God works like himself. He does indeed employ means: but while men depend upon their instruments, his instruments depend upon him; and he so uses them as to show that the excellency of the power is not of them, but from himself. When, without hire or reward, a whole nation was to be released from the iron grasp of the most powerful tyrant of the day, Who appeared before him with this sublime demand, "Let my people go, that they may serve me?" Not a trained soldier, not an experienced and renowned officer; but a shepherd, with no sword by his side, but only a crook in his hand, and no less than eighty years old, when, according to the language of his own beautiful psalm, our "strength is labour and sorrow."

The place where he received this surprising commission was the neighbourhood of Horeb, a place rendered afterward so famous and memorable. What a contrast between his condition at the foot of the same mountain then, and his state now! Now a solitary keeper of a few sheep; then king in Jeshurun, ascending up to meet the Most High face to face; receiving the mandates of infinite purity and rectitude written with the finger of God; and subsisting forty days and forty nights by the divine power! This must have been a most interesting spot to Moses.

It is worthy of observation that God in this manifestation found him usefully employed. The occupation indeed was lowly; but though a very learned man, and delicately brought up in a palace, he did not deem the keeping of sheep beneath him, when called to it by the providence of God. Humility is a lovely and blessed endowment. It enables a man to accommodate himself to events, and teaches him how to be abased, as well as how to abound; it leads him to exercise the graces, and perform the duties of the condition. For many who know what it is to be abased, do not know how to be abased. Their minds do not come down and harmonize with their circumstances. They are humbled, but not humble; and would rather break than bend. Yet is there any thing dishonourable in any kind of honest labour? How much more respectable is a profession, or a calling, however common, than what Bishop Sanderson said were the plague and disgrace of the country in his day, (what would he have said had he lived in ours!) beggary and shabby gentility? Hands were given us not to be folded, but used. Adam was placed in Eden to dress and to keep the garden. Seneca says, "I would much rather be sick than idle." As the employment of Moses was not degrading, neither, we are persuaded, was it found uncomfortable. Lord Kaimes says, "there is no drudgery upon earth but admits of more enjoyment than the ennui resulting from indolence and inaction." We have much reason to believe that Moses felt these to be the most privileged years of his life. How much more free and happy was the shepherd of Midian than the courtier in Egypt, and the leader and commander in the wilderness! Here by the side of his innocent charge he held communion with his God, was inspired to write the book of Genesis, and to tell how "the earth sprang out of chaos"-And here some bave concluded he composed the delightful drama of Job, to encourage and comfort his suffering brethren in Egypt. However this may be, the subject adds another instance to the numerous cases

mentioned in the Scriptures, in which, when the Lord appeared to communicate a discovery, or confer a distinction, the recipients were engaged in discharging the duties of their stations in lifeIndeed where can we find an exception from the rule? Satan loves to meet men idle. God delights to honour diligence and fidelity. He is with us while we are with him. "To him that hath shall be given, and he shall have more abundantly; but from him that hath not shall be taken away even that he hath."

JULY 7.-" And the Angel of the Lord appeared unto him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush: and he looked, and, behold, the bush burned with fire, and the bush was not consumed."-Exodus iii. 2.

THIS exhibition was not only miraculous, but very significant. It was intended to strike the mind through the senses, and as an emblem to be instructive in at least four circumstances. Observe the substance of the figure. Not a fine tall tree, not a cedar or cypress, but "a bush," a mere bush-perhaps a bramble bush. Such is the image of the Church. If numbers, and riches, and splendour, and power be the marks of the true Church, as popery has often professed, where in many ages of the world could it be found? Seldom under the Old Testament dispensation; never under the New. At one time it was in the ark, and there was a wicked Ham. At another in the family of Abraham, and there was a mocking Ishmael. It was now in Egypt, consisting of slaves and brickmakers. If we go forward, our Saviour had not where to lay his head. His followers were the common people. His Apostles were fishermen. They could say, years after they had been endued with power from on high, "Even to this very hour, we hunger, and thirst, and are buffeted, and have no certain dwelling-place; we are accounted the filth and offscouring of all things." Paul could make this appea! to the Corinthians: "God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty; and base things of the world, and things which are despised, hath God chosen, yea, and things which are not, to bring to nought things that are: that no flesh should glory in his presence." And when James addresses the admirers of the golden ring and the goodly apparel, he shows them that if they would follow God he would lead them in another direction: "Hearken, my beloved brethren; hath not God chosen the poor of this world rich in faith, and heirs of the kingdom which he hath promised to them that love him?" The church is indeed glorious, but she is all glorious within. Her excellences, like the weapons of her warfare, are not carnal, but spiritual. Natural men therefore do not discern her worth and dignity-"The world knoweth us not."

