October 11

Acts xxii. — 12. And one Ananias, a devout man according to the law, having a good report of all the Jews which dwelt there,

13. Came unto me, and stood, and said unto me, Brother Saul, receive thy sight. And the same hour I looked up upon him. 14. And he said, The God of our fathers hath chosen thee, that thou shouldest know his will, and see that Just One, and shouldest hear the voice of his mouth. 16. And, now, why tarriest thou? Arise, and be baptized, and wash away thy sins, calling on the name of the Lord. 17. And it came to pass, that, when I was come again to Jerusalem, even while I prayed in the temple, I was in a trance; 18. And saw him saying unto me, Make haste, and get thee quickly out of Jerusalem; for they will not receive thy testimony concerning me. 19. And I said, Lord, they know that I imprisoned, and beat in every synagogue, them that believed on thee; 20. And, when the blood of thy martyr Stephen was shed, I also was standing by, and consenting unto his death, and kept the raiment of them that slew him. 21. And he said unto me, Depart; for I will send thee far hence unto the Gentiles. 22. And they gave him audience unto this word, and then lifted up their voices, and said, Away

with such a fellow from the earth! for it is not fit that he should live.

23. And as they cried out, and cast off their clothes, and threw dust into the air, 24. The chief captain commanded him to be brought into the castle, and bade that he should be examined by scourging; that he might know wherefore they cried so against him. 25. And, as they bound him with thongs, Paul said unto the centurion that stood by, Is it lawful for you to scourge a man that is a Roman, and uncondemned? 26. When the centurion heard that, he went and told the chief captain, saying, Take heed what thou doest; for this man is a Roman. 27. Then the chief captain came, and said unto him, Tell me, art thou a Roman? He said, Yea. 28. And the chief captain answered, With a great sum obtained I this freedom. And Paul said, But I was free-born. 29. Then straightway they departed from him which should have examined him; and the chief captain also was afraid, after he knew that he was a Roman, and because he had bound him. 30. On the morrow, because he would have known the certainty wherefore he was accused of the Jews, he loosed him from his bands, and commanded the chief priests and all their council to appear, and brought Paul down, and set him before them.

The scene here described took place on the steps of the governor's castle in Jerusalem. A mob had set upon Paul in the temple; and would have taken his life, had not the Roman captain with a band of soldiers rescued him, and then summoned him to make his defence. That defence consisted of the simple story of his conversion; but that memorable scene near Damascus, which brought home Jesus of Nazareth to the heart of Saul, was to the apostle the inspiration of a new life, as fresh and vivid as at the first. But bigotry gives no heed to facts; prejudice is not influenced by arguments; and, when these sticklers for Judaism heard that a Jew had

proffered salvation to the Gentiles, their fury knew no bounds. In the midst of their rage, Paul was self-possessed and tranquil. His father had in some way obtained the privilege of Roman citizenship, and Paul inherited this as a birthright. He many times took advantage of this to battle his persecutors; for it is always proper for a Christian, when oppressed, to invoke the protection of the law. Yet Paul's real strength lay in his personal faith in Christ. He had already begun to feel what he afterwards declared, "I can do all things through Christ, who strengtheneth me."

APPROPRIATE HYMNS.]

Prayer.

[Nos. 48, 68, 81.

We thank thee, heavenly Father, for the goodness and mercy that have followed us all the days of our life. Thou hast watched over our going-out and our coming-in. Thou hast been our refuge from evil, and our strength in trouble. Continue to bless us, O Father! Let all things work together for our good. Give us thankful and submissive hearts, that we may recognize all our mercies as thy gifts, and may bow to thy holy will when thou dost see fit to send sorrow upon us. We bring thee thanks for thy favor in the past night: thou hast refreshed us with sleep, hast kept us from harm, hast brought us with new vigor to the light of this day. We beseech thee, guide us in all our duties, prosper the work of our minds and of our

hands, and grant us in all things the joy of thine approval. [May these children be diligent in their duties, and gentle and loving in their conduct!] We commend our friends to thy care.

Father of mercies, and God of all comfort, who dost comfort thy children in all their tribulation, we humbly beseech thee of thy goodness to succor and sustain all those who are in trouble, sorrow, need, sickness, or any other adversity; granting them strong consolation and good hope, and the abiding grace of thy Spirit.

Our prayers are before thee; our hope is in thy mercy. May we as a family, with all whom we love, dwell forever in the light of thy presence, through Jesus Christ, our only Saviour! Amen.