"Here I would for ever stay, Weep and gaze my soul away; Thou art heaven on earth to me, Lovely, mournful Calvary." The next hymn which has awakened most lively admiration, and which must induce the unbounded approval of every man of taste and devotion, is the one founded on that simple expression of the Apostle's, Ephesians vi. 18, "Praying always with all prayer;" and it must appear to every person of accurate and dispassionate thought, to be one of commanding and superlative attractions. Prayer was never more simply, more clearly, more eloquently, and more impressively exhibited. It rises to the true sublime of devotion. The following lines can scarcely be lauded too enthusiastically: "Prayer is the burthen of a sigh, Prayer is the simplest form of speech, Prayer is the Christian's vital breath, Who can read this lovely hymn without feeling deeply affected? What Christian can peruse it without being powerfully interested with its commanding and fascinating loveliness? I admire the hymn so highly, that I scarcely think a superior, as it regards simplicity, appropriateness, and power, ever has been, or could be perused; and it ought to be committed to memory by every Christian, or else the fine and momentous principles which it embodies ought to be most indelibly engraven on the heart. If Montgomery had never written any thing but this small devotional piece, it would have been sufficient, in the estimation of every man of cultivated mind, and of enlightened and genuine piety, to have stamped him most unequivocally with the honourable and enviable appellation of a true poet. How animating and delightful is it, when powerful and transcendent talent is thus given to God; when the rich and mighty resources of intellect are laid at the feet of Christ; when commanding genius adorns the noblest and most hallowed themes, or rather is adorned by them; and when the powers are at once cultivated, aroused, and concentrated, so that the God of love may be honoured-the Prince of Peace be exalted the spirit of all wisdom and truth be magnified -and the piety, the happiness, and the usefulness of Christians be most effectively promoted. To such From the Evangelical Magazine. ELIJAH'S JOURNEY. THROUGH the infirmity of human nature, and the trying circumstances in which good men are placed, we find them in some instances failing in the exercise of those graces in which they are most eminent. Thus Abraham, the father of the faithful, was, through the apprehension of danger, led to deal insincerely with Abimelech. Thus Peter, though of a bold and ardent temper, and though he alone ventured to attack the armed band which came to seize his Master, was induced to deny him, by the surmises of the maid-servant. And thus Elijah, so famous for his zeal and courage, was so dismayed by the threats of Jezebel, that he fled to the wilderness for security, instead of remaining in Israel, to encourage the faithful remnant by his counsels, and to awe a profligate court by his warnings and rebukes. Yet the care of heaven did not desert him. did the angel of the Lord touch him, and call on him to arise and to eat the bread and drink the water which he had provided for him; and in the strength of that food he journeyed forty days and forty nights, till he came to Horeb, the Mount of God, where he received such displays of the divine glory, as qualified him for the undaunted discharge of the public duties which he had yet to perform. This portion of the prophet's history suggests many important instructions. Twice 1. Good men have, like Elijah, a journey before them. This world is not their home; they are travelling through it like pilgrims and strangers, and their life must be occupied with the graces and duties in which their meetness for heaven is formed. Some are commencing this journey, and are asking the way to Zion with their faces thitherward; others have made considerable progress in it; and others have advanced so far, that they can say, "I am now ready to be offered, and the time of my departure is at hand." With that holy Mount in view where the journey closes, how light seem its toils, how easy its sacrifices! Its perils are encountered with the courage inspired by hope, and its burdens are borne by the patience which it strengthens. It is most lamentable that so few, comparatively, are engaged in this journey; for "strait is the gate, and narrow is the way that leadeth to life, and few there be that find it." 2. To this journey we require to be stirred up. Exhausted by fatigue of body, or anxiety of mind, Elijah laid himself down to rest, and it was necessary that he should be roused to prosecute his journey. And good men are sometimes so discouraged by the difficulties of the ways, so overpowered by sloth, so attracted by the fascinating objects which present themselves to their view, or are so influenced by the hints of those who tell them that no haste is necessary, that they are disposed to fold their hands to sleep. But God will rouse them; and if softer methods are not effectual, he will try others of a more alarming description. Thrice did our Lord's disciples slumber during his agony, and thrice did he rouse them, saying, "What could ye not