Observe the condition of the bush. It "burned with fire." Fire is one of the most common things in the Scripture to denote severe suffering. Hence it is said, "Glorify ye the Lord in the fires." "I will bring the third part through the fire." What was the state of the Jews now in Egypt? They were enduring every kind and degree of degradation and anguish, and their lives were bitter by cruel bondage."The Lord said, I have surely seen the affliction of my

people which are in Egypt, and have heard their cry by reason of their taskmasters; for I know their sorrows." Yet what were their sufferings compared with those of many of their brethren in later ages? It is to the Jews the Apostle refers when he says; "Others were tortured, not accepting deliverance; that they might obtain a better resurrection: and others had trial of cruel mockings and scourgings, yea, moreover of bonds and imprisonment : they were stoned, they were sawn asunder, were tempted, were slain with the sword: they wandered about in sheep-skins and goat-skins; being destitute, afflicted, tormented; (of whom the world was not worthy :) they wandered in deserts, and in mountains, and in dens and caves of the earth." And when addressing the Hebrews who were converted and christianized, the same writer says; "Call to remembrance the former days, in which, after ye were illuminated, ye endured a great fight of afflictions." We also should do well to reflect on the condition of our ancestors, and be grateful for the exemptions with which we are favoured. Yet there is a sense in which if any man will live godly in Christ Jesus he shall suffer persecution. With us indeed the hand is tied; but the tongue can no man tame, and the carnal mind is enmity against God. And no toleration-act can prevent our having tribulation in the world; or preclude personal and relative afflictions: and these may subserve the purposes of persecution properly so called. We have known individuals who have suffered in private life more than many martyrs; some of them enduring the pressure of grief week after week, and month after month, without notice; and others unable to divulge the source of their distress-a heart's bitterness known only to themselves. Christians are never to consider “fiery trials" as strange things. Of how many can God say, "I have chosen thee in the furnace of affliction !"

Mark its preservation. Though burning," the bush was not consumed." What a commentary on this part of the subject are the words of the apostle: "We are troubled on every side, yet not distressed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; cast down, but not destroyed; always bearing about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our body. For we which live are alway delivered unto death for Jesus's sake, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our mortal flesh." And what an exemplification of this language is the history of the Church! Though always exposed and assailed, it has continued to this day. Other cities have perished, and their memorials with them. Empires have disappeared. The four universal monarchies have mouldered away, and their dust has been scattered to the four winds. But the Church is not only in being, but flourishing, and advancing, and going to fill the whole earth. The oppositions it has met with have been overruled for good, and have turned out rather to the furtherance of the Gospel. As it was with the natural Israel, so it has been with the spiritual; the more oppressed, the more they multiplied and grew: and the blood of the martyrs was the seed of the Church. Our hearts never tremble for the ark of God. It is in safe keeping. He whose cause it is, is the Almighty; and he loves it infinitely better than we do. We never sympathize with the cry,

"The Church is in danger." We know it is not in danger-It cannot be in danger while his word is true; "On this rock will I build my Church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it." And this is as true of every individual believer as of the whole Church collectively. Not one child from the family, not one sheep, not one lamb from the fold, ever has been or ever shall be lost. "They shall never perish." Though the righteous fall, they shall not be utterly cast down. They may be chastened of the Lord, but they cannot be condemned with the wicked-There is no condemnation to them that are in Christ Jesus. "Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us."

