BY REV. T. R. STEVENSON, BARNSTAPLE. WHAT are they? Few know. What do they mean? Fewer still can say. The significance of the words which record them is woefully misunderstood. Even those who see this force often fail to appreciate their connexion. Depend upon it, good reader, here is a neglected plot of ground. Seldom is it disturbed by the spade of inquiry. It is almost a stranger to the ploughshare of reflection. The more is the pity. Is all scripture given for our profit ? Then this portion may become helpful to us. Neglect is most unjustifiable. As the Psalms are a collection of ancient hymns by different authors, so, most likely, the book of Proverbs are, as Earl Russell puts it," the wisdom of many." Solomon gathered and put into a portable form the wise saws that were on the lips and in the writings of the Hebrew people. That many were his own is not for a moment denied, but that all were is palpably contrary to evidence. Among others we hear "the words of Agur the son of Jakeh," and in the course of his sayings he gives us these : "There be three things which are too wonderful for me, yea, four which I know not: the way of an eagle in the air; the way of a serpent upon a rock; the way of a ship in the midst of the sea; and the way of a man with a maid." Only let us get the right clue to all this and we shall pronounce it admirable. I. INDIRECT MEANS ARE OFTEN SUCCESSFUL MEANS. Each of the things named in these verses is different. In some respects they are a total contrast. In one particular, however, they all agree. As it has been said: "Neither an eagle nor a serpent, neither a ship nor the man in question, go straight to their object. The eagle flies in unexpected curves and circles; a serpent winds along a devious course; a ship sails first on this tack, then on that; so that you can never predict, from a partial survey, in what direction they will ultimately turn. And, in like manner, when a young man would gain the affections of a maiden and secure her for his own, instead of at once going straight to his object and asking for her hand, he fetches a compass; like an eagle, he flies in circles; like a serpent, he takes a devious course; like a ship, he goes first on this tack, then on that; and carries himself in general as if the longest way round were the shortest way there." All experience bears out the fact thus variously illustrated. Impressive exemplifications soon suggest themselves. Christ's life is a case in point. Not when He formally appealed to men did He win His chief power over them. His greatest influence was secured by His character and conduct. Take a few instances. What made the dying thief penitent? Had Christ spoken to him? Not a word. It was, among other things, the sublime love displayed in praying for His murderers that softened the malefactor's hard heart. When did the apostle's cry, "Lord, teach us to pray?" It was after Jesus had prayed. He had not been telling them to ask His guidance in supplication. His own devotions led them to seek it. How came it to pass that the Seventy cast out devils? No command to that effect had been given. But just before they made the successful attempt they had witnessed the Saviour do the same, and it stimulated their faith and courage. It is so still. The principle in question applies to the work of our sanctification. We often get good when we are not trying to do so, At times when we neither pray nor sing, when we neither read nor meditate on the Bible, (blessed as all these privileges are), we grow in grace. Toil for Christ makes us more like Him. Usefulness strengthens. Benevolence promotes piety. When we stoop to the depths of man's sorrow we rise to the height of divine excellence. Philanthropy fans the flames of spiritual life. To borrow an image from nature: the banyan tree sends out a large number of immense branches. Some of them are known to reach for a quarter of a mile. At the end of each branch a root grows which descends, fastens in the earth, and becomes a supporting stem. Nor is it otherwise with the tree of Christian experience. Each branch of usefulness secures new supports and helps. The subject bears another aspect. Not only in getting but in doing good, indirect means are frequently the most effectual. Tracts are often laid aside unread. Sermons are ridiculed. Bibles get covered with dust through neglect. But is a really noble, holy life, ever lost? Surely not. Genuine excellence always tells in the long run. We win to Christ when we live for Christ. The best evidences of religion are living epistles. Henry Ward Beecher remarks: "I would give more for one poor woman, whose poverty only makes her laugh and sing; who is contented with her humble lot; who bears her burdens with cheerfulness; who is patient when troubles come upon her; who loses every one, and who, with a kind and genial spirit, goes about doing good, than for all the dissertations on the doctrines of Christianity that could be written, as a means of preventing infidelity. I have seen one such woman who was worth more than the whole church to which she belonged, and its minister put together; and I was the minister, and my church was the church! She lived over a coopershop. The floor of her apartment was so rude and open that you could sit there and see what the men were doing below. She had a sort of fiend for a husband-a rough, brutal shipmaster. She was universally called "mother." She literally, day and night, went about doing good. I do not suppose all the ministers in the town where she lived carried consolation to so many hearts as she did If a person was sick or dying, the people in the neighbourhood did not think of sending for any one else half so soon as for her. I tell you there was not much chance for an infidel to make headway there. Where there is a whole church made up of such Christians as she was, infidelity cannot thrive." II. GOD'S WORKS ARE BOTH MARVELLOUS AND MYSTERIOUS.