watch with me for one hour?" The calamity which deprives men of the substance to which they looked for worldly comfort; the disappointment which plunges you in sorrow at the moment when hope was highest, and the sickness which threatens to tear from you the relative whose presence you feel to be the charm of life, and whose care is the blessing of your dwelling, are the voice of God scattering the presumptuous fancies which were whispering, "Sleep on now and take your rest;" and calling upon you to watch, and to be sober, and to gird up the loins of your minds. What a melancholy view of our nature is it, that we should need to be stirred up to go to heaven! Let us, therefore, fear, lest a promise being left us of entering into his rest, any of us should seem to come short of it. 3. This journey cannot be accomplished in our own strength. The saying of the angel is as applicable to us as it was to Elijah, "The journey is too great for thee." It lies through a wilderness infested by wild beasts; under its scorching sun the most vigorous will faint, and over its burning sands the pilgrim will make slow progress, and what he does attain will be effected with pain and difficulty. It is most difficult to maintain spirituality of mind amidst the temptations of the world; to hope in God, when clouds and darkness are round about him; to persist in benefiting the thankless, warning the incorrigible, and expostulating with the thoughtless; to mortify passions which others are indulging, and to sigh for blessings which others are enjoying, who have not waited for them so long, or prayed for them so importunately, as we have done. In the windings of the wilderness we must have a guide, in its perils a protector, and in its necessities a supply from above. 4. The difficulties of this journey are known to our God, and compassionately considered by him. Of them the prophet was warned, and for them he was prepared. By us, few of the difficulties of our journey are foreseen. Fancy sketches before the young, fields all verdant, a sky ever serene, a path always smooth; or, if it anticipates evil, it is light and transient. A temporary storm is all that it forebodes in the sky, a few thorns are all it anticipates in the path. Our friends and guides know not all the evil that is before us. There is much danger for which they cannot arm us, and many sorrows for which they cannot fortify us. But to Jehovah all things are naked and open; and he knows our frame, and remembereth that we are dust. While our enemies may mark the perils which are before us, that they may take advantage of them for our injury, or ruin, God discerns them as the scene where his wisdom will lead the blind in ways they know not, where his compassion shall be shown in helping our infirmities, and his grace shall make us more than conquerors. 5. That God makes ample provision for our accomplishing this journey. Like the provision made for Elijah, which came not from the wilderness, this comes not from the world. The world is full of objects and scenes fitted to enfeeble, but not to strengthen; to shake, but not to establish; to seduce, but not to confirm; to separate, but not to unite the pilgrims to Zion. As angels brought this provision to Rel. Mag. No. 3. the prophet, so the ministers of religion are made helpers of the believer's joy. The strength of God's grace, the consolations of his Spirit, the light of his countenance, and the animation of his love, he imparts in the ordinances of the Gospel. In seasons, and in places, where to human view nothing could be anticipated but pain without relief, fear without hope, and the sorrow that worketh death, God hath sent help from his sanctuary, and strength out of Zion. Let us think of the simplicity of this provision. The angel could have brought to Elijah the finest dainties and the most sumptuous fare, but he brings a cake of bread and a cruse of water. And the souls of saints are not nourished by the enticing words of man's wisdom, the subtleties of curious speculation, or the imagery of a luxuriant fancy; but by the plain truths of the Gospel. O Lord, by these things men live, and in them is the life of my spirit. Often has it been seen, that by the prayer which came from the heart, though expressed in the humblest diction, the sad have been comforted and the tempted have been relieved. It is also worthy of notice, that it was of the food which had already refreshed him, that Elijah was called to partake a second time; and such is the varied and exhaustless value of the word of God, that the texts which have sustained you formerly, will strengthen you now and hereafter, and they will at you not only for the same, but for other trials. 