Who both in agony

Hath seen Him, and in glory; and in both
Own'd Him divine, and yielded, nothing loth,
Body and soul, to live and die,

In witness of his Lord,—

In humble following of his Saviour dear.

Keble.

* * Unmoved with fear,

Health, comfort, safety, life, he holds not dear,
May he but hope a Saviour's love to shew,
And warn one spirit from eternal woe:
Nor will he faint, nor can he strive in vain,
Since thus to live is Christ-to die is gain.
MONTGOMERY.

Thus to relieve the wretched was his pride,
And ev'n his failings lean'd to virtue's side;
But in his duty prompt at every call,

He watch'd and wept, he pray'd and felt for all;
And, as a bird each fond endearment tries
To tempt its new-fledg'd offspring to the skies,
He tried each art, reprov'd each dull delay,
Allur'd to brighter worlds, and led the way.

Beside the bed where parting life was laid,
And sorrow, guilt, and pain, by turns dismay'd,
The rev'rend champion stood. At his control,
Despair and anguish fled the struggling soul;
Comfort came down the trembling wretch to raise,
And his last falt'ring accents whisper'd praise.

GOLDSMITH.

And there he stood in bonds. But when he spoke
With such majestic earnestness, such grace
Of simple courtesy-with fervent zeal
So boldly reasoned for the truth of God,
The ardour of his heaven-taught eloquence
Wrought on the royal bosom till its pulse
Responsive trembled with the new-born hope
"Almost to be a Christian."

So he rose,

And with the courtly train swept forth in pomp. "Almost"—and was this all, thou Jewish prince, Thou listener to the ambassador of Heaven?

“ Almost persuaded!" Ah! hadst thou exchanged Thy trappings and thy purple for his bonds

Who stood before thee-hadst thou drawn his hope
Into thy bosom, even with the spear

Of martyrdom, how great had been thy gain!
And ye, who linger while the call of God

Bears witness with your conscience, and would fain,
Like King Agrippa, follow, yet draw back

Awhile, into the vortex of the world,

Perchance to swell the hoard, which death shall sweep
Like driven chaff away, 'mid stranger bands,

Perchance by pleasure's deadening opiate lulled
To false security—or by the fear

Of man constrained-or moved to give your sins
A little longer scope, beware! beware!

Lest that dread "almost " shut you out from heaven.

MRS. SIGOURNEY.

LI. SECOND ADVENT OF OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST.

BEHOLD, I come as a thief. Blessed is he that watcheth.-REV. xvi. 15. Of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only.-MATT. xxiv. 36.

The earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea.-HAB. ii. 14.

And now, little children, abide in Him; that, when He shall appear, we may have confidence, and not be ashamed before Him at His coming.-1 JOHN ii. 28.

Num. xiv. 21-Psalm ii. 7, 8-xxii. 27, 23—xxxvii. 22, 34—1. 1-6-lxvii.-lxxii. 7-xcvi. 10-13-xcvii.-xcviii. 8, 9—cii. 16 — Prov. ii. 21, 22-x. 30-xi. 31-Isaiah ii. 2-4, 19-21—xi. 5-12— xiii. 6-13-xviii. 3-xix. 18-25-xxiv. 4, 5, 10–16, 21-23-xxv. 7-9 -xxvi. 8, 9, 19-21-xxvii. 1-xxviii. 15-18, 21, 22—xxix. 18-20xxx. 27-30-xxxii. 1-4, 15-17-xxxiii. 2, 3, 5, 6, 9, 10, 17, 20-22— xxxv.-xl. 5, 9-11-xli. 18, 19-xlii. 9, 10, 16-xliv. 3-5, 23—xlv. 14, 22-24-xlvi. 13-xlix. 8-13, 22, 23, 26—li. 5, 6—lii. 7-10—liv.5 -lvi. 6-8-lix. 19, 20-lx.-lxi. 9-11-lxiii. 1-4-lxiv. 4-lxv. 17, 25-lxvi. 5-Jer. iii. 17-xv. 18, 19, 22, 23-xxv. 30, 31li. 6-Ezek. xxxvi. 23-Dan. ii. 34, 35, 44, 45—vii. 13-27—ix. 27 -xii.-Joel i. 15—ii. 1, 2, 28-32-iii. 12-16-Amos iv. 12-Obad. 21.-Mic. i. 3, 4—iv. 1-4, 7-v. 7-Nah. i. 5, 15—Hab. ii. 14— iii. 3, 4, 6, 10-13-Zeph. i. 7, 8, 14-18—ii. 2, 3—iii. 8, 9—Hag. ii. 2, 6. 7, 21-23-Zech. ii. 10, 11, 13—iii. 8-10-vi. 12, 13—viii. 20–23 -ix. 10-xiv. 4-9, 16-Mal. i. 11-iii. 1-3, 12, 16-18-iv. 1, 2, 5, 6.

