looks of inspiration upon him, and exclaims, "O altar, altar, thus saith the Lord; Behold, a child shall be born unto the house of David, Josiah by name; and upon thee shall he offer the priests of the high places that burn incense upon thee, and men's bones shall be burnt upon thee." After these mysterious utterances, he stated the sign that should indicate the event. Whereupon the king enraged at the conduct of the stranger, put forth his hand from the altar, saying, "Lay hold of him." The monarch's hand at once became so withered and paralyzed, that he could not use it. The altar, according to the prediction, is shivered to pieces. The King relents, and entreats the prophet to pray to the God of Heaven that his hand may be healed. The prophet generously accedes to the request, the prayer is answered, and the royal hand is healed. Touched with gratitude, Jeroboam invites the prophet to his house to partake of his hospitality; but the invitation is declined with emphatic energy and decision. "If thou wilt give me half thine house, I will not go in with thee, neither will I eat bread nor drink water in this place for so was it charged me by the word of the Lord."

The prophet departs for his home; tidings of the strange events that had just occurred at the altar quickly spread through the neighbourhood, all minds are astir with curiosity, and one theme rules the talk of the district for the time.

Two sons of an "old prophet" living in Bethel, having personally witnessed, perhaps, the strange occurrence, hastened to their home and told their aged sire. The old man's curiosity is excited, he enquires the way the "prophet of Judah" went, he is told, he pursues him, his ass is saddled, and he departs. At length he overtakes him, perhaps, wellnigh exhausted, sitting down under the cool shadow of an old tree. He addresses him, "Art thou the man of God that camest from Judah?" The answer is, "I am." Then said the old man from Bethel, "Come home with me, and eat bread." The invitation is declined. Again he is urged,

and urged by a falsehood in the name of God. This gives it the effect upon the pious heart of Judah's prophet. He returns, partakes of the proffered hospitality, and thus disobeys his God. The very man who tempted him to this act of disobedience now, at his own table, is made the instrument to denounce his conduct and to predict his doom. "He cried unto the man of God that came from Judah, saying, Thus saith the Lord," &c. The prophet, after refreshment, leaves the house of his tempter and his guest, and proceeds homewards on his ass. He soon meets with the fate predicted. A lion attacks him, kills him, but instead of devouring him, stands by his carcass as if to protect it. The tempter, hearing of the catastrophe, hastens to the scene, brings back the body to Bethel, buries it in his own grave, and mourns over him, saying, "Alas my brother!" And then he commanded his sons saying, "When I am dead, then bury me in the sepulchre wherein the man of God is buried; lay my bones beside his bones."

Now this little piece of strange Hebrew history, thus briefly sketched, I shall employ in order to illustrate some important facts in connexion with that mighty system of TEMPTATION, to which we are every moment subject, while in this world. I infer from the history :—

I. THAT THE TEMPTER OF OUR RACE ASSAILS THE BEST OF MEN. The man who now became the victim of temptation was no other than a prophet of the Lord. He was Heaven's appointed delegate. From the multitudes of the good men in Judah he was singled out as God's messenger to Jeroboam, to denounce that monarch's impiety and to predict his fate. In the prosecution of this high mission, too, he displays many noble attributes of character. Mark his courage. See him walk along with a firm step up to the altar, where the monarch of a great people was, in stately pomp, officiating as pontiff on behalf of the nation. He approaches the spot, he meets the eye of the King and feels no trepidation; he speaks, but not in the language of a flattering courtier; no

compliment escapes his lips, he does not even address a single word to his majesty; on the contrary as if to show his utter contempt for the man who was thus outraging the reason of humanity, and insulting the God of Heaven, he cries to the altar, as if the dead stone was more worthy his notice and more likely to be impressed by his appeals. Noble courage this. There is more true heroism in a man, thus singlehanded and in the face of royalty, conscientiously fulfilling his individual mission, than you could find, perhaps, in all the Rifle Brigades of the three kingdoms. Mark his magnanimity. The monarch had stretched forth his hand over the altar, probably in order to deal a fatal stroke upon the head of this prophet; but just Heaven struck it with paralysis. It was "dried up, so that he could not pull it in again to him." When in this terrible condition, he entreated the prophet to supplicate Heaven for his restoration. What was the result? Did the seer with the spirit of revenge rejoice in the King's affliction and refuse? No, but with solemn earnestness he "besought the Lord," and thus removed the affliction. I see more greatness of soul in an act like this,—an act of mercy to an enemy,—than I see in all the vaunted victories of revenge. He is the truly great man

