has been abundantly shown that the early Christian writers applied this term as we do.

The synonymous expressions, τραπεζα Κυριον, mensa Dei, the Lord's table, have immediate reference to the idea of a convivium Dominicum, as Tertullian expresses himself. In 1Corinthians 10. 21, we find τραπεζα Κυριου opposed to τραπεζα δαιμονιων, the table on which sacrifices were offered to devils. But this term does not convey the idea of a common dining table, or a table used for ordinary purposes, as well as for the purposes of the holy sacrament. The opposition between the expressions, "table of the Lord," and "table of the Lord," and "table of demons," at once marks it out as a table set apart for its sacred purpose; not to mention that the Apostle had just before spoken of θυσιαστήριον, as synonymous with it. The "table" of shew-bread, mentioned in Hebrews 9. 2, was set apart entirely for its sacred purpose. And therefore the ancients were quite justified in denominating this table mensa mystica, a table sacred to the purposes of celebrating the Lord's Supper. The name by which this sacrament has been most generally designated, is the Communion, kolvwvia, communicatio, communio. This term has been in current use in all ages of the Church, and among all parties. It has been used both in a doctrinal or mystical sense; and in an historical and ecclesiastical signification.

Doctrinally speaking, communion denotes a sacramental union and fellowship, which exists exclusively in and by the ordinance which it designates. It is so called, say some of the Fathers, because it unites us with God; others understand this communion, especially of union and fellowship with the Saviour; and refer it either to the (supposed) connexion of his sacred body and blood with the elements of bread and wine; or to the union of the communicants with their head; or to their union among themselves in the bonds of holy love. In an historical and ecclesiastical sense, communion means a partaking in all the mysteries of the Christian religion, and so church fellowship, in its fullest sense, with all its accompanying rights and privileges. Hence the term excommunication. In a liturgical sense, communion denotes, sometimes the administration of the sacrament, and sometimes the partaking of it. Riddle.

The advantages arising from the participation of the Lord's Supper are numerous. (1.) It is a means of strengthening our faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. (2.) It affords great consolation and joy. (3.) It increases Christian love. (4.) It has a tendency to enlighten our minds in the mystery of godliness. (5.) It gives us an utter aversion to all kinds of sin and occasions a hearty grief for it. (6.) It has a tendency to excite and strengthen all holy desires within us. (7.) It renews our obligations to Our Lord and Master. (8.) It binds the souls of Christians one toward another. It is highly important that right views be entertained of the ends for which this solemn service was appointed, in order that it may be suitably contemplated, and that the benefits of its observance may be enjoyed. On this point the testimony of the Apostle is very explicit. "I have received of the Lord that which also I delivered unto you, That the Lord Jesus the same night in which he was betrayed took bread: and when he had given thanks, he brake it and said, Take, cat, this is my body, which is broken for you: this do in remembrance of me. After the same manner also he took the cup, when he had supped, saying, This cup is the new testament in my blood: this do ye, as oft as ye drink it, in remembrance of me. For as often as ye eat this bread, and drink this cup, ye do show the Lord's death till he come." (1Cor. 11. 23-26.)

From hence it appears that this sacrament is commemorative of the mission, sufferings, and death of Christ; a pledge of our attachment to him and his people; and an anticipation of his second coming. The affecting occasion on which it was instituted, being "the same night in which he was betrayed," gives it an intensity of interest to every pious mind; and its perpetuity to the end of time will materially increase the importance which is to be attached to it. The symbols employed are bread and wine. The former representing his body which he condescended to assume when he appeared "in the likeness of man," and which was bruised and broken by the scourge, the nails, the thorns, the spear; and the latter reminding us of his precious blood, which flowed from his hands, his feet, his head, and side, both in the garden and on the cross, and "which was shed for many for the remission of sins." (Matt. 20. 28.)

