Bless, O bless the young. May each of them, this day hear Thee saying, My son, give me thy heart; and from this time may they cry unto Thee as the guide of their youth. Regard those who have reached the years wherein they say, We have no pleasure in them. If old in sin, may they be urged to embrace, before it be for ever too late, the things that belong to their peace; and if old in grace, uphold them with thy free Spirit, and help them to remember that now is their salvation nearer than when they believed.

Bless all the dear connexions attached to us by nature, friendship, or religion. Grace be to them, and peace be multiplied.

Let our country share thy protection and smiles. Biess all our rulers and magistrates.

Bless all our churches and congregations. Bless all thy Ininisters; may thine ordinances in their hand be enlivening and refreshing, and thy word effectual to wound and to heal.

May this be a year remarkable for the conversion of souls and the extension of the gospel. Bless all missionary societies; and let the circling months see the banners of the Redeemer carried forward, till all nations are subdued to the obedience of faith. Our Father, who art in heaven; hallowed be thy name; thy kingdom come; thy will be done on earth, as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread; and forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those that trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation; but deliver us from evil; for thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen.

GOOD FRIDAY*-MORNING.

O THOU King eternal, immortal, and invisible! though Thou art past finding out unto perfection, we rejoice that we are not called to worship an unknown God. Thou hast not left thyself without witness. We bless thee for the revelation which Thou hast given us; and that in thy word we can view Thee as the Father of mercies and the God of all grace. All thy works and ways correspond with the names Thou hast assumed, and demand and justify our confidence in Thee. We praise Thee for the displays of thy goodness in the productions of nature and the bounties of thy providence; but above all, for thine inestimable love in the redemption of the world by our Lord Jesus Christ; for the means of grace, and for the hope of glory. Herein Thou hast commanded thy love towards us, in that while we were yet sinners Christ died for us.

We find ourselves this morning at the foot of his cross, where angels are desiring to look into these things—and if they who need no repentance, study the sufferings of Christ and the glory that should follow, how much more should we, to whom they are not only true and wonderful and sublime, but all important and infinitely interesting! Help us, O Lord, to turn aside and see this great sight; and not suf fer a dying Saviour to address us in vain, Is it nothing to all ye that pass by? Behold and you, if ever there was sorrow like unto my sorrow.

see,

Here may we see the value of our souls in the price paid for their deliverance; and instead of neglecting them. for the vanities of time and sense, may we regard them according to the estimation in which they were holden by Him who gave his life a ransom for many. Here may we

A day set apart by the church to commemorate our Savior's sufferings and death.

contemplate the evil of sin, and abhor it; here look upon Him whom we have pierced, and mourn for Him. Yet remembering that He was not only slain by us, but for us. may we rejoice in our tears; and by believing, enter into rest.

With humble and holy confidence may we be enabled to say, Surely He hath borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; the chastisement of our peace was upon Him, and with his stripes we are healed.

May we never degrade his death, by fearing that it will not be available for guilt so great and aggravated as ours, even if we depend upon it, and plead it before God; but be fully persuaded that his blood cleanseth from all sin, and that by the one offering up of Himself, He hath per

fected for ever them that are sanctified.

Yet, O God, never suffer us to sin that grace may abound. May we never crucify the Savior afresh, and put him to an open shame. May he never be wounded in the house of his professing friends. Rather may we live only and wholly for Him who died for us, and adorn the doctrine of God our Savior in all things.

May our old man be crucified with Him, and the body of sin be destroyed, that henceforth we may not serve sin. May we be planted together in the likeness of his death. As He suffered for us, leaving us an example that we should follow his steps, may we learn of Him submission and meekness, and forgiveness of injuries. When reviled, may we revile not again; when suffering, may we threaten not, but commit ourselves to Him that judgeth righteously.

Like Him, in all the afflictions of life, may we look to the hand that prepares and presents them, and say, The cup which my Father hath given me, shall I not drink it? Whatever be the cross we are required to bear, may we look before us, and see HIM carrying a much heavier; carrying it for us, and carrying it without a murmur.

Convert and pardon all those who by their lives or doc. trine are the enemies of the cross of Christ. Have mercy upon the descendants of those who shed his blood; and let his dying prayer be answered, Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do."

As Thou hast made his soul an offering for sin, may He see his seed, and prolong his days, and the pleasure of the Lord prosper in his hand. May He see of the travail of his soul and be satisfied; and by his knowledge may He justify many, having borne their iniquities.

Yea, having been lifted up from the earth, may He draw all men unto Him. May all kings fall down before Him and all nations serve Him; and in all the earth which He has purchased with his own blood, may there be one Lord, and his name one.

And when He who made himself of no reputation, but took upon Him the form of a servant, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross, shall come in his glory, with all the holy angels, may we be enabled to say, Even so, come Lord Jesus; and unite with those, who will be eternally employed in saying, Unto Him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood, and hath made us kings and priests unto God, and to his Father, be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.

GOOD FRIDAY-EVENING.

O THOU, whose name alone is Jehovah, the Most High over all the earth: we desire to adore thy perfections and to admire thy works, which are sought out of a.. them that have pleasure therein.

Thou art the only wise God. Thy power is almighty, Whither can we go from thy presence, or whither can we

flee from thy Spirit? Thou art loly in all thy ways. And such is thy purity, that even the heavens are not clean in thy sight.

How shall we come before the Lord, or bow before the high God? We have no offering of our own to bring. No man can redeem his brother, or give to God a ransom for him. The blood of bulls and of goats could not take away sin. The law itself made nothing perfect, but the bringing in of a better hope did, by the which we draw nigh to God.

Yes, blessed be thy name, Thou hast shown us what is good; and we behold the Lamb of God, who is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world.

Here a foundation is laid for our hope, in connexion with the highest glory of all thy perfections; and we rejoice to think that while pleading for salvation by the blood of the cross, we ask Thee not to deny thyself, or to trample on thy holy law; for here thy law is magnified and made honorable; here all thy attributes are developed and harmonized; mercy and truth meet together, righteousness and peace kiss each other.

Here, weary and heavy laden, may we come for relief, and find rest unto our souls. May we take fresh views of this adorable sacrifice under a sense of our constant unworthiness and desert; and in all our approaches to Thee may we have boldness and access with confidence by the faith of Him.

May we not only rely upon his cross, but glory in it. Yea, may we joy in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom we have now received the atonement. And may we be able, individually, to say, I am crucified with Christ; nevertheless I live, yet not I, but Christ liveth in me; and the life that I now live in the flesh, I live by the faith of the Son of God who loved me and gave Himself for me.