vulets are uncommonly turbid by the melting of the snow." See farther remarks, in confirmation of the above, in Bishop Lowth's 6th Lecture on the Hebrew Poetry. Mudge thinks, that the Psalmist considers himself as in the bottom of an ocean, overwhelmed by all its waves, where he hears one deep roaring to another, through subterraneous canals, or caverns, and refers to Psalm xviii, and Jonah ii. This appears to me rather improbable. Does any reader wish to see the mystical interpretation of Jerome on this passage?-here it follows: "Abyss calls upon abyss, (says he) when either the Old Testament announces the New, or the New calls the Old to bear witness. The Old announces the New, when Moses says, A prophet shall the Lord your God raise up to you of your brethren.' The New calls the Old to bear witness, when Paul says, They drank of the rock that followed them, and that rock was Christ.' They are called abysses on account of the profundity of their doctrine." Ver. 8. The Psalmist applies to God in the day time, requesting that his favour may attend him; and in the night-time directing a song to him, in the form of a prayer, as contained in the 9th and 10th verses. Ver. 10. A sword, &c.-See similar language in Psal. Ivii. 4; lix. 7, et aliis. Junius & Tremellius (quoted by Glassius) thus express the sense in their Notes: They vomit blasphemies against God, and act, as if they thrust me through with a dagger, so indignantly do I bear their blasphemies." PRACTICAL REMARKS. Ver. 1. If David's zeal for God, and his anxiety to enjoy the privileges of the sanctuary, were so great, how should those Blush, who are in no respect debarred from such enjoyments, and yet are negligent of them? External worship is not only a bond of union with God, but a medium through which we receive the most beneficial influences-not to mention, that being of his own appointment, it cannot be neglected without peril. Ver. 3. So often as our enemies insult us, saying, "Where is your God?" the best way to re-assure ourselves, is to repair to that God, whose presence they affirm to be withdrawn from us. Ver. 5. When the wicked are distressed, they find their chief consolation in forgetting God; the righteous, on the other hand, naturally turn, in distress, to him that smites them; acknowledge him their only healer, and say with Peter, "To whom else shall we go?" or with David here, "Trust in God, for I shall yet praise him." Ver. 7. Deep, &c.-One calamity or trial follows close on an other, with little intermission; or as Solomon expresses it, "The clouds return after the rain." Ver. 8. It is the very nature of faith, that the servants of God should hope, even in the shadow of death. Ver. 10. Reproaches (says the excellent Leighton) are among the sharpest of human sufferings, and are indeed fiery trials. The tongue is a fire, (James iii. 6.) and reproaches are the flashes of that fire; they are a subtle kind of flame, like the lightning which crushes the bones, without breaking the flesh; they wound not the body, as tortures do, but they reach a man's spirit, through a whole skin, and cut it. Nor is there any suffering so frequent and constant, as reproaches are; when other persecutions cease, yet these continue; when all other fires of martyrdom are put out, these burn still. Those that outwardly receive the form of religion, yet are many of them inwardly haters of the power of it, and Christians, who are such only in name, will scorn those that are Christians indeed. TROPHIMUS. THE WORKS OF GOD DISPLAYED. Dear Sir, To the Editor of the Methodist Magazine. IN your valuable Miscellany, not any department is more instructive and admired, than that denominated, "The Works of God Displayed." Indeed, in proportion as the mind is attracted with the sublime beauties of Creation, is its clevation towards the transcendent and ineffable glories of the great Creator. Now, whatever has a tendency to form the most important of all conjunctions, that is, the union of God and man, is also calculated to subserve the end of the most desirable and consummate happiness. Should the subjoined remarks meet your approbation, their insertion will oblige, Dear Sir, your constant reader and promoter, Kettering, Feb. 22, 1813. ON THE ORDER AND BEAUTY OF THE VISIBLE CREATION. "How wondrous are thy Works, O God Most High! In this fair scene, where'er I turn my view, Beauties on beauties rise, for ever new; Yon lofty hill, crown'd with those stately trees, That sinking valley, which receives the breeze, Yon velvet downs, where sheep unnumber'd feed, Those fields which wave with corn, that greensward mead, Proclaim aloud the wise Creator's hand, For chance could ne'er produce a work so grand: THE first and most apparent quality, which commands our attention in the visible works of God, is a sublime dignity. What proportion do the most sumptuous and finished monuments of human power and skill bear to the magnificence of the crea tion! How mean and contemptible are all the proudest works of men, compared with the wondrous works of God! Could we suppose a person in full maturity of sense and understanding, but who had never beheld the glorious light of the sun, nor seen the charming face of Nature, I say, could we suppose such a person presented on a sudden with an ample prospect of the sublime canopy of heaven, the blazing sun, the illuminated atmosphere, and the florid earth, diversified with its various landscapes; how would the appearance astonish and transport him, and stamp at once on his mind the new ideas of grandeur and beauty, and excite his veneration of the greatness, wisdom, and power of God. If every person is not affected in the same manner with the same sublime view, it is either owing to worldly cares and passions possessing his heart, or because familiarity has destroyed all surprise, and blunted the sense of admiration. The prophet Isaiah, speaking of the wicked, saith, "He will not behold the majesty of the Lord." Hence it is that persons are much more struck with the