— "There be three things that are too wonderful for me." Each is marvellous. "The way of an eagle in the air." How heavy it is; sometimes an eagle weighs twenty pounds, yet it flies. Moreover, the air resists it, but up it goes. Its speed, too, is almost incredible. Its wings move at the rate of a hundred and fifty strokes a minute. The way of a serpent upon a rock." It has no feet, like an animal; no wings like a bird; no fins like a fish; yet it moves along. The way of a ship in the midst of the sea." By a skilful arrangement of sails and use of the helm it is impelled sometimes by the very winds that are dead against it. Yes, nature and human nature are, as the son of Jakeh says, full of wonders. We need not wander far for the astounding and thrilling. They are close to us. "Why art thou digging here ?" says the Arab to the Eastern who has wandered far from Palestine," the soil is hard and the wild beasts haunt the rocks." "Why?" replies the Eastern; "this is the treasureground, a lost city is buried here: the Ethiopian merchants who come this way told the secret." "Haste thee and flee," cries the Arab, “the gold lies in thine own field." To be But if the divine dealings are wonderful they are also mysterious. Agur adds, "yea, four which I know not." Here, in order to see the force of the passage we must emphasize the close of each clause; "the way of the eagle in the air; the way of serpent upon a rock; the way of a ship in the midst of the sea." "The eagle soars in the air with so lofty and rapid a flight, that the eye cannot follow her way. She leaves no scent or footsteps by which we might trace her, as the beast on the ground. The serpent on the sand would leave its mark. But the serpent on the rock leaves no slime like the worm, no feathers like the birds; who then can mark its way? The ship, like the great monster of the deep, "maketh a path to shine after her.' But while she ploughs in the midst of the sea, her furrows are quickly closed up, and her way is untraceable. As to "the way of a man with a maid," who can altogether explain human love? How comes it to pass that such as have been strangers to each other meet and in the course of a short time are bound together in the sacred bonds of affection? Verily, nature abounds with mysteries. We soon get to the end of our tether in seeking to understand her. The why and the wherefore, the when and the how of much is hidden from us. Speaking of Sir William Thompson's inaugural address at the British Association in Edinburgh, one of the daily news"Such are the guesses papers says, of science." An appropriate phrase. We know little, we guess at much. The wisest is but a child. "Thou art a God that hidest thyself." How unreasonable, then, is it to reject the Bible because of its mysteries. They are to be found in nature also. Difficulties meet us in creation not less than in revelation. The atheist is more consistent than the deist. III. NATURE ILLUSTRATES GRACE. Eagle and serpent, ship and man remind us of useful spiritual lessons. "The way of an eagle in the air." It is almost impossible to think of this without recalling Isaiah's noble words, "They that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles." Observe the qualifying expression, expression, "Wait on the Lord." That means prayer. Prayer is one of the chief supports of religious life. As Montgomery has it, "The Christian's vital breath." We prosper so far as we are devout. Neglect communion with God, and all soon goes wrong. Nothing can be plainer. Dear reader, give this fact its due weight. Be habitual in supplication. Let nothing interfere with it. When once we become careless about the mercy-seat the knell of our peace and progress is struck. The Rev. W. Arnott tells us of a brickmaker whom he observed at work digging clay. He had to raise it from a lower to a higher level by means of a spade. After throwing up each spadeful he dipped the spade in a pail of water. As much time was occupied in dipping as in digging. But it was quite necessary, for otherwise the spade would have been clogged with clay. clogged with clay. We have to do with humanity, which is the clay of which God is the potter. Our work is to lift it from depths of degradation to heights of excellence. To do this successfully, however, we must keep our spirits clean and pure by a baptism of prayer. "The way of a serpent upon a rock." Can we read that phrase and not recollect the Master's command, mand, "Be ye wise as serpents." Alas, how often we disobey it. We make sad blunders sometimes. Our work for Christ is often marred by serious mistakes. Did men use no greater tact and skill in business than they frequently bring to church affairs, there would be more bankrupts made and fewer fortunes amassed than there are. Surely the same ingenuity should be manifested in the management of ecclesiastical matters as is displayed in "worldly" things. Comfortable and attractive chapels; courtesy and attention to strangers who find their way thither; spirit and appropriateness in the psalmody of the various services; promptness and regularity in the conducting of finances these are instances of a wisdom worthy of cultivation. Well would it be for us and others if our course was more like "the way of a serpent upon a rock." 66 But "the way of a ship in the midst of the sea." "2 What about it? Are we not nonplussed here? Can we moralise about it? Where is the spiritual instruction to be derived from it? Well, if there are sermons in stones we may not despair of finding sermons in ships. Let us see. A ship, that is a common thing, a very ordinary sight. But has it ever occurred to you to ask how the ship came into existence? What was its origin? In the answer to this inquiry there is an illustration of a religious duty. Some tell us that the ship was first suggested by the beautiful and curious nautilus; hence we speak of nautical affairs and nautical men. Others say that it was suggested by the graceful swan; its breast the hull, its webbed feet the oars, and its wings the sails. For one of his most useful inventions, then, man had to go to nature. She provided the model. To speak more plainly, he had to bring himself and his work into harmony with the laws of God. Therefore, "the way of a ship in the midst of the sea," echoes the Saviour's words, "Thy will be done." Both as regards soul and body, secular and spiritual affairs, our prosperity and progress depend upon conformity to the desires and the decrees of the Most High. As to the way of a man with a maid," the lesson here is not far to seek. Human beings love each other. Every" man" has