The Lord's Supper is an affecting memorial of the Redeemer's sufferings and death. It conducts us in imagination into all the concluding scenes of his beneficent life on earth. We enter the very apartment where he assembled for the last time with his disciples. We see his condescension in washing their feet, to set them an example of humility and brotherly love, to teach them the doctrine of sanctification, and to give them an additional pledge of his unchanging regard. We hear his farewell discourse, in which, like a dying father, surrounded by his sorrowing family, he mingles his consolations and cautions with his last instructions. We listen to his intercessory prayer, when he so affectionately commends his little flock, now about to be left in this desert land, to the care and blessing of his Father and their Father, to his God and their God. We see the celebration of the Passover, which was so striking a type of him, the paschal lamb, and we witness the institution of the sacramental supper, which was to succeed that ancient festival, as the memorial of our deliverance from bondage and guilt. These impressive transactions having passed in order before us, while in the act of solemn and serious meditation at the Lord's table, we then seem to follow him, with the weeping Church in his train, across the brook Kedron and the Mount of Olives to the solitary garden of Gethsemane. There his soul is exceeding sorrowful, even unto death, under the accumulated load of human guilt. There, prostrate on the cold ground, with no sympathizing friend at hand to soothe his flowing grief, and at the midnight hour, when nature seeks repose from the sorrows of the day, he pours out his cries and tears in the prospect of approaching martyrdom, and exclaims in convulsive agony, under the penalty of sin, "Father, if Thou be willing, remove this cup from me; nevertheless, not my will, but thine, be done." (Luke 22. 42.) And such was the anguish of his spirit," that his sweat was as it were great drops of blood, falling down to the ground." (v. 44.) At the same eventful moment we see the treacherous Judas bartering with the chief priests for his betrayal; the disciples sleeping instead of watching and sympathizing with their suffering Lord; and the Jewish sanhedrim assembling, inflated with rage and malice against the innocent object of their displeasure. At length, after thrice pouring forth the fervour of his spirit, and expostulating with his followers for their negligence, he is surrounded by an armed band, seized as a malefactor, and led forth from tribunal to tribunal mute and uncomplaining as a lamb to the slaughter. Here, in the palace of Caiaphas, and at the judgment bar of Pilate, we see him falsely accused, unjustly condemned, buffeted, derided, mocked, giving his back to the smiters, and his cheeks to them that plucked off the hair; and after being scourged with knotted whips, and crowned with piercing thorns, he is

led forth in company with two thieves to the place of public execution. Arrived at Mount Calvary, the blessed Redeemer is stripped of his upper raiment, nails are driven through his hands and feet, by which he is fastened to the cross, and there, as a public spectacle, amidst the imprecations and mockery of an unfeeling multitude, he is left to agonize and expire by slow and lingering degrees, under the painful and ignominious process of crucifixion. Here we behold indignity without a comparison, sorrow without a parallel. His body bruised and mangled, his mind oppressed with an agony of grief; his hands, which were never stretched out but for the bestowment of mercy, now nailed to the tree; his divinity blasphemed; his character derided; himself forsaken of his own disciples; bereft of the manifestations of his Father's love, as the God of holiness and the enemy of sin, and left to expire amidst the surrounding gloom of nature's darkness. In this most agonizing situation, attracting the wonder of heaven, and exciting the convulsions of the earth, he hangs as a spectacle to angels and to men, till having fulfilled all righteousness, accomplished every prediction, and performed the work the Father gave him to do, "he said, It is finished, and he bowed his head, and gave up the ghost." (John 19. 30.)

While the Lord's Supper is thus an affecting memorial of Our Saviour's sufferings and death, it is also a striking representation of the expiation of sin; for after witnessing the touching transactions of Gethsemane and Calvary, it becomes an important question for what benevolent purpose the Lord of Glory "made himself of no reputation, . . . . and assumed our humble nature, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross." (Phil. 2. 7,8.) A reply to this inquiry must be the comfort of every penitent mind. "Without shedding of blood there was no remission" (Heb. 9. 22) under the Jewish dispensation, and hence the frequency and variety of their sacrifices. And what were those victims but types of his great oblation, who appeared to take away sin by the sacrifice of himself? Hence it is written, "Not by the blood of goats, and calves, but by his own blood, he entered into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us." Here is the penitent sinner's hope, and the Christian's joy and crown of rejoicing. Here faith beholds the "Lamb of God, which taketh away the sins of the world," dying that we may live.