appearance of any thing new, than by the constant survey of the whole frame of nature. Witness the comet, with its fiery aspect and formidable train, that made its appearance a few months ago; how amazed the sons of men were, at least for a time, with this new visible object! But the appearance of the sun, that grand, resplendent, and most useful production of creative power, and the mighty periodical revolution it appears to perform, in order to enlighten and warm the whole earth, leaves but a very slender impression on the minds of thoughtless and infatuated mortals. "Man marks not Thee, marks not the mighty Hand, That, ever busy, wheels the silent spheres.' After this first and superficial view of Nature, may we not proceed to observe the uniformity and variety which appear throughout creation's wide domains. The heavens above, and the earth beneath, continue the same from age to age; yet afford a rich diversity of successive spectacles; the clouded, the clear, the party-coloured sky; the nocturnal darkness, the meridian light; the strong lustre of the sun, and the paler splendour of the moon; the immeasurable space empty of visible objects, or bespangled with a multitude of orient stars;-these are the changing scenes that appear to the human eye of the celestial creation above us: and beneath, the hoary winter, the verdant spring, the golden autumn, vary in succession the surface of the earth: how great also is the local variety of the same surface, distinguished into the level plains, the lofty mountains, the lowly vallies, the winding slopes, the craggy precipices, the purling streams, the tremendous cataracts, and the vast extended bosom of the briny ocean. There is a similar uniformity and variety in the vegetables of the earth; which have all one common nature, and derive their nutriment and growth from one common parent. But what degrees of difference from the small blade of grass to the lofty, majestic cedar of Lebanon! Surely God is great in his minutest work! How great then in the greatest! "Confest to speculative souls, In bladed grass the Godhead shoots, Where can we possibly dart the eye, and not discern the Deity apparent? There is the same admirable uniformity to be discovered in the animal creation, which are divided by the wisdom of the Creator into separate ranks or kinds; yet have each a constitution and form, partly common to all, and partly peculiar to themselves. If we consider the species of mankind alone, what an amazing conjunction of uniformity and variety! Human nature is the same in all nations and ages; yet amidst the countless multitude, every individual has at the same time a form, capacity and countenance, different, in some respect, from every other of his fellow-creatures. This uniformity of nature, amidst an endless variety, constitutes the order and beauty of the world and this wonderful arrangement of the creatures in it, shews the disposing wisdom and economy of the Creator, which hath assigned to all a determinate rank and state, and rendered it impossible to confound the relations or distinctions which he hath established. If we examine carefully the minuter productions of nature, the smallest insects, or the leaves, flowers, and fruits of plants, we find a wonderful mixture of the various and uniform, that strikes the mind with a sensible and pleasing idea of order and beauty. If we understand and consider, therefore, that the like admirable arrangement has taken place throughout universal nature, it will unavoidably teach us to ascribe, from a rational and solid conviction, perfect wisdom to the Supreme Disposer. Hail Source of Being! universal soul Hast the great whole into perfection touch'd!"-THOMSON. Dear Sir, To the Editor of the Methodist Magazine. THE observations on the diversified scenery of nature, and reflections upon the seasons of the year, in several of your former Numbers, having met with the approbation of your readers, I herewith subjoin a few remarks upon that inexhaustible, delightful, and luxuriant subject. Should they meet your approval, you will give them insertion in due season. Kettering, 1813. I am, dear Sir, Your's, truly and sincerely, "Oh! come; and while the rosy-footed May The morning dews, and gather in their prime W. BROWNE. THOMSON'S SPRING, "Spring. Welcome the mother of the year, the Spring: "In Spring's soft season, Summer's fervid noon, THE SPRING's RETURN, AND SUMMER's APPROACH. ACCORDING to the sentiments of Commentators in general, the motto at the head of this paper, derived from the celebrated and luminous prophet, has an immediate reference to the times of the gospel, the flourishing of the kingdom of the great and glorious Messiah. This joyful, prosperous, and desirable state of the church, is predicted in terms of peculiar elegance, with which the inspired prophet was intimately acquainted. By the wilderness, then, was generally meant the gentile world; but they had the promise of copious fertilizing showers, sufficient to make the wilderness as the garden of the Lord. Such was to be the effect of evangelical preaching, and gospel grace, that even the aspect of nature should be changed, or a change similar to that annually. effected, by the mighty energy and power of God; (when dreary Winter gives way to vernal Spring) should take place throughout the barren "wilderness" of the gentile regions. That "desert" was to blossom with the ecstatic joys of divine consolation, and to bring forth the most exquisite fruits of grace. The exuberance, or rich abundance, to be comparable to "Lebanon," where the majestic and choicest cedars reared their lofty heads; and to "Carmel and Sharon," the most fertile and richest spots in Judea's land: such mighty strength, surpassing beauty, and abundant fruitfulness, it was predicted should eminently unite in. the Gospel Church. According to Bishop Lowth, and other writers of great celebrity, this prediction has not yet had its complete accomplish. ment. The words of Bishop Lowth are, "This prophecy evi |