holiness of God, his inexorable justice, his rooted hatred of sin, and determined vengeance against the sinner. When we read all this, and for a moment seriously contemplate the meaning of what we read. Well may we adopt the exclamation of the Apostle,

0,

the depth of the riches, both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! how unsearchable are his judgments, and his ways past finding out!"

2. If such be the character of the days of the years of man's life, how decidedly opposed to scripture are they who depend upon their own good works, for their acceptance with God.

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By the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight. For as many as are of the works of the law are under the curse for it is written, Cursed is every one that continueth not in all things that are written in the book of the law to do them. Whosoever seeketh to be justified by works is a debtor to do the whole law."

Who is he among you that boasts of his own works, and depends after all, upon himself for the salvation of his soul? Thus saith the Lord God unto such a man " Gird up thy loins now like a man; I will demand of thee and declare thou unto me. Wilt thou also disannul my judgment? Wilt thou condemn me, that thou mayest be righteous? Hast thou an arm like

God? or canst thou thunder with a voice like him? Deck thyself now with majesty and excellency, and array thyself with glory and beauty. Cast abroad the rage of thy wrath; and behold every one that is proud and abase him. Look upon every one that is proud, and bring him low, and tread down the wicked in their place: hide them in the dust together, and bind their faces in secret. Then will I also confess unto thee, that thine own right hand can save thee. Salvation belongethunto God. It is his work. His as distinctly as the creation of the world, or the hurling of a thunder-bolt: when you can imitate the other glorious works of the Almighty, then, but not till then, will it be conceded to you that you can save your own soul. If you persist in declaring your own righteousness you condemn God as a liar, for he hath said, "there is none

righteous no not one."

3. If such be the character of the days of the years of man's life: how dangerously deceived are they who depend for their acceptance with God, in part upon their own works, and in part upon the Saviour. This is a comMen think it presumptuous to say they can save themselves, and therefore they have recourse in some degree to Christ: but they think it extremely dangerous to say, that

mon error.

* Job. xl. 7—14.

Christ alone saves them, and therefore they cleave in some degree to their own doings. And thus they halt between two opinions, too well informed to depend entirely upon themselves, and too proud to depend entirely on Christ. Were we to admit this mode of viewing the subject, and grant for a moment, that man can contribute to the work of justifying righteousness; then mark the difficulty in which we are involved: how much can he contribute, what proportion? Where does Christ's work cease, and man's begin? or how far can man's work go, before Christ's begins? Thus we open a door to endless perplexity, and thus it is that thousands are deceived; satisfying themselves in the mean time with certain quieting maxims respecting the mercy of God, each investing him with such a degree of mercy as is sufficient in their opinions to reach down to their respective standards of character, the profligate hoping to find a God all mercy, the moralist willing to find in him a certain quantum of justice, and thus in fact, each worshipping a God of his own, differing in an essential characteristic from the God of his neighbour, and all differing completely from the God revealed to us in the Bible. If you will have your own works for righteousness at all, you must trust to them altogether. If you will have Christ for your righteousness at all, you must

entrust to him the entire work of your justification before God. Picture to yourselves a man between two vessels supported by one hand fixed upon each, and his feet hanging down in the midst. So long as the vessels remain close together, he may thus support himself, though without any firm footing. But let them be moved asunder, let the distance between them gradually encrease; the man perceives he can no longer rest upon both, his arms are already painfully on the stretch, he must give up one and throw himself altogether upon the other, or he must inevitably sink between both. Imagine not that your works and the righteousness of Christ can sail together, and enter into the haven of peace carrying a joint cargo, each affording you a part of your support, and both together bringing you safe to the heavenly shore. No: they cannot keep together; the one is a miserable foundering bark, making a great shew indeed, and boasting great things during the deceitful calm of this present life; but when the storm of death and judgment begins to blow, sinking and scattering her appalled and irretrievably ruined crew, amidst the awakened billows of wrath which roll with tremendous-with everlasting fury the other is the infallible life boat, despised indeed now during the calm, but ordered in all things and well prepared for the storm,

manned by him who controuls the elements, saying to the tempest, rage no more, and to the waves, peace, be still.

My dear friends, the days of the years of your lives are few: I counsel you to seize upon the life boat, now while it is called today; now while the gospel is preached in your ears; now while the Saviour waits and knocks

for admittance to your hearts. "Behold now is the appointed time: behold now is the day of salvation. To-day, if ye will hear his voice harden not your hearts." You have provoked God, who can tell how often? Awake memory, conscience awake, open the book of your past life once again, look, read: you had many advantages and opportunities; you had the Holy Scriptures since your childhood; you received many warnings by sickness, by the death of friends, by the loss of property; you felt and stifled the reproving voice of conscience a thousand and a thousand times; you have profaned the holy temple of the Lord of Hosts attending it for form sake, or custom sake, or curiosity sake, instead of devotion, sitting in it as a self-complacent critic, instead of a selfcondemned sinner; you have disgraced the holy sabbath of the Lord of Hosts doing your own works, writing your own letters, settling your own accounts: some of you absenting yourselves from his worship and joining with