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lation, as the promises of God did to your great forefather Abraham. He lived in continual dependence upon them. And how acceptable and important that humble trust was in the sight of the Lord, we may understand from that remarkable expression, "He believed in the LORD; and He counted it to him for righteousness." (Gen. xv. 6.) The only ground on which sinners can have reason to expect mercies from God is His express promise; it is, therefore, only upon the ground of that promise that we can embrace them: that is to say, nothing remains for us, but to trust to the promise, and to that alone. It would be highly presumptuous for a child of fallen Adam to look for a blessing upon any grounds of righteousness or merit in himself-for we must all confess, "It is of the LORD's mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not." (Lam. iii. 22.) It becomes every one of us to say, with Jacob," I am not worthy of the least of all the mercies, and of all the truth, which thou hast shewed unto thy servant." (Gen. xxxii. 10.) And we may observe that, in his prayer, he pleads nothing but his own necessities and God's promises. We should do the same. To the same purpose speaks one of the prophets, "Behold, his soul which is lifted up is not upright in him: but the just shall live by his faith." (Hab. ii. 4.) He who is either lifted up with a conceit of his own worthiness to receive the blessing-or who presumes to question God's word and to despise the promise-his soul is not upright in him but it is by his faith-by his humble dependence on the declarations and promised mercies of the Lord, that the just shall live. If you would have any share in the blessings of the New Covenant, you must humbly take God at his word,—and trust that, vile and unworthy as you are, wonderful and passing all imagination as His promises are, He will yet fulfil them to all that wait upon Him: yea, to the whole house of Israel in His own good time.

3. You must pray. This you are expressly taught in the word of God:-for, after one of the most remarkable summaries of the mercies prepared for you which is to be found in the Scriptures, the Lord gives first a strong assurance of his faithfulness, "I the LORD have spoken it, and I will do it:" and then a declaration of the absolute

necessity of prayer, "Thus saith the Lord GOD, I WILL

YET for THIS BE INQUIRED OF BY THE HOUSE OF ISRAEL, to do it for them." (Ez. xxxvi. 36, 37.) And: we are told, that, when the time of mercy comes, "They shall come with weeping, and WITH SUPPLICATIONS Will I lead them." (Jer. xxxi. 9.) Therefore, if you would have these promises fulfilled, plead them in earnest, persevering, humble prayer;-and the Lord will assuredly answer you in his own good time: for it is written, "It shall come to pass, that wнOSOEVER SHALL CALL UPON THE NAME OF THE LORD SHALL BE DELIVERED: for in mount Zion and in Jerusalem shall be deliverance, as the LORD hath said, and in the remnant whom the LORD shall call." (Joel ii. 32.) Pray, therefore, with Asaph: "O remember not against us former iniquities; let thy tender mercies speedily prevent us, for we are brought very low. Help us, O God of our salvation, for the glory of thy Name: and deliver us, and purge away our sins, for thy Name's sake." (Ps. lxxix. 8, 9.)

The importance of humble, earnest, persevering prayer cannot be too strongly urged on your attention. I have already reminded you, that the Lord himself says, "Take with you words and turn to the LORD:" (Hos. xiv. 2:) and in the Scriptures you will find many words of prayer which are exactly suited to your case. Consider the prayer of Ezra (Ezra ix. 6-15),—the prayer of the Levites, (Neh.ix.6-37,) after the return of your fathers from Babylon, and the prayer of Daniel. (Dan. ix. 4—19.) O with what deep humiliation did these holy men pour out their souls before God!-confessing their iniquities, and the iniquities of their fathers,-acknowledging the righteousness of God,-and presenting their supplications before Him, not for their righteousnesses, but for His great mercies! The prayer of Asaph, in Psalm 1xxx., seems also to be very suitable to the circumstances in which your nation is placed and with this I will conclude my present address, only interposing, here and there, a few remarks, for the purpose of directing your attention to some of the remarkable expressions which it contains.

"Give ear, O Shepherd of Israel, Thou that leadest Joseph like a flock; Thou that dwellest between the cherubim, shine forth."

It was between the cherubim that God manifested Himself, upon the mercy-seat, as a God of grace, dwell

ing in the midst of His people to hear and answer their prayers.

