April 3

Genesis xii.—10. And there was a famine in the land: and Abram went down into Egypt to sojourn there; for the famine was grievous in the land.

11. And it came to pass, when he was come near to enter into Egypt, that he said unto Sarai his wife, Behold now, I know that thou art a fair woman to look upon. 12. Therefore it shall come to pass, when the Egyptians shall see thee, that they shall say, This is his wife; and they will kill me, but they will save thee alive. 13. Say, I pray thee, thou art my sister: that it may be well with me for thy sake; and my soul shall live because of thee. 14. And it came to pass, that, when Abram was come into Egypt, the Egyptians beheld the woman that she was very fair. 15. The princes also of Pharaoh saw her, and

Egypt being watered by the Nile, which we now know to be fed by immense lakes that drain the vast mountain regions of the equator, often had plentiful harvests, when Syria, which was dependent upon the uncertain rains, was suffering from famine. This contrast between these two neighboring countries often comes out in the sacred narratives.

The Bible is remarkable for its candor and fidelity in dealing with the characters of good men. Their frailties are made as prominent as their virtues, and they appear in all respects completely human. This is one token of the Divine Mind in the book; for God knows what is in man, and God is always true. Abram resorted to equivocation in order to avoid trouble with the Egyptians on account of his wife. In one sense, he could call Sarah "his sister;" for she was the daughter of his father, but not of his mother; but he meant to give the impression that she was not his wife. This device brought

commended her before Pharaoh; and the woman was taken into Pharaoh's house.

16. And he entreated Abram well for her sake; and he had sheep, and oxen, and he-asses, and men-servants, and maid-servants, and she-asses, and camels. 17. And the Lord plagued Pharaoh and his house with great plagues because of Sarai, Abrau's wife. 18. And Pharaoh called Abram, and said, What is this that thou hast done unto me? Why didst thou not tell me that she was thy wife? 19. Why saidst thou, She is my sister? so I might have taken her to me to wife: now, therefore, behold thy wife, take her, and go thy way. 20. And Pharaoh commanded his men concerning him; and they sent him away, and his wife, and all that he had.

him into the trouble that he had hoped to escape by it: and but for the mercy of God, shown through the forbearance of Pharaoh, it might have gone hard with the patriarch. As it was, he lost character in the eyes of the king of Egypt, and received his bitter reproaches.

It is never profitable, as it can never be justifiable, to swerve from the truth. The attempt to deceive others degrades our own moral sense, and is pretty likely at some time to lead to exposure, and react to our injury. It is a true proverb, that one lie leads to another; and by and by the deceiver becomes so involved in the meshes of his own falsehoods, that he cannot extricate himself, and must stand convicted of his shame. And, when one has lost the confidence of others in his word, it is very hard to regain it. Children should shun a lie as they would shun poison. There can be no sterling character where truth is wanting.

APPROPRIATE HYMS.]

Prayer.

[Nos. 65, 136, 154.

Almighty and most merciful Father, the day is thine, and the night also. Day unto day uttereth speech, and night unto night showeth knowledge concerning thee. All thy works, O Lord! do praise thee; and, oh! forbid that we, thine intelligent and immortal creatures, should refuse to bless thee. Remove the coldness of our hearts towards thee, and draw us nearer to thyself.

Thou hast renewed to us this morning all the comforts needful for the body; thou hast refreshed us with sleep, and spread our table with abundance. Lord, we bless thee for these; but we pray thee to feed our souls likewise. Make good the blessed promise to each of us here. We know that we cannot be satisfied with the best blessings this world can give us. We are sinners before thee, the righteous and holy God: we have forfeited all claim to thy favor, and need the assurance of thy forgiveness. Our hearts are ever prone to evil, and we need thy blessed Spirit to purify our secret thoughts and motives. We bless thee for the sure promise, that, if any man sin, we have an Advocate

with the Father, Jesus Christ; and that, if we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. Lord, cleanse thou the thoughts of our hearts by thy Holy Spirit. Create in us a clean heart, and renew within us a right spirit. Oh, may we not grieve thy Spirit so as to cause him to depart from us! May he be with us in our several duties this day! May we be diligent in business, fervent in spirit, serving the Lord!

We pray thee to keep us from temptation, from all deception and envy, from covetousness and evil desire. Give to us wisdom, O Lord! in our daily affairs, and grace to trust thee in all things.

O Lord! we place ourselves and our concerns in thy hands for the day on which we have now entered. May we in all things live as thine, and live in thy love! And this, our morning sacrifice of prayer and praise, we offer through our great High Priest, who ever liveth to make intercession for us. Amen.