Bury.

I'll take your copper, silver, gold,
My house a mighty stock will hold;
Stop stranger, then, drop in your mite,
To aid the Gospel in its flight.

BETSY CARTER.

MY BIBLE.

WERE I an exile in some desert place

And not allow'd a human friend t' embrace;
Where then, my soul, could all thy sorrows cease?—

In my Bible.

If aught on earth could tranquillize my mind,
Methinks t'would be, sweet promises to find;
And in the dreary desert be resign'd—

With my Bible

O happy treasure! yes, I'd often cry;
If here no human footstep must pass by,

I'll clasp around my tender heart with joy

My precious Bible.

But ah! if sick, what then could soothe my breast;

If still alone-should I not be unblest?

Ah! no, by faith, I still might find sweet rest

In my loved Bible.

If cruel death should seize me for his prey,

And I'd no friend, kind nature's debt to pay;
Yet still in death, my fainting hope I'd stay-

Upon my Bible.

And when my feet have reached the heavenly shore, A banish'd exile, I shall be no more;

Nor shall I need to read the pages o'er

Bury.

Of this blest Bible.

BETSY CARTER.

THE SUNDAY SCHOLARS MAGAZINE.

APRIL, 1845.

THE WIDOW'S POT OF OIL.

THERE was a poor widow who lived in the days of Elisha, whose history is wonderful. She was the wife of one of the sons of the prophets; he was a very good man, for he not only feared to offend God, but he was always trying, by the help of divine grace, to do every thing to please him.

But at last he died; and he died very poor,and, what was much worse, he died greatly in debt. We are sure his debts were not incurred "in riotous living," or in any improper way, because "he feared the Lord;" perhaps what he owed was for bread, which they were obliged to have in the time of the famine. We ought to wear coarser garments, and be content with meaner fare, and to work very hard, or to do any thing we can, rather than get into debt.

When he died, the poor widow knew not what to do. She sold one article of furniture after another, till she had scarcely anything left. It is true, she had two sons who were very dear to her; and, no doubt, she hoped that in time they would labour, and help her, so that she might be able to pay her debts. But what made her case very trying was, that her creditors would not wait any VOL. XXI.

E

onger: but they said, that if she did not pay them in a little while, they would seize the two dear boys, and sell them into bondage for six years.

So the poor widow was in the depth of trouble; and she thought she would go and lay her whole case before Elisha.

Now Elisha, no doubt, had been told by God what he should say to her. So he asked her, what she had in her house? "And she said, thy handmaid hath not anything in the house save a pot of oil." And he told her she must become an oil merchant and though her stock was a very small one to begin with, he would tell her how it would be increased.

:

Then the Prophet said, "Go, borrow thee vessels of all thy neighbours, even empty vessels, borrow not a few. And when thou art come in' thou shalt shut the door upon thee, and upon thy sons, and shalt pour out into all those vessels, and thou shalt set aside those that are full."

She did not say, as some would, of what use will it be to borrow empty vessels! How can one pot of oil become many! Who ever heard of such a strange project! The people who hear of it will laugh me to scorn! I thought he would have given me some money; or that he would have said, he would try and raise a subscription for me among his friends; or have found out some plan by which I might earn my daily bread, my creditors be satisfied, and my dear boys saved from being sold into bondage. But to think of borrowing empty vessels, tubs, and pans, surely this seems only mocking me in my distress!