lord's side, though it be with "the loss of all things." But, secondly, we are to test the Lord's being on our side, by inquiring in what esti mation we hold his presence. It is one mark of an unrenewed state, that we secretly say to God, "Depart from us, for we desire not the knowledge of thy ways." But, after we have tasted that the Lord is gracious, our continual cry is, "Oh! when wilt thou come unto me?" "Lord, lift thou up the light of thy countenance upon me." We henceforth value his manifested presence above all earthly joys, and mourn his absence more than all earthly griefs; at least it betrays a very low state of grace when this is not the case. If, then, it be our chief delight to enjoy such glimpses of God's blessed countenance, as our present state permits, we need not fear that he will hereafter gather our souls with the blood-thirsty; but may joyfully look forward to seeing the King in his beauty, without a cloud be tween, in the land that is very far off, and being ever with the Lord.-ISABELLA GRAY MILNE.

Sinning against Light. To go on in a course of de fection when an enlightened conscience is stirring, and looking you in the face, and crying within you that you are going in an evil way, is a step to the sin against the When the truth is come to your hand, Holy Ghost. hold it fast, go not again to make a new search and inquiry for truth; it is easy to cause conscience believe as you will, not as you know; it is easy to cast your light into prison and detain God's truth in unrighteousness, but that prisoner will break ward to your incom Fear your light, and stand in awe of parable torture. it, for it is from God.-RUTHERFORD.

"Look unto Me, and be ye saved."-To what end did our blessed Saviour come into this world, if it were not that the sick might seek their Physician, that the blind might draw near to the light, the ignorant to truth, and the miserable to mercy?-QUESNEL.

SKETCH OF THE HISTORY OF THE JEWS FROM THE DESTRUCTION OF JERUSALEM DOWN TO THE PRESENT TIME, AND ONWARD TO THEIR FINAL ESTABLISHMENT IN THEIR OWN LAND.

PART III.

BY THE REV, GEORGE MUIRHEAD, D.D., Minister of Cramond, Mid-Lothian.

SEE EZEKIEL XX. 39-44.

FROM the chapter of Ezekiel, referred to at the head of this Number, it appears that there shall be a partial return of the people of Israel to their own land, before the final and universal return referred to in the same

adding to the trophies of the Redeemer's power and grace.

But let us now come to the final ingathering of the people of Israel, which is foretold in that portion of the twentieth of Ezekiel, referred to at the head of this paper, which closes the sixth period of their history. Observe that the prophet speaks here not of a partial, but of an universal return of the people of Israel to their own land. In thy holy mountain, that is in the land of Judea, of which the capital city, Jerusalem, was founded on Mount Zion. There shall all the house of Israel, all of them in the land serve me. Observe, again, that the service that shall then be presented to the Lord, shall be a holy service which he will accept of. There will I accept them; I will accept you with your sweet savour, and I will be sanctified in you. Observe again, they shall then be brought to much clearer discoveries of the character and perfections of the one true and living God, than they had ever obtained before. Ye shall know that I am the Lord. Then shall be fulfilled what is foretold of that period; they shall no longer teach every man his brother, saying, Know the Lord: for they shall all know me, froin the least of them even to the greatest of them, saith the Lord. Observe again, that the result of their knowing the Lord, and of all the special manifestations of God's love, which they shall then experience, will be, that they shall be more than ever humbled and abased before God. In looking back upon all their transgressions, and backslidings, and provocations, they shall be ashamed and confounded, they shall loathe themselves in their own eyes. Thus the most exalted conceptions of God's adorable majesty, and the most abundant experience of his loving-kindness, lead to the most abasing thoughts of ourselves. Now, this is not the only testimony of Scripture relating to this subject. Yet upon this one testimony we might rest fully persuaded, that a time of great favour is awaiting the people of Israel, that they shall certainly be restored to their own land, and that they shall be raised to a state of greater honour, and peace, and prosperity, than ever was enjoyed by them in their most flourishing times.

chapter, and the truth of this partial return is confirmed by various testimonies of the prophets, as has been shown in the preceding Number, where it appears that some trials await them after that return. This may not accord with our conception of what must be expected. We might be disposed to conclude, that after the long period of trials and judgments under which they have been groaning for nearly eighteen hundred years, when they were at length brought back to their own land, their trials would have been ended, and that they would have immediately entered upon a time of rest, and joy, and thanksgiving. And such an expectation is strengthened by the many promises of God's returning favour to them when they shall be again established in their own land. But as in the case of the first coming of Christ, the great body of the Jewish nation had their attention so much directed to Christ's second coming and glorious appearing, as to overlook what had been foretold respecting his first coming, in humiliation and suffering, to take away sin by the sacrifice of himself, and thus rejected him when he did appear: so both Jews and Christians, in looking forward to the time of their ingathering, have overlooked what is foretold of a previous and partial ingathering; or have been disposed to explain what is foretold of this last invasion of the land of Israel as referring to some of the former invasions of that land by the Babylonians, or Assyrians. We are in danger of being misled in the interpretation of Scripture prophecies, by first judging what we think most likely to be the case, and then trying to make the Scripture bend to our views. But God's thoughts are not as our thoughts, nor his ways like our ways. It becomes us therefore to come to his Word, with the simple desire of knowing what it is that God is thus declaring to us, and resolved to receive implicitly what he declares to us, however it may be opposed to the views that we had previously adopted. In the present instance, we might naturally have concluded, that when a great proportion of the people of Israel were again established in their own land, their trials would have been ended. But we learn from Scripture that this was not the mind of God. Even after many of them shall be returned to their own land, they are yet to undergo one other fiery trial for their deeper humiliation, for purging away their dross and their tin, that they may be purified and prepared for a more abundant participation of the great mercies which shall be bestowed upon them. And I would just add, before leaving this subject, that this time of great trial and tribulation to the people of Israel, will also be a time of great tribulation to those Gentile nations that shall be combined against Israel, and also to the Christian Church. Philosophers have been for years looking forward to a great melioration of the human race, from the increase of knowledge, or the march of intellect, as it has been called; and Christians have been looking to still more glorious results from a gradual spreading of the light of the Gospel. Both, I apprehend, are inistaken. The rapid increase of human knowledge without religion for its basis, is just sapping the foundations of stability in human institutions, and will lead to confusion and anarchy. And although Christians have a solid ground on which to rest assured of the final triumph of Christianity over all opposition, they are mistaken, I apprehend, in looking for that triumph under the present dispensation. The Church of the Gentiles has also to come through a fiery trial before the way is prepared for the universal spreading of the Gospel among the nations. The great mystery of iniquity must first be taken out of the way, and Christ must take to himself his great power and reign. Unto them his way shall be known throughout all the earth, and his saving health to all nations. In the meantime, it is a high honour conferred on this and other Christian lands, if they shall be made the instruments of