not who strikes a nation dead with a retaliating blow, but who overcometh evil by good, and like this old prophet prays for those who despitefully use him. Mark his fidelity to God. When the king, struck with a momentary gratitude, invited him to his house and said, "Come home with me, and refresh thyself, and I will give thee a reward;" did he accept the request? Who would refuse the invitation of a monarch? Why the mere bow of recognition from a king some would feel to be a sufficient honor for the talk of their life; but to go home to eat with a king, who would refuse? Yet our prophet did so. And why? Not from bashfulness, nor from a bravado of independence; but from respect to the command of God. Hear his noble words. "If thou wilt give me half thine house, I will not go in with thee, neither will I eat bread nor drink water in this

place for so was it charged me by the word of the Lord." Loyalty to Heaven was at this time a sentiment in him stronger than physical hunger, self esteem, or respect for royalties. Amongst a race of sycophants it is truly inspiring to see a man like this prophet, who from inviolable attachment to duty, refuses the monarch's invitation.

Now, it is note-worthy that this man who, in the special commission of Heaven, displays all those noble attributes of character was assailed by temptation and fell a victim to its seductive influence. What the king failed to accomplish in turning him from the commandment of God, another, within a few minutes, (the old prophet of Bethel) achieved. Here is a lesson to us all. While in this world we are on the tempter's ground. His agencies thickly play around us, and try us in every point of our character. If invulnerable in one part we are tried in another. Through them the best of men have been overtaken in faults. Once they turned the meek Moses into a creature of stormy wrath; the spiritually minded David into a hideous adulterer; the bold indomitable Peter into a contemptible coward. "Let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall."

I infer from the narrative :

II. THAT THE TEMPTER OF OUR RACE INVARIABLY ACTS THROUGH THE AGENCY OF MAN. How did the tempting spirit appear to this prophet of Judah now? Not in the form of a serpent, as he appeared of old in Eden, nor in the form of an angel, but in the form of a MAN. The devil comes to man through man,―acts on man by man. Do not suppose the great enemy of souls is somewhere in the clouds. He is incarnate, he dwells among men, "he worketh in the children of disobedience." He is in the craft of the false priest, who officiates at the altar, and in the superstitious services of his deluded votaries; he inspires the mercenary merchant in business and works in the countless tricks of trade. He is in the overbearing arrogancies of one class and the cringing servilities of another. He fills the haunts of pleasure. He

plays seductively in the smiles of beauty, and breathes in the song that warms the passions. He speaks in the words that shake the faith in virtue, and guides the pen of the thousand scribblers who minister to the wishes of the sceptic, the tastes of the depraved, and the cravings of the sensual. Look for the devil in man. Man is the tempter of

man.

The fact that man is the tempter of man shows :—

First: The moral degradation of human nature. Man has become the tool of Satan. The false religionists, the hypocrites, the infidels, the blasphemers, the carnal, what are they? The instruments of the devil, to seduce and corrupt their fellow men. "Demoniacal possessions" were not confined to Judea, nor limited to the Theocratic age and people—they, in a moral sense, pervade all lands, and run through all times. "The works of the devil" are everywhere around you. Alas! for human nature. Who shall deliver

us? Who shall cast out the evil spirit from the world? Who shall destroy his works? There is ONE who can, and to Him we look, and in His all-conquering strength we trust. "Gird thy sword upon thy thigh, O most mighty," &c.

The fact that man is the tempter of man shows:Secondly: The necessity of constant watchfulness. In social circles be ever on your guard ;-be cautious as to the companionships you form, as to the books you read, as to the guides you follow. The evil spirit, as of old, is going to and fro through the earth; beware of "his devices," arm yourselves against his "fiery darts."

I infer from the narrative:

III. THAT THE TEMPTER OF OUR RACE ALWAYS ASSUMES THE GARB OF GOODNESS. The temptation came to this "old prophet" not only through a man, but under the garb of piety. Listen to the tempter's argument: "I am a prophet also as thou art; and an angel spake unto me by the word of the Lord, saying, Bring him back with thee into thine house, that he may eat bread and drink water. But he lied