September 8

Such worship had never been rendered in Solomon's temple—no, nor by Adam in Paradise; nor by the angels in heaven. Think of his preaching there. "I have preached righteousness in the great congregation;" and in him were hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge; and he spake as never man spake. O to have heard him, when early in the temple he said, "I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life." O to have heard him at the passover, when, on the last, the great day of the feast, he stood and cried, "If any man thirst let him come unto me and drink." Other teachers received a measure of the Spirit; but he was full of grace and truth. Think of his divinity. He could say, "There is one in this place greater than the temple." In him dwelt all the fulness of the God-head bodily. He was the Lord of all—Well might he fill the house with glory.

The temple once thus honoured has long since been consumed. But there are temples sacred to his service now: and the Saviour's presence is the glory of them. And every believer loves the habitation of his house; and repairs to it, not for the stateliness of the edifice, the superbness of the decorations, or the effect of the ceremonies—if there was every thing in it that was Jewish, Pagan, or Popish, it would all be nothing, less than nothing and vanity, unless he could see the beauty of the Lord; but because he has said, "Where two or three are gathered together in my Name, there am I in the midst of them." And they find him faithful to his word. They hear his voice; see his goings in the sanctuary; taste that he is gracious; and are made joyful in his house of prayer: and though it may be a private room, or an upper chamber, when thus blessed and ennobled it is none other than the house of God and the gate of heaven.

Christians themselves are a building fitly framed together, and growing unto a holy temple in the Lord. Know ye not, says the Apostle, that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you? And he is all in all as to his church: "For I, saith the Lord, will be unto her a wall of fire round about, and will be the glory in the midst of her."

There is yet another temple; and this too is filled with the same glory—"Therefore are they before the throne of God, and serve him day and night in his temple: and he that sitteth on the throne shall dwell among them. They shall hunger no more, neither thirst any more; neither shall the sun light on them, nor any heat. For the Lamb, which is in the midst of the throne, shall feed them, and shall lead them unto living fountains of waters, and God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes."

SEPTEMBER 8.—"For the Lord will have mercy on Jacob, and will yet choose Israel, and set them in their own land: and the strangers shall be joined with them, and they shall cleave to the house of Jacob."—Isaiah 14:1.

THE JEWS were carried away captive to Babylon. But they were not to be destroyed there, or to remain. "After seventy years be accomplished at Babylon I will visit you and perform my good word toward you, in causing you to return to this place. For I

know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end." With regard to this restoration two things are mentioned in the words before us.

The one is the source of it—mercy, free and undeserved mercy: "I will have mercy on Jacob, and will yet choose Israel, and set them in their own land." And this is the principle which always, as far as good is concerned, whether in possession or hope, leads him to deal with us.

The other is the consequence. Many, leaving their own country and their idols, would return along with them; others would unite with them after their return: "And the strangers shall be joined with them, and they shall cleave to the house of Jacob." And here we see a little of the design of God in their captivity. It was indeed to punish them for their sin; but his punishments are corrections; and he does not afflict willingly, nor grieve the children of men. He would humble them, and prove them, and reclaim them; and not only do them good, but render them useful to others. And who can tell how many have had reason to bless God for the dispensation. For when they were conquered and enslaved they carried the elements of their religion along with them, diffusing their inspired writings, and spreading the knowledge of the true God. Many pious characters rose to distinguished eminence and influence during their stay in Babylon. Several very glorious and publicly witnessed miracles were performed on their behalf. Thus God pleaded the cause of his people, and showed that though he chastised them, they were the seed which the Lord had blessed. And their deliverance was so wonderful, and attended with such unparalleled circumstances, that it not only at first seemed to themselves, more like a pleasing dream than a reality, but induced the very heathen to say among themselves, "The Lord hath done great things for them." Hence many became proselytes, and professed the God of Israel.

Thus the Lord can change the darkest skies, and turn the shadow of death into the morning; yea, and by our sufferings not only bless us, but make us a blessing. The little girl that waited on Naaman's wife had been torn from her parents, and carried away captive, but she was the means of honouring the God of Israel. The persecution which scattered the brethren from Jerusalem spread the Gospel in all the directions in which they fled. The blood of the martyrs was the seed of the churches. The dreary imprisonment of Bunyan for twelve years occasioned his writing the Pilgrim's Progress and the Holy War. The works of many other authors, whose praise is in all the Churches, were the produce of their privations and hardships. Who can tell in how many ways we may be able to say, "It is good for me that I have been afflicted."

But we here see that religious conviction produces attachment to the people of God. Man is by nature a social being. When sin falls in with this disposition, it is corrupted, and becomes a most powerful auxiliary of iniquity; but when grace meets with it, the bias is sanctified, and operates after a godly sort. The new creature feels the want of new associations; and here, as in every thing else, like attracts like. Hence Ruth, though a Moabitess, said to her