Beside these great purposes, the Lord's Supper is likewise a visible bond of Christian fellowship. As those who are joined to the Lord are one spirit, it is highly desirable that they should be united to his Church in one body; "no more strangers and foreigners, but fellowcitizens of the saints, and of the household of God." (Eph. 2. 19.) In conformity with this view, the Apostle reminds us that 66 we being many, are one bread, and one body," (1 Cor. 10. 17,) and every one "members one of another." (Eph. 4. 25.) On other occasions there is an intermixture, but at the sacramental table, every Christian has an opportunity of declaring himself on the Lord's side, and of forming a part of that interesting and united community of which Christ is the head, and all we are members. Here the lukewarm spirit of indecision is dispelled; Christ is confessed before men, and received in all his offices, merits, and grace.

Such are some of the views which this sacrament is intended to unfold, and hence the strength which it communicates, and the sacred pleasure which it imparts. See EUCHARIST.

LORDLY. This word occurs but once in our version, and that in reference to a dish. In the song of Deborah and Barak, (Judges 5. 25,) it is said, "He

asked water, and she gave him milk; she brought forth butter in a lordly dish." Milk, in a thickened, curdled state, forms a great proportion of the diet of people in the East; hence, to present it in a dish or bowl of a superior kind, was a mark of honour. The 50 ON siphel aderim, literally "bowl of the nobles,” or a handsome dish, was of this sort. It appears that a similar custom prevails at this day in the north of Europe. Dr. Edward Daniel Clarke, speaking of a house at Tronyen, in Norway, where he was hospitably entertained, remarks:-"If but a bit of butter be called for in one of these houses, a mass is brought forth weighing six or eight pounds; and so highly ornamented, being turned out of moulds with the shape of cathedrals, set off with Gothic spires, and various other devices, that, according to the language of our English farmers' wives, we should deem it almost a pity to cut it. Throughout this part of Norway the family plate of butter seemed to be the state dish of the house: wherever we sat down to make a meal, this offering was first made, as in the tents of the primeval Arabs, when Jael, the wife of Heber the Kenite, 'brought forth butter in a lordly dish.'" See BUTTER.

LOT, the son of Haran, and nephew of Abraham, (Gen. 11. 27,) accompanied his uncle from Ur to Haran, and from thence to Canaan. With Abraham he went into Egypt, and afterwards returned with him into Canaan; but their numerous flocks, and still more the quarrels of their servants, rendered a friendly separation necessary; he therefore chose the city of Sodom for his abode. When God destroyed the cities of the plain with fire and brimstone, he delivered "just Lot" from the conflagration, according to the account of the Divine historian. The whole time that Lot resided there was twentythree years. During this period he had been a preacher of righteousness among this degenerate people. In him they had before their eyes an example of the exercise of piety, supported by unsullied justice and the performance of benevolent actions. On the destruction of the city, Lot and his two daughters escaped with their lives; but his wife, looking back, perished. (Gen. ch. 19; Luke 17. 28-32.)

Several opinions have been offered concerning the statement that Lot's wife was changed into a pillar of salt. Some commentators suppose, that being surprised and suffocated with fire and smoke, she continued in the same place, as immovable as a rock of salt; others, that a column, or monument of salt stone, was erected on her grave; others, that she was stifled in the flame, and became a monument of salt to posterity, as a permanent and durable memorial of her imprudence. The generally received opinion is, that she was overwhelmed and smothered in the spray of the igneous and saline matters which filled the air; and which gathering and hardening around her, left her encrusted body with some resemblance to a mass of rock salt. The “ pillar of salt" is one of the wonders which travellers have sought for in the district where these transactions occurred, and masses of salt have accordingly been pointed out as the one in question; but in such different situations as to manifest that the natives were imposing upon their credulity. Mr. Stephens, in his Incidents of Travel, says, "To judge from the efforts which I made to obtain precise intelligence on the subject of the chastisement inflicted on Lot's wife, it is very difficult, not to say impossible, to assign the spot where the disobedience of this woman was punished by her transformation into a statue of salt. It was incontestibly at some point very near the shore, but which that is, the diversity of accounts will not admit of deciding. At any rate, the certainty of the

fact attested by the narrative of Moses, and confirmed by the words of Christ himself, is not to be impugned."