"Before Ephraim, and Benjamin, and Manasseh stir up thy strength, and come and save us. Turn us again, O God, and cause thy face to shine; and we shall be saved."

You must entreat God to turn you, or you will never turn to him. Ephraim is represented as saying, "Turn Thou me, and I shall be turned." (Jer. xxx. 18.)

"O LORD God of hosts, how long wilt Thou be angry against the prayer of thy people?"

If you were really and earnestly praying to God as you ought, can you believe that God would long refuse to hear?

"Thou feedest them with the bread of tears; and givest them tears to drink in great measure. Thou makest us a strife unto our neighbours; and our enemies laugh among themselves."

O why is this? Does not the Lord Himself answer the question? when He "Who gave says: Jacob for a spoil, and Israel to the robbers? did not the LORD, He against whom we have sinned? for they would not walk in His ways, neither were they obedient unto His law. Therefore He hath poured upon him the fury of His anger, and the strength of battle; and it hath set him on fire round about, yet he knew not; and it burned him, yet he laid it not to heart." (Is. xlii. 24, 25.)

If this be so, have you not reason to pray, in the words of Asaph,

"Turn us again, O God of hosts, and cause thy face to shine; and we shall be saved"?

You may also contrast, as before the Lord, your former glory with your present distressed condition :

"Thou hast brought a vine out of Egypt, Thou hast cast out the heathen and planted it. Thou preparedst room before it, and didst cause it to take deep root, and it filled the land. The hills were covered with the shadow of it, and the boughs thereof were like the goodly cedars. She sent out her boughs unto the sea, and her branches unto the river." Is it not deeply affecting to call to mind, in such lan

guage as this, the former glory of your nation?

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Why hast Thou then broken down her hedges, so

that all they which pass by the way do pluck her? The boar out of the wood doth waste it, and the wild beast of the field doth devour it."

Have we not here the spirit of a child, humbly expostulating with a tender Father, and pleading his miseries in the ears of Divine compassion? Then follows earnest prayer for renewed mercies.

"Return, we beseech Thee, O God of hosts: look down from heaven, and behold, and visit this vine; And the vineyard which Thy right hand hath planted, and the branch that Thou madest strong for Thyself. It is burned with fire, it is cut down : they perish at the rebuke of Thy countenance. Let Thy hand be upon the MAN OF THY RIGHT HAND, upon THE SON OF MAN, whom Thou madest strong for Thyself."

Who is this? Who is the Man of God's right hand? Who is the Son of man whom He hath made strong for himself?-strong enough to endure the hand of God, when it is laid upon Him, "to bruise Him," to "make His soul an offering for sin"-when "the LORD hath laid on Him the iniquity of us all?" Who can this be, but He of whom it is written, "Awake, O sword, against My Shepherd, and against THE MAN THAT IS MY FELLOW, saith the LORD of hosts?" (Is. liii. 6, 10; Zech. xiii. 7.) Who is this Son of man, but the same who shall come "" with the clouds of heaven," and be brought near before "the Ancient of days?" (Dan. vii. 13.) Is not this the same thing as praying, Let Thy hand be upon Him, for He can endure it: and turn away the hand of Thy righteous judgement from us, for we are not able to bear it?

"So will not we go back from Thee: quicken us, and we will call upon Thy Name. Turn us again, O LORD God of hosts, cause Thy face to shine; and we shall be saved."

In pouring out such prayers before God, you must rest all your hope upon the Son of man, the Man of His right hand. And you must say, with Daniel; "Now therefore, O our God, hear the prayers of Thy servant, and his supplications, and cause Thy face to shine upon Thy sanctuary that is desolate, FOR THE LORD'S SAKE." (Dan. ix. 17.)

THE

CITY OF REFUGE;

A DIALOGUE

BETWEEN

A LEARNED RABBI AND A SICK PENITENT.

"DEEP calleth unto deep at the noise of thy water-spouts: all thy waves and thy billows are gone over me." (Psalm xlii. 7.) "The Name of the LORD is a strong tower: the righteous runneth into it, and is safe." (Proverbs xviii. 10.)

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