The prayers of Luther are one of the strong features of his private life. One of the most remarkable of these is that when summoned

before the Diet of Worms.

On entering that city, where a magnificent monument of the reformer now stands, more than two thousand persons accompanied him to his quarters. The peril of his situation excited the deepest sympathy of his friends, and called forth their most earnest prayers.

The diet was a most powerful and brilliant assembly, consisting of the emperor, princes and dignities of the church and state. Before it on April 18th, 1521, Luther made the worldrenowned declaration: "Here I stand: I cannot do otherwise: God help me."

Says D'Aubigne: "On the morning of this seventeenth of April, he was for a few minutes in deep exercise of mind. God's face seemed to be veiled, and his faith forsook him; his enemies seemed seemed to multiply before him, and his imagination was overcome by the aspect of his dangers.

"His soul was like a ship driven by a violent tempest, rocked from side to side, one

moment plunged in the abyss, and the next carried up to heaven.

"In that hour of bitter trial- when he drank of the cup of Christ- an hour which to him was as the garden of Gethsemane, he threw himself with his face upon the earth, and uttered those broken cries which we cannot understand, without entering in thought into the anguish of those deeps from whence they rose to God.

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"O, God, Almighty God everlasting! how. dreadful is the world! behold how its mouth opens to swallow me up, and how small is my faith in Thee!.... O! the weakness of the flesh and the power of Satan! If I am to depend upon any strength of this world-all is The knell is struck. . . . Sentence is gone forth.... O God! O God! O Thou my God! help me against all the wisdom of this world. Do this, I beseech Thee; Thou shouldst do this by thy own mighty powThe work is not mine, but Thine. I

over.

er.

contend for with these great men of the world!

and it is

O Lord! help me!

I would gladly pass my days in happiness and peace. But the cause is Thine, righteous and everlasting! O faithful and unchangeable God! I lean not upon man. It were vain! Whatever is of man is tottering, whatever proceeds from him must fail. My God! my God! dost Thou not hear? My God! art Thou no longer living? Nay, Thou canst not die! Thou dost but hide Thyself. Thou hast chosen me for this work. I know it! Therefore, O God, accomplish Thine own will! Forsake me not, for the sake of thy well-beloved Son, Jesus Christ, my defence, my buckler, and my stronghold."

"After a moment of silent struggle, he continued:

"Lord-where art Thou?

where art Thou? ..

am ready.

My God,

Come! I pray Thee, I Behold me prepared to lay down my life for thy truth. . . . suffering like a lamb. For the cause is holy. It is Thine own!... I will not let Thee go! no, nor yet for all eternity! And though the world should