Lot and his daughters retired to the city of Zoar, which was exempted from the general destruction of the cities of the plain, in consequence of his intercession; but he afterwards quitted it, "for he feared to dwell in Zoar; and he dwelt in a cave, he and his two daughters." (Gen. 19. 30.) Nothing further is known of Lot, except that he was the ancestor of the Moabites and Ammonites.

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LOT, goral. This, among the Hebrews, was a mutual agreement to determine an uncertain event by an appeal to the providence of God on casting or throwing something. In questions of property, in default of any other means of decision, recourse was had to the lot. In this manner the land of Canaan was divided by Joshua, to which there are frequent allusions in the Old Testament, particularly in the Book of Psalms. And it should seem from Proverbs 16. 33, ("The lot is cast into the lap; but the whole disposing thereof is of the Lord,") and 18. 18, (“The lot causeth contentions to cease, and parteth between the mighty,") that it was used in courts of justice in the time of Solomon. The phraseology of the original in the former passage would seem to imply a custom analogous to one of the Egyptians; the word "lap," in our version, would be more properly rendered bosom, or breast; the word "cast," raised, or lifted up; and the word "disposing," judgment. Sir John Gardner Wilkinson says, "A small image of the goddess Thmei, as goddess of truth and of justice, was worn by the chief judge while engaged in listening to the cases brought before him in. court; and when the depositions of the two parties and their witnesses had been heard, he touched the successful litigant with the image, in token of the justness of his cause." In criminal cases among the Jews, recourse was had to the sacred lot called Urim and Thummim, in order to discover the guilty party, (Josh. 7. 14-18; 1Sam. 14. 37-45;) but it appears, according to Michaëlis, to have been used only in the case of an oath being transgressed, which the whole of the people had taken, or the leader of the host in their name.

There are a variety of instances in the Scripture of lots being made use of, not only for the discovery of guilty persons, but for various other purposes good and bad. There is much diversity of opinion as to the manner in which these lots were taken. All we know with certainty, is, that when a particular person was to be found, either for punishment or honour, (as in the election of Saul to the kingdom,) the lot first determined the particular tribe, and then went through the descending branches of each family, till it at last reached the particular person. But how this was done is not very clear: Josephus merely says, that the proceeding took place before the high-priest and the elders; to which some of the Jewish writers add, that they were made to pass before the ark, and that the Urim enabled the high-priest to fix upon the right tribe, family, and person; others think that the high-priest alone was enabled, by extemporaneous inspiration, to make the required indications; but there seems more probability in the opinion of those who suppose that at first twelve lots or tickets, on each of which was written the name of one of the tribes, were put into an urn; that when one of the tribes was found guilty, as many lots were put in as there were families in that tribe; after that, as many as there were householders in the family that was taken; and then as many as there were persons in the selected household, until at last the right person was found.

Bishop Patrick observes, in reference to the passage in the Book of Esther 3. 7, "They cast Pur, that is, the lot, before Haman from day to day," "It was customary in the East, by casting lots into an urn, to inquire what days would be fortunate, and what not, to undertake any business in. According to this superstitious practice, Haman endeavoured to find out what time in the year was most favourable to the Jews, and what most unlucky. First he inquired what month was most unfortunate, and found the month Adar, which was the last month in the year, answerable to our February. There was no festival during this month, nor was it sanctified by any peculiar rites. Then he inquired the day, and found the thirteenth day was not auspicious to them. (v. 13.) Some think for every day he drew a lot; but found none to his mind until he came to the last month of all, and to the middle of it. Now this whole business was governed by Providence, by which these lots were directed, and not by the Persian gods, to fall in the last month of the year; whereby almost a whole year intervened between the design and its execution, and gave time for Mordecai to acquaint Esther with it, and for her to intercede with the king for the reversing or suspending his decree, and disappointing the conspiracy."

