of the captivity, saying, Thus saith the Lord concerning Shemaiah, the Nehelamite, Because that Shemaiah hath prophesied unto you and I sent him not, and he caused you to trust in a lie. Therefore thus saith the Lord, Behold I will punish Shemaiah the Nebelamite, and his seed; and he shall not have a man to dwell among this people; neither shall he behold the good that I will do for my people, saith the Lord; because he hath taught rebellion against the Lord."

Jer. xxxii. 18. "Thou shewest loving-kindness unto thousands, and recompensest the iniquity of the fathers, into the bosom of their children after them: the great, the mighty God, the Lord of Hosts is his name."

Jer. xxxvi. 30, 31. "Therefore thus saith the Lord, of Jehoiakim king of Judah, He shall have none to sit upon the throne of David. And I will punish him and his seed and his servants, for their iniquity."

Hosea iv. 6. 66 My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge: because thou hast rejected knowledge, I will also reject thee, that thou shalt be no priest to me, seeing thou hast forgotten the law of thy God, I will also forget thy children,"

Matt. xxvii. 25. "Then answered all the people and said, His blood be on us, and on our children."

TEMPORAL CURSES.

As an instance of a temporal curse descending to a family because of the sin of the parent, we have the history of Gehazi:

2 Kings v. 25-27. "He went in and stood before his master, and Elisha said unto him, Whence comest thou, Gehazi. And he said, Thy servant went no whither. And he said unto him, Went not my heart with thee, when the man turned again from his chariot to meet thee? Is it a time to receive money, and to receive garments, and olive yards, and vineyards, and sheep, and oxen, and menservants and maidservants? The leprosy therefore of Naaman, shall cleave unto thee, and unto thy seed for ever. And he went out from his presence a leper as white as snow."

HINTS TO THE CHILDREN OF UNGODLY PARENTS.

THESE denunciations, though they are awful warnings to ungodly parents, yet form no excuse for those of their children who neglect to embrace

Christ's salvation for themselves. "Every man shall give an account of himself to God,”—“ every man shall die for his own iniquity”—“ Yet say ye, why? doth not the son bear the iniquity of the father? When the son hath done that which is lawful and right, and hath kept all my statutes, and hath done them, he shall surely live. The soul that sinneth, it shall die. The son shall not bear the iniquity of the father, neither shall the father bear the iniquity of the son: the righteousness of the righteous shall be upon him, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon him.”1

Though God, to keep alive a seed upon the earth, has vouchsafed especial promises to the children of believers, yet his grace is sovereign; "He is no respecter of persons." Abraham himself, the father of the faithful, was called out of an idolatrous family. And at this day, and to the end of time, this word is faithful and true. "Whosoever cometh unto me, I will in no wise cast out." M.

'Ezek. xviii. 19, 20.

SECTION V.

ON THE

SUPPORTS AND ENCOURAGEMENTS

AFFORDED

TO CHRISTIAN MOTHERS

IN THE

EDUCATION OF THEIR CHILDREN.

Oh! when a mother meets on high

The babe she lost in infancy,

Hath she not then for pains and fears,

The day of woe, the watchful night,
For all her sorrow, all her tears,

An over-payment of delight?

SOUTHEY.