6. Let us mark how the good man continues and closes his journey under the influence of Heaven. Such was the miraculous influence of this food, that the prophet required no new supply for forty days; and there are cases in the spiritual life, in which supplies are vouchsafed, by which faith is strengthened, and hope is animated, for many days to come. There have been good men, whose souls have been so enlarged at the communion table, that during succeeding months of sickness the heart has been glad, the glory has rejoiced, and the flesh hath suffered in hope. Promises which were the blessing of youth, have been the solace of age and the last hope of the dying. He that drinketh of this well shall never thirst, but it shall be in him a well of living water, springing up into everlasting life. Elijah took forty days to accomplish his journey to Horeb. It was but a journey of four or five days from the spot where he was refreshed by the angel, but he went through byways, for fear of being pursued, and took time to rest in different places. Your journey may be longer than you anticipate; but goodness and mercy shall follow all the days of your life, and you shall dwell in the house of the Lord for ever. During the bright days of prosperity, and the dark nights of affliction, the righteous shall hold on his way, and he that hath clean hands shall wax stronger and stronger. There are considerable varieties as to the length or the comfort of the journey; but all Zion's pilgrims are under the same gracious Conductor, and of them He thus speaks:-"My sheep hear my voice, and 1 know them, and they follow me, and I give unto them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall any pluck them out of my hand." The place which they reach is not, 2 N like Horeb, a solitary mount, in which they | shall be alone with God; but they come to the heavenly Jerusalem, to the spirits of just men made perfect, to an innumerable company of angels, and to Jesus the Mediator of the new covenant, as well as to God the Judge of all. And from this mount they shall not return, as Elijah did, to struggle with the idolatry and profligacy of a sinful nation, but they are made pillars in the temple of God, and shall go no more out. Reflection on the mercy which they have experienced in their journey, the rapture which the attainment of a full salvation must inspire, and the anticipations of everlasting life, will unite in a happiness the bliss of which we cannot now fully conceive, which gratitude will ascribe to the Lamb that was slain. Let good men, like the Ethiopian nobleman after his baptism, go on their way rejoicing. The joy of the Lord is your strength. Invite others to go along with you. Can you see multitudes hurrying on in the broad way that leads to destruction, and not say to them, "Forsake the foolish and live, and go in the way of understanding?" The conduct of Moses to Hobab, calls on you to say to your friends, "We are journeying to the place of which the Lord hath said, I will give it you; come thou with us, and we will do thee good, for the Lord How hath spoken good concerning Israel." affecting are the words of the excellent Mr. Joseph Milner, to a friend who was bidding him adieu, when he was near the end of his journey Take care where you and I meet again, that is every thing." Partake not of the food or the portion which the world may offer you. Touch not, täste not, handle not. They will stupify your senses, and inflame your passions. Bouquets of flowers and perfumes are said to propagate the plague; and thus depraving to the heart is the influence of worldly pleasure. Complain not of the length or of the difficulties of your journey: these are fixed in wisdom and in goodness, as well as in sovereignty; and the longer you are in the wilderness, if you exercise, during your stay, the faith and the patience of the saints, the more abundant will be your joy, and the more bright your glory, in the better country. Various maxims have been stated, under the pompous title of "The Secret of Happiness;" but the secret of happiness, as to this world, is to learn, in whatever state we are, therewith to be content; and the secret of happiness, as to futurity, is to commit ourselves by faith to the charge of that grace, which reigns through righteousness unto eternal life, by Jesus Christ our Lord. II. B. I see Him, when the silver moon I hear Him, in the whistling wind, The waves that lash the distant shore : BENJAMIN GOUGH. From the Wesleyan-Methodist Magazine. He rises;-"mute is every lyre,”— He flies;-His chariot is the wind, He speaks ;-earth trembles to her base, Waking the loud shrill blast of war. "Twas such a day of terror burst, And such a day again shall come, When suns, and stars, and seas, and earth, Angels and men, in dread amaze, Fixing their undivided gaze, that are written in this book." Rev. xxii. 18. If, therefore, we embark on the trackless ocean of dreams and phantoms of the imagination, we may wander far from the truth, and never see land again. Nor is any temptation to such departure to be listened to for a single moment. "Though we," says the Apostle, "or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed." Gal. i. 8. The misguided, therefore, are not to be followed. "To the law and to the testimony; if they speak not according to this Shall hear the mighty crash, and see the word, it is because there is no light in them." quenchless blaze! BENJAMIN GOUGH. From the Baptist Magazine. ON DREAMS AND SPIRITUAL AGENCY. EVERY one knows with what facility objects can be presented to our contemplation by means of the imagination. In this way, a prisoner in his gloomy cell may transport himself into regions of light and