That the lot as practised by the Hebrews was considered lawful is evident, and it was likewise practised by the Apostles, as we read in Acts 1. 26, “And they gave forth their lots; and the lot fell upon Matthias, and he was numbered with the eleven Apostles." Grotius imagines their manner of casting lots may have been thus: They put their lots into two urns, one of which contained the names of Joseph and Matthias, and the other a blank, and the word Apostle. In drawing these out of the urns, the blank came up with the name of Joseph, and the lot on which was written the word Apostle came up with the name of Matthias. This being in answer to their prayers, they concluded that Matthias was the man whom the Lord had chosen to the Apostleship. Casting lots is still practised in the East, for Roberts informs us, "In nearly all cases where reason cannot decide, or where the right of several claimants to one article has to be settled, recourse is had to the lot, which 'causeth contentions to cease.' Though an Englishman might not like to have a wife assigned to him in such a way, yet many a one in the East has no other guide in that important acquisition. Perhaps a young man is either so accomplished, or so respectable, or so rich, that many fathers aspire to the honour of calling him son-in-law. Their daughters are said to be beautiful, wealthy, and of a good family: what is he to do? The name of each young lady is written on a separate piece of olah; and then all are mixed together. The youth and his friends then go to the front of the temple, and being seated, a person who is passing by at the time is called and requested to take one of the pieces of olah, on which a lady's name is inscribed, and place it near the anxious candidate. This being done, it is opened, and she whose name is written there becomes his wife.

"Are two men inclined to marry two sisters, a dispute often arises as to whom the youngest shall be given. To cause the 'contentions to cease,' recourse is again had to the lot. The names of the sisters and the disputants are written on separate pieces of olah, and taken to a sacred place; those of the men being put on one side, and the females on the other. A person then, who is unacquainted with the matter, takes a piece of olah from each side, and the couple whose names are thus joined together become man and wife. But sometimes a wealthy father cannot decide between two young

men who are candidates for the hand of his daughter; what can he do? he must settle his doubts by lot. Not long ago the son of a medical man and another youth applied for the daughter of Sedambara-Suppiyam, the rich merchant. The old gentleman caused two 'holy writings' to be drawn up, the names of the lovers were inscribed thereon: the son of Kandan, the doctor, was drawn forth, and the young lady became his wife. Three Brahmins, also, who were brothers, each ardently desired the hand of one female; and after many disputes, it was settled by lot, which 'causeth contentions to cease; and the youngest of the three gained the prize. But medical men are also sometimes selected in the same way. One person tells the afflicted individual such a doctor has far more skill than the rest; another says, 'He! what is he but a cow-doctor? how many has he killed! Send for such a person: he will soon cure you. A third says, 'I know the man for you; he had his knowledge from the gods; send for him.' The poor patient at last says, 'Select me one by lot,' and as is the name, so is the doctor. But another thing has to be settled; the medical gentleman intimates that there are two kinds of medicine which appear to him to be equally good, and therefore the lot is again to decide which is best." See URIM AND THUMMIM.

For Feast of Lots, see PURIM.

LOTUS. This flower (the Nymphaea Lotus of Linnæus, and the beshnin of the modern Arabs,) grows plentifully in Lower Egypt, flowering during the period of the annual inundation. Though it is not mentioned in the Scriptures, there can be little doubt the "lily work" spoken of in 1Kings 7. 19,22, was an ornament in the form of the Egyptian lotus. See LILY.

There were formerly three descriptions of water lily in Egypt, but one (the red-flowered lotus) has disappeared. Herodotus mentions that one kind was employed for food: "Those who dwell in the marshes have the same customs as the rest of the Egyptians; but to procure themselves easily the means of sustenance, they have devised the following inventions. When the river is full and the plains are become as a sea, then springs up in the water a quantity of lilies, which the Egyptians call 'lotus.' After they have gathered these, they dry them in the sun; and then squeezing out what is contained within the lotus, resembling the poppy, they make it into loaves, which they bake with fire; the root also of this lotus, which is round and of the size of an apple, is edible, and imparts a sweet flavour."

"The flower," says Burckhardt, speaking of the Nymphaa Lotus, "generally stands on the stalk from one to two feet above the surface of the water. When the flowers open completely, the leaves form a horizontal disk with

The Nymphaea Lotus.