Matt. v. 5-xiii. 30, 37-43, 47-50—xvi. 2, 3, 27—xix. 28—xxiv. 3-15, 21-51-xxv. 1-31-xxvi. 64-Mark viii. 38-xiii. 4-14, 19-37-xiv. 61, 62-Luke xii. 35-40-xvii, 20-37-xviii. 8-xix.

12-27-xxi. 7-11, 24-36-John v. 24-29-xiv. 3-Acts i. 7,9-11 —ii. 16-21—iii. 19-21-xv. 16, 17-Rom. viii. 18-25-xiv. 11— 1 Cor. i. 7, 8-iv. 5-xv. 23-26, 51-57-Gal. v. 5–Phil. iii. 20, 21-iv. 5-Col. iii. 4-1 Thes. i. 9, 10-ii. 19-iii. 12, 13—iv. 13-18-v. 1-11, 23-2 Thes. i. 7-12—ii.—iii. 5—1 Tim. vi. 13, 14 ---2 Tim. i. 12—iii. 1-5—iv. 1, 6-8-Tit. ii. 11-13-Heb. ix. 28-x. 24, 25, 35-37-xii. 25-29—Jas. v. 7-9-1 Pet. i. 6, 7, 13—iv. 12, 13-v. 4-2 Pet. iii. 3-14, 17, 18-1 John ii. 28-iii. 2, 3—iv. 17 -Jude 14, 15, 20, 21, 24, 25-Rev. i. 3, 17, 18—iii. 2, 3, 11—vi. 12-17-xi. 15-17-xiv. 6-8, 14-19-xvi. 14-21-xix. 1-3, 7, 11-16 -xx. 1-7-xxi.—xxii.

He comes! with sudden stroke to smite,

The busy sons of men ;

He cometh as a thief at night,

But no man knoweth when.

No voice is heard, nor warning given,
That sinners may prepare for heaven,
And turn to God again.

The bow hath bent, the arrow flown,
And man must reap as he hath sown.

Watch, therefore, since you neither know

The appointed hour nor day;
Watch-lest the unexpected blow
Should find your soul astray;

Watch, and in patience, faith, and prayer,
To meet the unknown hour prepare,

That summons you away;

Then joyful bid your Saviour come,

And rise to an eternal home.

ANON.

The Lord shall come! the earth shall quake,
The mountains to their centre shake;
And, withering from the vault of night,
The stars shall pale their feeble light.

The Lord shall come! but not the same
As once in lowliness He came ;
A silent Lamb before His foes,
A weary man, and full of woes.

The Lord shall come! a dreadful form,
With rainbow-wreath and robes of storm;
On cherub wings, and wings of wind,
Appointed Judge of all mankind.

Can this be He, who wont to stray
A Pilgrim on the world's highway,
Oppress'd by power, and mock'd by pride,
The Nazarene,-the Crucified?

While sinners in despair shall call,
"Rocks, hide us; mountains, on us fall!"
The saints, ascending from the tomb,
Shall joyful sing, "The Lord is come!"

HEBER.

Heard'st thou that shout? It rent the vaulted skies;
It was the voice of people,-mighty crowds.—
Again! 'tis hush'd.-Time speaks, and all is hush'd ;
In the vast multitude now reigns above
Uuruffled solitude. They all are still;
All-yea, the whole-the incalculable mass,

Still as the ground that clasps their cold remains.