spirit, nothing preserves a real principle of liberty so surely, as that proper submission to authorities which secures to the ruler the respect due to his stationand to the subject, his own personal safety and domestic comfort. Let each man rule his own household and family well, and keep up his parental authority, and teach his children early to learn how to obey, and there will be no rebellion, and complaint, and tumult abroad.

Let us then remember the apostle's rule, "Honour all men, love the brotherhood, fear God, honour the king.

And now, my friends, both young and old, after having considered the early part of my text as teaching the duty of subjection to parents, to teachers, to the aged, to powers and authorities, let us all take to ourselves that beautiful and most important exhortation to humility with which the apostle winds up his exhortations" Yea, all of you be subject one to another, and be clothed with humi

* 1 Pet. ii. 17.

lity, for God resisteth the proud, and giveth grace unto the humble." Knowing how full of imperfections we are, let

us

"have compassion one of another;" let us not judge harshly of others; but let humility accompany all our words and deeds. We are all, in one sense, in a state of childhood upon earth. We know but in part, and we see through a glass darkly. This consideration ought to make us cautious in bringing forward our own opinions, and thinking ourselves wiser or better than those who were before us.

"My son," said Solomon, "fear thou God and the king, and meddle not with them that are given to change.".

Let us all remember that we are, and must be, subject to Him by whom "kings reign, and princes decree justice :" children, remember you are subjects of the kingdom of Christ, you are entered as soldiers under his banner, and are training up to fight the good fight of faith for his sake, against sin, the world, and the

* Proverbs xxiv. 21.

devil. I know not what times may come upon earth before you grow up to years of manhood, but there will be temptations and snares, and difficulties will surely beset you; you will be enticed to disobey your parents, to dishonour and despise your teachers, to be false to your Queen, and to "follow a multitude to do evil," before whose eyes the fear of God is not kept. Do you, then, remember the words of the text, and together with it call to mind also those words of the Lord Himself, addressed particularly to those of your age" Hearken unto me, O ye children for blessed are they that keep my ways. Hear instruction, and be wise, and refuse it not. Blessed is the man that heareth me, watching daily at my gates, waiting at the posts of my doors.

For whoso findeth me findeth life, and shall obtain favour of the Lord."*

* Prov. viii. 32-35.

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SERMON VI.

PSALM XXVii. 14.

"Wait on the Lord: be of good courage, and He shall strengthen thine heart: wait, I say, on the Lord."

THE Psalm of which this is the last verse, seems to have been written by David, when he was in some of those many dangers and difficulties, by which Almighty God saw fit to try him throughout the greater part of his life. The Psalms which he was accustomed to write upon these occasions and which are recorded in the Bible for our instruction and benefit, are most interesting to us as showing the private meditations and devotional exer

cises of one of the most eminent of the servants of the Lord. In the parts of holy Scripture which give us the history of David, we have little more recorded than mere facts: we have heard in the first lesson of this evening service, * how he slew Goliath, the Philistine giant; we read afterwards with what meekness he bore the persecutions of Saul, and returned him good for evil; how zealous he was in God's service, and how bravely and successfully he fought against all the enemies of Israel, until he had set up his kingdom in peace and prosperity: but except for occasional notices of his fear of and trust in God, mentioned in a short and cursory manner, we read little comparatively in the historical notices of his life about his secret support in danger and trouble, or the hopes and desires that animated him to persevere in the midst of difficulties and trials. If we look to the Psalms, however, we see his heart laid open before us; we see that his eye was

1 Sam. xvii.; 5th Sunday after Trinity.