neither shall fruit be in the vines; the labour of the olive shall fail, and the fields shall yield no meat; the flock shall be cut off from the fold, and there shall be no herd in the stalls: yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will joy in the God of my salvation!"

"O God, the strength of every heart,

Whom heaven and earth obey;

Thy promis'd help and grace impart,
That we may keep thy way.

By all on earth thy will be done,
As by the hosts above;

Who always see thee on thy throne,
And glory in thy love.

In hope like them to see thy face,
Lord, we would do thy will;
O strengthen us with inward grace,
Thy precepts to fulfil.

We would no more from thee depart;

No more unfaithful prove;

But love thee with a perfect heart,
As holy angels love."

No. 22.]

THE NARRATIVE OF JONAH CONTINUED.

JONAH'S DISPLEASURE AT GOD'S MERCY.-THE GOURD.

"But it displeased Jonah exceedingly, and he was very angry; and he prayed unto the Lord, and said, I pray thee, O Lord, was not this my saying, when I was yet in my country? Therefore I fled before unto Tarshish: for I knew that thou art a gracious God, and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness, and repentest thee of the evil. Therefore, now, O Lord, take, I beseech thee, my life from me; for it is better for me to die than to live."

4th chap. Jonah, 1-3rd verses.

ANOTHER proof of the depravity of man's nature will now shortly appear strikingly before us. The opinion of man and the ways of God are generally contradictory. Hence we observe the power and will of God continually over-ruling and, at times, frustrating our plans and conduct. And then often, in the hardness of our hearts and self-righteousness, we repine at the dealings of Providence.

Well

might the Psalmist exclaim, "What is man that thou art mindful of him, and the Son of man, that thou visitest him?" God having acted in a manner contrary to the views of the prophet, he again falls into error,-his rashness induces him to contend and reason, as it were, with the Almighty. Jonah was self-sufficient, and the same tendency to the spirit of independence exists now. To nothing are men more prone, and yet nothing is more hurtful and dangerous. Self-sufficiency has been many a man's ruin. Both will daily separate you from a close union with Christ. Rely not on your own strength, for ye are the branches, Christ the vine, and without him ye can do nothing.

The preceding remarks bring us to observe, 1st.— Jonah's wickedness in repining at the mercy of God; and his prayer to die in consequence of it. The Ninevites' repentance, and thereby God's forgiveness to them, was what Jonah had contemplated when he received the call from God the first time, heeded it not, and fled to Tarshish. The second time, however, he obeyed God, and sounded forth the trumpet of alarm to the guilty Nineveh. She was alarmed by it, and God saw her repentance, and was merciful and gracious unto her. This displeased Jonah. And it is not unreasonable here to call him a false prophet and an impostor exhorting repentance, and in

his heart desiring the contrary. Here is a witness to the deceitfulness of men. And how much would I exhort my christian friends,—those present with us and others who are absent, to look well to their actions; to see if their outward conduct agrees with their inward principles. Jonah acted deceptively towards God, and in the end deceived himself. Men of the world do the same towards each other. But God knoweth the heart, and in a future day he will award and judge us accordingly, not looking at what the appearances were,- "Man looketh to the outward appearance, but the Lord looketh to the heart." Jonah's prayer to die in consequence of God's mercy being against his will appears very rash and unpardonable. He seems to wish to rule the Almighty, and goes so far as to pray for death, which always conveys terror to the sinner. He desires to die rather than to be exposed to the reproach of men. How wicked to endeavour to rush into death unprepared. Yet Jonah did; and Elijah, when obliged to give up the hope of regenerating Israel, journeyed into the wilderness and sat under a juniper tree, and prayed like Jonah for the Lord to take away his life. But Elijah was supported under his despondency, whereas Jonah was hereafter punished. "Is it not lawful for me to do what I will with my own? Is thine eye evil, because I am

good?" Such an argument Jonah seemed to have forgotten. If he had possessed it with the grace of Christ he would have left the event in God's hand.He would have rather said, "Thy will be done," than attempt to cut his life off because of the foolish fear of man's reproaches, and his want of trust in the faithfulness of the Redeemer.

If there should be one into whose hands these pages may fall, and who feels within himself that he is chained to the world and the wishes of his fellow men, awake, awake, from such dangerous connection. If he feels that every word, or look, or command of man places more links to his chain of carnal bondage, let him ask himself why it is, and what will be the issue. If the will of God is neglected by him merely because of his neighbours' scorn, what will God render unto him when he cuts that chain asunder by death, and perhaps so eternally? If he has neglected to attend the holy sacrament on earth because of the scoffs of men, how can he anticipate joining that more heavenly supper of the Lamb in the mansions of bliss? If he has acted unworthily before God on earth to gain worldly popularity or esteem, how can he look forward with joy to the coming of his Lord? If the multitude do evil, and thou follow after that multitude, what can the multitude do for you after you have followed