liberty, and may view, in every clime, the wonders of creation and the busy scenes of life; and thus, though encumbered with heavy chains, he may travel with more rapidity than light itself. In such an excursion, however, if the mental faculties in general are not dormant or disorganized, he is constantly attended by consciousness, a monitor that reminds him at every step that his flight is ideal only. But when slumber steals upon the captive, consciousness is silent; and then the varied scenes presented to the mind are viewed as realities: so that, instead of suggesting the actual state of things at every step, consciousness reserves the information till the moment of waking, when the whole is disclosed at once, and the supposed reality is found to have been a dream. Insignificant, however, as dreams in general are, there are doubtless two classes of agents that have access to our minds when sleep has, in a great measure, impaired our own agency. In the first place, holy angels are "ministering spirits, sent forth to minister for them who shall be heirs of salvation:" and as God, in his wisdom, has, in the present age, hidden their benevolent operations from our view, we cannot conceive of their having any influence with mortals, but by invisible access to the mind. In the dispensations of Providence, therefore, angelic agency may induce a Laban to act the part of a friend instead of acting otherwise; and such agency may affect the slumbering as well as the wakeful. But the interposition of Providence is one thing, and divine revelation is another. For there can be no reasonable doubt, that angelic agency still forms a link in many a mysterious chain of Providence: but angelic agency has already formed the last link of divine revelation, and through the medium of that agency the Divine Spirit has said, "If any man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues Isa. viii. 20. In the second place, from the declarations of Scripture concerning temptation, and from the invisibility of the tempter, we are led to the conclusion, that evil angels also effect their purposes by having access to the human mind; and if they can find their way to our imagina tion when the other mental powers are in lively exercise, there can exist no doubt respecting their access to an excited imagination, when reason and consciousness are not on the alert. Under such circumstances, therefore, Satan's captives are never safe; as he who is the tempter one day, may facilitate the discovery the next. For, in the absence of other means, a thought suggested by the great Accuser may lead to a certain line of conduct, which otherwise would not have been pursued; and this line of conduct may bring to light some hidden work of darkness. Thus it may be inferred, from the operations of both classes of spiritual agents, that if human means fail, there is no lack of agency to verify God's declaration to the sinner-"Be sure your sin will find you out." Numb. xxxii. 23. While the guilty, however, have so much reason to tremble, the faithful follower of Christ has nothing to fear. "He shall not be afraid of evil tidings: his heart is fixed, trusting in the Lord." Ps. cxii. 7. But, however familiar wicked spirits may be with some of the most secret of past transactions, of which they have been the instigators, and concerning which they can make suggestions, either amid the gloomy silence of midnight, or in the bright effulgence of noonday, yet futurity is a province never subjected to the powers of darkness. All presumptuous prophecies, therefore, have been destitute of the divine signature. For even if some things predicted in such prophecies have actually taken place, the predictions themselves have been entitled to no more credit than the shrewd guesses of sagacious politicians, or those random assertions which occasionally coincide with ultimate facts, according to the doctrine of chances. Hence, in Deut. xiii. 1—3, we read, "If there arise among you a prophet, or a dreamer of dreams, and giveth thee a sign or a wonder, and the sign or the wonder come to pass, whereof he spake unto thee, saying, Let us go after other gods, which thou hast not known, and let us serve them; thou shalt not hearken unto the words of that prophet, or that dreamer of dreams: for the Lord your God proveth you, to know whether ye love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul." It was not, however, in the na ture of false prophecies, to have any material portion of truth in them; and hence a false prophet was easily detected. "If thou say in thine heart," says Jehovah, "How shall we know the word which the Lord hath not spoken? When a prophet speaketh in the name of the Lord, if the thing follow not, nor come to pass, that is the thing which the Lord hath not spoken, but the prophet hath spoken it presumptuously: thou shalt not be afraid of him." Deut. xix. 21, 22. If such be the state of things, let the Christian professor be on his guard against any ignis fatuns, or delusive light, that may lead him out of his way. It was a good saying of our forefathers, that "what comes from God leads to God again." It is, therefore, a very suspicious circumstance, if we have dreams