Mark the cause of its security. Fire devours, and the bush was combustible, Why then was it not burnt? The "angel of the Lord appeared unto him in a flame of fire, out of the midst of a bush;" or, as it is subsequently expressed, "The LORD saw that Moses turned aside to see, and God called unto him out of the midst of the bush." While this leaves no doubt as to the divinity of the Being who displayed himself, so it explains the mystery of the continuance of the bush, and of the perpetuation of the Church typified by it-“God is in the midst of her, she shall not be moved; God shall help her, and that right early." "Cry out and shout, thou inhabitant of Zion, for great is the Holy One of Israel in the midst of thee." God's presence with his people is a delightful reflection; and it is founded in the most perfect certainty. He is with them always; with them in their lowest estate; with them in all their dangers and afflictions; with them to pity them, to assist them, to support them, to preserve them, to deliver them. "For I am the Lord thy God, the Holy One of Israel, thy Saviour: I gave Egypt for thy ransom, Ethiopia and Seba for thee." To change the metaphor of our text, but keep the meaning; when the storm arose in the lake of Galilee, the disciples were thrown into a needless alarm-" Carest thou not," said they, that we perish?" Perish! How could they perish? Was not He on board? And if so, his safety ensured theirs. He could not sink, and therefore they could not. And see how they derived from his presence not only security, but immediate and full deliverance-"He arose and rebuked the wind; and there was a great calm."

We cannot conclude without adverting to the notice Moses takes of this event in the dying benediction which he pronounced on the tribes of Israel. When he came to Joseph he said, "Blessed of the Lord be his land, for the precious things of heaven, for the dew, and for the deep that coucheth beneath, and for the precious fruits brought forth by the sun, and for the precious things put forth by the moon, and for the precious things of the earth, and the fulness thereof, and FOR THE GOOD WILL OF HIM THAT DWELT IN THE BUSH." The scene, though it had passed forty years before, vividly rushed upon his imagination, and he derives from it the greatest good he could implore, whether for a nation or a man only. What pains we take, and what sacrifices we make, to gain "the good will” of a fellow-creature, which, if attained, can do nothing for us in our greatest exigences and interests. But the "good-will" of him that

dwelt in the bush—a tried God, a covenant God, a God who there said, "I am the God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Jacob"--this can sweeten every comfort, soften every sorrow, take the sting out of death. This can accomplish every hope. This satisfy every desire. "Think upon me, O my God, for good."

JULY 8.-"I will gather them that are sorrowful for the solemn assembly." Zeph. iii. 18.

THIS "solemn assembly" was the convocation of the people for worship, especially in the feast of unleavened bread, the feast of weeks, and the feast of tabernacles. In these, thrice a year, all the males were to appear before God in the place which he should choose. This was Jerusalem. It was therefore named "the city of their solemnities." Here, at such seasons, they were always to "rejoice before the Lord." The services indeed were all of the festive kind; and "joy becomes a feast"—

"But we have no such lengths to go,
Nor wander far abroad;

Where'er the saints assemble now
There is a house for God."

Yes, we have our solemn assemblies as well as they; and surely we have not less reason than they had to be joyful, and to say, 'Let us serve the Lord with gladness, and come before his presence with singing." Yea, if we are habitually strangers to pleasure in religious services; if we cannot call the Sabbath a delight; if we are not glad when they say to us, Let us go into the house of the Lord; if we do not rejoice at his word as one that findeth great spoil; if spiritual duties are not in some good degree spiritual privileges, there is surely enough to awaken apprehension of our state before God.

We never apply the term "solemn" to any common, or merely secular assembly; but only to one that has something in it sacred, and capable of inspiring awe. And what can be more venerable, grand, and impressive, than the assembling together of a number of immortal beings, in the presence of the Lord of angels, to engage not in any of the affairs of this world, but in those which concern the soul and eternity, and the consequences of which will affect us for ever! Well, therefore, may we exclaim with Jacob; "How dreadful is this place! this is none other but the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven." "God is greatly to be feared in the assembly of the saints, and to be had in reverence of all them that are about him." Let us impress ourselves with the thought when we are repairing to the sanctuary. Nothing will tend more to preserve us from a roving eye, and a wandering heart; and nothing will conduce more to our profiting by the means of grace, than our engaging with a serious and thoughtful frame of mind. David therefore said, "In thy fear will I worship toward thy Holy Temple." It is the more necessary because of the frequent return of these solemnities: if familiarity does not always breed contempt, it must always tend to reduce veneration.

But what caused these pious Jews to be "sorrowful?" See how they that are after the flesh do mind the things of the flesh, but thy that are after the Spirit the things of the Spirit. Their metro