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the isolated seed-vessel in the midst, which bends down the stalk by its weight, and swims upon the surface of the water for several days until it is ingulphed. This plant grows at Cairo, in a tank called Birket-el-Rotoli, near one of the northern suburbs where I happen to reside. It is not found in Upper Egypt, I believe, but abounds in the Delta, and attains maturity at the time when the Nile reaches its full height. I saw it in great abundance and in full flower, covering the whole inuudated plain, on the 12th of October, 1815, near the ruins of Tiney, about twelve miles south-east from Mansoura, on the Damietta branch. It dies when the water retires."

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Some of the Egyptian deities are represented sitting on the flower of a lotus. When the god of day, Ehôou, is thus represented, Sir John Gardner Wilkinson says, "He is then supposed to signify the sun in the winter solstice, or the rising sun; and the crook and flagellum, the emblems of Osiris, which he sometimes carries, may be intended to indicate the influence he is about to exercise upon mankind. The vase from which the plant grows is a lake of water, and the usual initial of the word ma or moo, water. They do indeed,' says Plutarch, 'characterize the rising sun as though it sprang every day afresh out of the lotus plant; but this implies, that to moisture we owe the first kindling of this luminary.'" With respect to the lotus plant on which the deity is represented seated, Sir John Gardner Wilkinson remarks, that "it is always the Nymphæa Lotus, and in no instance the Nelumbo. And though this last is mentioned by several ancient authors among the plants of Egypt, it is never introduced into the sculptures as a sacred emblem, nor, indeed, as a production of the country; a fact which goes far to disprove one of the supposed analogies of the Egyptian and Indian objects of veneration. With regard to the common lotus, so frequently represented as a favourite flower in the hands of the Egyptians, (as the rose or others might be in the hands of any modern people,) there is no evidence of its having been sacred, much less an object of worship." Proclus pretends that the lotus was peculiarly typical of the sun, "which it appeared to honour by the expansion and contraction of its leaves;" but in reality it was an emblem of Nofre Atmoo. Bouquets of the lotus flower are frequently represented amongst the offerings on the altar, and its employment as a device and an ornament on numerous articles, may be seen by an inspection of the various objects collected in the Egyptian room of the British

Museum.

LOVE, is an attachment of the affections to any object, accompanied with an ardent desire to promote its happiness. It is the excellence of the Christiam system, that it ennobles, regulates, and directs this passion to proper objects, and moderates it within due bounds. Finding this principle in the human mind, it does not banish but encourages it. Conducted by piety,. love is animated with the noblest expectations, and is trained up for a future state, where it shall be perfectly purified, extended, and rewarded.

Love is the greatest of all graces, (1Cor. 13. 13,) and it answers the end of the law. (1Tim. 1. 5.) Love, or charity, is described by the Apostle Paul, in 1 Corinthians ch. 13, as of such importance, that without it every other attainment is of no avail: "Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, and have not charity, I am become as sounding brass or a tinkling cymbal."

To love, in Scripture, signifies sometimes to adhere, to cleave to, as in Genesis 34. 3; while, on the contrary,

to hate is to forsake. In Isaiah 60 15, "forsaken" and "hated" are put as synonymous.

LOVE, BROTHERLY, is that attachment arising among Christians from their common faith, interest, object, and hope. Its foundation is their love of Christ, and truth and virtue, or Christian holiness. Love to good men is to be particularly cultivated, for it is the command of Christ, (John 13. 15;) they belong to the same Father and family, (Gal. 5. 13;) and we hereby give proof of our discipleship. (John 13. 35.) This love should show itself by praying for our brethren, (Eph. 6. 18,) bearing one another's burdens, by assisting and relieving each other, (Gal. 6. 2,) by forbearing with one another, (Col. 3. 13,) by reproving and admonishing in the spirit of meekness, (Prov. 27. 5,6,) by establishing each other in the truth, by conversation, exhortation, and stirring up one another to the several duties of religion, both public and private.

LOVE FEASTS. See AgapÆ.

LOWER PARTS OF THE EARTH, Diana tachleyoth erets. This phrase sometimes means valleys which diversify the face of the globe, and are evidently lower than hills, which also contribute to that diversity, (Isai. 44. 23;) and sometimes the place of disembodied spirits. (Psalm 63.9; 139. 15.)