and impressions that excite such a joy as sin will not extinguish. For it is in the nature of all sin to grieve the Holy Spirit, and if he withdraw his sensible presence, the joy of the Holy Ghost must necessarily cease to be the joy of the fallen professor. There is also great reason for alarm, if we profess a religiou in which we have no right eye to pluck out, no right hand to cut off, and no cross to take up. In fact, if dreams and impressions divert our attention from the wholesome words of Jesus Christ, and induce us to form high expectations of heaven, while the world is the master we serve, we only call the Saviour, Lord! Lord! and identify ourselves with those of whom he has said, "Every one that heareth these sayings of mine, and DOETH THEM NOT, shall be likened unto a foolish man, who built his house upon the sand: and the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house, and it fell; and great was the fall of it." Matt. vii. 26, 27. There is nothing, however, in the sayings of Christ, to discourage those who are hungering and thirsting after righteousness; and there is not a man on the face of the earth who would not be safe in fleeing to the Saviour, and in living by faith on him from day to day. But faith is produced by heavenly influence, and does not exist without its kindred graces. In short, the graces of the Spirit are like the colours of the rainbow, in which one colour never appears alone; and in which each colour is vivid or faint, in proportion to the vividness or faintness of the other colours. In the Christian life, indeed, there is not at all times equal scope for the display of all the graces, but as far as there is scope, the blended colours of the spiritual rainbow are found to co-exist. Now, at all times there is scope for the love of holiness, and therefore if any graces exist, this cannot be dormant. It is impossible, therefore, for genuine faith to exist, without being accompanied by the love of holiness; and consequently no man flees to Christ, without wishing to be saved from the power, as well as from the guilt of sin. It is the want of this union of desires that makes the prayers of mere professors like sounding brass or a tinkling cymbal. "Ye ask," says James, "and receive not, because ye ask amiss, that ye may consume it upon your inordinate desires." James iv. 3. Thus we may see the importance of being led | by the Spirit of God, and thus we may learn to appreciate the encouragement given by our Lord when he said, "If ye being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children; how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him?” Luke xi. 13. Nor should we cease to watch as well as pray. For if Satan can transform himself into an angel of light, it is of the utmost moment to be secure against his plausible delusions. It is essential that the sword of our warfare be a true Jerusalem blade; and such is the volume of inspiration. Our Lord himself used this sword, when he resisted the tempter by referring him to what was written. This, then, should be a constant weapon in our warfare. Whatever leads us to a devout attention to the word of God, should excite our gratitude to Divine Providence; but the word of God itself is "the sword of the Spirit," with which the Christian must fight his way to heaven. Nor should Scripture be wrested from its connexion. In fact, by such a procedure, even the atheist might receive countenance in his awful error. For the words, "There is no God," are certainly words to be found in Psalm xiv. 1. But the moment the connexion is consulted, it will be seen that this atheistical language is the language of a man abhorred by the Holy One of Israel. Let no man, therefore, deceive himself, or suffer Satan to deceive him, by sepa rating what God has joined together. If any man "lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him." James i. 5. And having thus sought wisdom from above, let the man who wishes to be right endeavour to ascertain the mind of the Spirit of God, by diligent reading and serious meditation. Yea, let him seek wisdom as silver, and search for her as for hid treasures. Thus, whilst the misled professor has midnight darkness around him, and an awful precipice before him (Prov. iv. 19.), "the path of the just becomes more and more enlightened, till the effulgence of day descends upon it, and makes it as safe as it is delightful." J. F. NOTICES OF NEW PUBLICATIONS. LECTURES ON THE APOCALYPTIC EPISTLES, addressed to the Seven Churches of Asia. By Joseph Wadsworth. 12mo. pp. 488. Gs. 6d. Westley. It is due to the respected author of this volume to state, that his work ought long ago to have been introduced to the notice of our readers; and that circumstances altogether accidental have led to this apparent neglect. On some previous occasion, Mr. Wadsworth has appeared before the public with credit to himself, and advantage to the cause of truth. He possesses, as a writer, the faculty of acute discrimination in no common degree; and while he is able to "try the things that differ," he states his perceptions, and illustrates his arguments, in a clear, simple, and dispassionate manner, without any attempt at elaborateness |