The Lord hath heard my supplication. He will be a refuge for the oppressed, a refuge in time of trouble, and they that know thy name will trust in thee; for thou, Lord, hast not forsaken them that seek thee. The needy shall not always be forgotten, the expectation of the poor shall not perish for ever. PSALM Vi. 9; ix. 9, 10, 18. See also PSALM iii. 4; xxxi. 1, 7; xci. 14, 15; xii. 5.

WHO
HOEVER would receive comfort from these
words, must first be sensible of his poverty
and misery, and shew it by confessing his sins,
and feeling nothing in himself but helplessness
and unworthiness. He must come with all his
poverty to a rich Saviour, and daily entreat his
mercy, carefully remembering, that the LORD has
promised to supply all our wants, however great
our poverty and misery may be; therefore, beware
of unbelief, and do not suspect the LORD's kind-
ness, but seek to him, and hope in him, and ex-
pect all good things from him; assuring thyself
that neither thy hope, nor thy prayer, nor a single
sigh of thine will be lost. O my GOD! grant me
faith to say, The LORD heareth my supplication! the
LORD receiveth my prayer! Praised be God, who
hath not rejected my prayer, nor turned away his
goodness from me, but is my protector and hope!

My best desires are faint and few,
I fain would strive for more;
But when I cry, "My strength renew,"
Seem weaker than before.

Thy saints are comforted, I know,
Ånd love thy house of prayer,

I therefore go where others go,
But find no comfort there.

O make this heart rejoice or ache,
Decide this doubt for me,
And if it be not broken, break,
And heal it if it be.

Christian's Prayer.-Lead us not into temptation. MATT. vi. 13.

Divine Answer.-God is faithful; who will not suffer you to be tempted above what ye are able, but will, with the temptation, also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it. 1 COR. X. 13; PSALM Ïxvii. 2.

THE

HE nearer to heaven the higher the mountains, the deeper the valleys, and the sharper the conflicts. But be not discouraged; it is only for the trial of our faith. GOD gives also more strength, carries us through all, as he has done from the beginning, and suffers none to be ashamed who trust in him. Sometimes we may seem to be tempted above measure, and are afraid of being confounded; but far from it; it is quite impossible we should. Here thou hast the plain words of the LORD. Take hold on them, and wait his time; for since the world stood, none have been confounded in anything who have waited for his promise; and surely he will not make thee the first instance of the failure of his word. By no means. Phil. i. 10; Isa. liv. 10. "Rather shall the mountains depart, and the hills be removed, says the LORD, that hath mercy on thee."

Our GOD, how firm his promise stands,

E'en when he hides his face!

He trusts in our Redeemer's hands

His glory and his grace.

Then why, my soul, these sad complaints

Since CHRIST and we are one?

Thy GoD is faithful to his saints;

Is faithful to his Son.

Beneath his smiles my heart has lived,
And part of heaven possess'd;
Oh, praise his name for grace received,
And trust him for the rest.

David's Prayer.-0 satisfy us early with thy mercy. PSALM XC. 14.

For my people shall be JER. xxxi. 14. The PSALM lxv. 9. With of the wells of salthe Fountain opened

God's Answer.-Open thy mouth wide and I will fill it. PSALM lxxxi. 10. satisfied with my goodness. river of God is full of water. joy shall ye draw water out vation. ISA. xii. 3. This is for sin and for uncleanness. ZECH. xiii. 1.

MY soul, keep close to the Gospel; there only is a fulness to supply all wants; food for the hungry, and raiment for the naked soul; and everything in plenty. Whoever will, may come and be fed and clothed, without money, and without price. Therefore let not the Law hinder thee from eating and drinking, rejoicing_and adorning thyself in a Gospel manner. The Law, as one justly observes, brings in a great bill, but nothing wherewith to discharge it. It sets the soul a-working, but so as to neglect the proper nourishment necessary for it. No wonder, therefore, that she is destitute of sufficient strength; that she faints, and never comes to the right mark. There is no such thing as making amends by the Law; we must go directly to CHRIST, and receive first the grace and strength required, out of his fulness, by faith.

Let ev'ry mortal ear attend,
And ev'ry heart rejoice;
The trumpet of the Gospel sounds
With an inviting voice.

Rivers of love and mercy here

In a rich ocean join ;

Salvation in abundance flows,

Like floods of milk and wine.

Dear GOD, the treasures of thy love

Are everlasting mines;

Deep as our helpless mis'ries are,

And boundless as our sins.

Fear not, daughter of Zion. JOHN xii. 15. But greatly rejoice and shout, O daughter of Jerusa lem, behold thy King comes unto thee; he is just and having salvation. ZECH. ix. 9. The King of Israel, even the Lord, is in the midst of thee; thou shalt not see evil any more. ZEPII. iii. 15. See also Isa. liv. 12; JER. XV. 19.

THOUGH Satan be endeavouring to bind his

chains fast about thee; though thy heart quake and be ready to fail for the many sins that encompass it; though destruction and death be in thy ways; yet fear not "Behold thy King cometh!" trust him, he will restrain, he will defend. How strong soever thine inward enemies, thy corruptions, may be now, fear not, and be not discouraged. Thy King is bound by his office, love, and promise, to help thee with strength to overcome: even the hardships of a Christian work together for his good in this world, and brighten his crown of glory in the world to come. Too oft,

instead of casting and laying a burden upon the LORD by faith at once, we parley with temptation, and undertake to heal ourselves by a thousand false contrivances, the effect of which is, to make a conflict long that might have been short. 2 Chron. xvi. 7-9. LORD, give me grace to be watchful, and to keep on the armour of faith, that as I pass from conflict to conflict, I may pass on conquering and to conquer, daily pressing forward, and experiencing JESUS every hour my mighty King and Saviour.

Rejoice, the LORD is King,

Your LORD and King adore,
Mortals give thanks and sing,
And triumph evermore.
He sits at GoD's right hand
Till all his foes submit;
And bow to his command,
And fall beneath his feet.

Thou shalt not be afraid of them, but shalt well remember what the Lord thy God did unto Pharaoh, and all Egypt. DEUT. vii. 18. Be ye not terri fied because of them, for the Lord your God is he that goes with you, to fight for you against your enemies; to save you. Chap. xx. 3, 4. Hitherto shalt thou come, and no further, and here shall thy proud waves be stayed. JOB Xxxviii. 11.

THE

HE LORD on high is mightier than the noise of many waters; yea, than the mighty waves of the sea. Psa. xciii. 4. He controls the strength of nations, and the most powerful empires are as grasshoppers in his sight. Those, therefore, who trust in him have nothing to fear. Shall we not then seek for his strength to overcome the assaults of sin; for let us remember, the assaults of original sin will ever return; and we must not be surprised when one conflict is over, that another arises. This contest is unavoidable, for the enemy is within us. It makes us more careful and humble to know this, than if we believe that we had only to encounter with sin from without and not from within: and if we desire to feel less evil in us than God suffers us to have, we may be assured this desire proceeds either from pride, seeking to glory in our own righteousness, or from an impatient wish to get rid of the trouble of striving always against sin; whereas it should be enough for us that GOD suffers it, lays it not to our charge, and carries us through all dangers.

Let the redeemed of the LORD
The wonders of his grace record;
Israel, the nation which he chose,
And rescued from their mighty foes.
He feeds and clothes us all the way;
He guides our footsteps lest we stray;
He guards us with a powerful hand,
And brings us to the heav'nly land.