The subject is frequently mentioned by their prophets. It is repeatedly mentioned by this same prophet, Ezekiel, of which an instance or two may be adduced. Thus in chapter xxxiii. 22-31, God promises to enter into a covenant of peace with them, and to set up David as their shepherd, that is Christ, who was to sit upon the throne of his father David, and who is often spoken of by the prophets under the name of David. It shall be a time of great blessing. There shall be showers of blessings. And that this prophecy refers to the final ingathering, is evident from what is said, that they should no more become a prey to the heathen, they should dwell safely, that none should make them afraid, and that they should no more be consumed with hunger, neither bear the sbame of the heathen any more. Again, in chapter xxxvii. 15-28, there is another prophecy similar to the former. In both David is mentioned as their shepherd or king. In both God promises to enter into covenant with them; and here it is called an everlasting covenant. Here it is particularly mentioned that this ingathering includes all the tribes of Israel along with Judah, and that they shall no longer be divided but become one kingdom under one king. And here, also, it is mentioned that the sanctuary of the Lord shall be among them. They shall enjoy a signal manifestation of God's presence with them-a visible display of his glory in the person of Christ. To give one other instance from this same prophet, in chap. xxxix. 25–29. The prophet had been foretelling the destruction of the last enemy of Israel, and then goes on to speak of their ingathering, God will then have mercy on the whole house of Israel. They shall be so gathered, that none of

HAVING already, in our two last monthly Supplements, given an account of the origin and recent progress of the Revival, we now gladly avail ourselves of the publication of Mr Burns' statement, to present our readers with an account of the first celebration of the Lord's Supper after the awakening.

About three weeks after the recent revival of religion commenced, it was considered most desirable and obligatory to have another communion season. The Session met for special prayer for direction as to the matter, and afterwards as to the time most suitable.

The number of new communicants amounts to nearly ninety. A few who spoke on the subject seem to have had scruples, and did not come forward. With the exception of a very few, the account given of their views and spiritual condition has been very pleasing and satisfying. They vary, in regard to age, from twelve to three score and ten; a good many are from fifteen to eighteen years of age. The work of examining has been of a different character from that of former years, wherein "we have seen evil." No doubt the systematic knowledge of not a few of them is deficient, and much pains must be taken by themselves and by us in this matter. I have urged on the young converts, especially, a very careful study of the Shorter Catechism; and the earnest, close, and prayerful study of the Scriptures. We solicit the prayers of Christian friends and ministers, that we may have the great joy of seeing our children walking in the truth, and established with grace. The number of communicants would doubtless have been greater had we deferred the communion for a few weeks, as the Banton revival is not so far advanced as to have furnished a large addition. *

The friends of the good cause are requested to remember that very interesting new parish, and to assist us with the means of having our very useful missionary ordained as soon as possible. It No. 44. NOVEMBER 2, 1839.-14d.]

A great concourse of people, including not a few genuine friends of the Lord Jesus, assembled to our communion. It is thought that not fewer about the town of Kilsyth upon the Lord's day; at than from twelve to fifteen thousand were in and the tent the number is estimated at about ten or twelve thousand. The day was uncommonly favourable; and indeed during the whole interesting season external circumstances were most propitious; and having been made the matter of special prayer, the answer should be marked and remembered.

On the fast-day, (Thursday,) public worship began at the usual hour, the minister commencing with praise and prayer, and reading Psalms cxxvi. and cxxx. The Rev. C. J. Brown of Edinburgh preached from Rom. vii. 9, "I was alive without the law once; but when the commandment came, sin revived, and I died." The Rev. Dr Malan of Geneva preached in the afternoon from John xiv. 27, "Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid." Mr Macnaughtan' of Paisley preached in the evening from Isa. xlii. 3, “A bruised reed shall he not break, and the smoking flax shall he not quench: he shall bring forth judgment unto truth." He preached also at Banton; and Mr Cunningham of Edinburgh from the words in Rom. v. 8, "God commendeth his love towards us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us." Friday evening, the Rev. Mr Middleton of Strathmiglo preached from Jer. viii. 22, "Is there no balm in Gilead? Is there no physician there?" Saturday, Mr W. C. Burns preached in the tent, to a large assembly, from Rom. x. 4, "Christ is the end of the law for righteousness, to every one that believeth." In the evening Mr Somerville

would be truly interesting to have, in the course of a few months, a communion season there for the first time. Subscriptions in aid of Banton will be received by myself, and by Mr Robert Moody, writer, Glasgow.

[SECOND SERIES. VOL I.