LUBIMS, Lubim, (2Chron. 12. 3; Nahum 3. 9.) The Lubims are always mentioned in connexion. with the Egyptians and Ethiopians. These are generally supposed to be the Libyans of North-eastern Africa, that is, the different nomade tribes who inhabited Northern Africa from the confines of Egypt westward to the Lake Tritonis, (now Lowdeah.) Herodotus has given a particular account of the manners and usages of all the Libyan nomades, which do not essentially differ from those of other nomade shepherds, though modified by the nature of the desert country in which they wandered. He says, however, that those who were nearest to Egypt had approximated their manners, in a considerable degree, to those of the Egyptians, although they still retained their national costume.

1John 3. 16;) in the revelation of his will and the declaration of his promises to them, (2Peter 1. 4;) in his actual conduct towards them; in supporting them in life, blessing them in death, and bringing them to everlasting happiness. (Rom. 8. 30-39.)

LOVE TO GOD. To serve and obey God on the conviction that it is right to serve and obey Him, is in Christianity joined with that love to God which gives life and animation to our services, and renders it the means of exalting our pleasures, at the same time that it accords with our convictions. The supreme love

of God is the chief, the noblest of all our affections. It is the sum and end of the law; and though lost by us in Adam, it is restored to us by Christ. This love chooses God as the chief good of the soul. "Whom have I in heaven but thee? and there is none upon earth that I desire beside thee," (Psalm 73. 25,) is the language of every heart where the love of God is true in principle and supreme in degree.

Love to God is essential to true obedience; for when the Apostle declares love to be "the fulfilling of the law," he declares, in effect, that the law cannot be fulfilled without love; and that every action which has not this for its principle fails of accomplishing the precepts which are obligatory upon us. But this love to God cannot be fully exercised so long as we are sensible of his wrath, and are in dread of his judgments. These feelings are incompatible with each other, and we must be assured of his readiness to forgive before we are capable of loving Him with the whole heart, and soul, and mind, and strength. Thus the very existence of love to God implies the doctrines of atonement, repentance, faith, and the gift of the spirit of adoption. This love manifests itself in a desire to be like God; in making his glory the supreme end of our actions; in delighting in communion with Him, (1John 1. 3;) in relinquishing all that stands opposed to his will, (Phil. 3. 8;) in regard for his worship and ordinances, (Psalm 84;) in love for his truth and people, (John 13. 35;) and by confidence in his promises. (Psalm 71. 1.)

בן שחר

is here denoted.

Most

LUCIUS, a Cyrenian, was one of the prophets or teachers of the Christian church at Antioch. (Acts 13. 1; Rom. 16. 21.) By some writers he has been confounded with the Evangelist Luke.

10. 22,) whose descendants, according to Josephus, I. LUD, was the fourth son of Shem, (Gen. peopled Lydia; and although other historical testimony respecting the Semitic descent of this people is wanting, still there is nothing against the probability of such an explanation.

II. Lud is also mentioned as the name of a nation in Isaiah 66. 19; Ezekiel 27. 10; and Ludim in Genesis 10. 13; Jeremiah 46. 9. Gesenius thinks these were connexion with Cush, and Phut. Josephus a people of Africa or Egypt, generally mentioned in affirms that the descendants of the Ludim had long been extinct, having been destroyed in the Ethiopian The Jerusalem paraphrast translates Ludim, the inhabitants of Mareotis, a part of Egypt.

wars.

LUHITH, ♫ a city in Moab, is mentioned in Isaiah 15.5; Jeremiah 48. 5; its site is now unknown. Keith remarks, The cities of Moab have all disappeared. The predicted judgment has fallen with such truth upon these cities, and they are so utterly broken down, that even the prying curiosity of modern travellers can discover, among a multiplicity of ruins, only a few remains so entire as to be worthy of particular notice. When the towns of Moab existed in their prime, and were at ease; when arrogance, and haughtiness, and pride prevailed among them, the desolation and total desertion and abandonment of them all must have utterly surpassed all human conception. And that such numerous cities, which subsisted for many ages, which were diversified in their sites, some of them being built on eminences and naturally strong; others on plains, and surrounded by the richest soil; some situated in valleys by the side of a plentiful stream; and others