a way" of affection to his fellows; therefore we can, if we will, love God. The fact that we give our hearts to those around us proves that we can give them to Him who is above us. When we refuse to do so, our conduct towards our equals rebukes us. To quote the impressive utterances of a living divine" Men's virtues, no less than their sins, nay more than their sins, condemn their lack of piety toward God. God asks love. He says, "Son, give me thine heart." He teaches us that to love Him, and to love one another, comprises the whole duty of man. Does He, in asking love, ask more than we can give? Do we not love them that love us? Are we not grateful to those who show pity and do us kindness? Are we not so made that we must? Do we not call him inhuman, i.e. no more a man, who is thankless to benefactors and unloving to those who love him? We have, then, the capacity of love; we daily manifest and prove it. Nor is God unworthy of it. No benefactor has so helped us; no friend has so loved us; no father has so cared for us. He therefore has the right to ask for gratitude and love; in asking for them, He only asks what we continually prove ourselves able to give. If we refuse, what further proof will be needed that we have deserved condemnation, than the deeds of love which have adorned our lives? The very things that have been most admirable and lovely in us, will bear swift witness against us.' God forbid that such should be the destiny of one who reads this page. Let us resolve that it shall not. "Yield yourselves to God." Be love to Christ the motive-power of our lives. 66 Seek ye my face and live." THE WORLD'S JUBILEE. BY REV. R. Y. ROBERTS, PORTSEA. I. THEY sounded the trumpets; all were glad. They opened the prison doors; men walked forth free. The old patrimony was received back, and the bondsman felt himself again an honourable citizen of the commonwealth. The year of Jubilee had come, and the whole land of Israel was triumphant in its joy. To its dawning many a heart had sped with the fleet pinions of ardent anticipation. In the joy of hope many a family saw itself again tilling the dear old vineyard, and only became the more restless as the year seemed so slowly drawing on. The darkest hour just precedes the dawn; and so by the heart wearied with longing, and well nigh consumed by hope, it is the feeblest in the immediate presence of the consummation of its joy. It is the first glimmering of the dawn that calls forth the welcome of the world; and so, by the human heart, it is the first manifestation of the fact that dissipates its gloom. gloom and such gladness would more or less pervade the national heart of Israel! Such How will such a picture represent the hopes and fears of universalChristendom? How will such a picture foreshadow the jubilee of the Christian world? How long has the gospel been preached to men! How long have the oblations of sincere and fervent prayer been offered unto God! How long have the "stewards of His grace" toiled unceasingly in the hard soil and barren desert of the world's mortality? As the morning has dawned the dresser of the vineyard has looked and thought he saw a glorious sunset! In the evening gloom he has watched the sky, and assured himself that the morning would be bright! "Hope on, hope ever," has been the motto he has followed its sentiment and principle combined have made up the atmosphere of his heart. The arrival of the object of his wishes would be the rejoicing of his heart. The rejoicing of his heart would send forth the trumpet-blast of jubilee. As by one, so by all! the course of one sincere, earnest, and hopeful heart would be the sample of the whole, the indication of what is passing silently and unseen in the heart of the Christian church. What is the world's jubilee? It is the world's rejoicing at the world's freedom. This may be considered in the universal aspect. Is there anything to warrant a hope for such a consummation as a universal rejoicing because of a universal freedom? Centuries ago, the monk toiled on and on at his copy of the Sacred Word. Despite the trappings of a mediaval Christendom, he had some knowledge of and some hope in the spread of the truth of Christ. It is quite true he thought his church the depository of all truth, and in some sort believed himself to be gifted by the Holy Ghost to help toward the subjugation of his land to his belief: and it was just that sincerity of heart which was, in the hands of God, the means of making the man a benefit to the after ages. In many a monastery and in many an abbey the word of God was stowed away-and to one who could have come from some other world, there would have seemed no chance of a free worship and an open word of God. The freedom of to-day is but the development of the many purposes of the human mind, it is but the result of the secret and mysterious working of the power of God. The fact of such a change is our warrant for the hope of such a consummation. But what is comprehended in the change which we so happily enjoy? We must remember that the world, like our human life, has to pass through very many phases, and that each phase has its special share in her education. Though there is a glorious change, we have not yet come to the era when the world can truthfully pronounce herself "free." As yet the sounds which come from every side, tell the tale of the world's unrest. 'Tis like the sea "driven by the winds and tossed"-each wave hissing against each, and no one riding conqueror. What is the character of the agitation of the present time? We have but two stand-points from which to get a glance. At home we have the one, abroad we have the other. And the two views present but the same picture. Every where there is a weariness of the old worn out "ologies" and "isms." Men are fighting with stern will against the obstructors and obstructions to enlightenment and truth. And the universal arm seems determined to possess the universal boon. Here and there are great shoutings. But the agitation and shouting are only the foam and spray of the gently ruffled tide; the deep world of thought rolls on calm and steady in her true development. She is too busy to make a noise. She is too much in earnest to be disturbed by the howlings of fanatics, or the splutterings |