the church of God? Surely we need not shrink from thus coming into the presence of God, seeing our Advocate there appears for us, and the sprinkled blood, and High Priest over the house, invite us to draw near and cry, "Search me, O God, and know my heart," &c. The door of the house having been opened and repaired, and the servants of Jehovah having sanctified themselves, they then proceeded "to cleanse the house. of the Lord," v. 15. And how humbling to a truehearted servant of the sanctuary must it have been, to find the glory and beauty of the Lord's house so tarnished and defiled, and what patient zeal did it need steadily to persevere in this deeply affecting, and may I not say also, defiling service! But while sorrow was thus connected with it, there was joy also in finding, as they proceeded, the glory and beauty of the house. revive; and their efforts were crowned with abundant success; for they "brought out ALL the uncleanness that they found in the temple of the Lord," and it was carried abroad into the brook Kedron-it was buried and washed away; vividly reminding us of that hiding place for sin and uncleanness we have in the blood of the Lamb. And mark what followed: the sacrifices and burnt offerings were again the great things in Jerusalem, and loudly proclaimed to the ear of faith, the grace and holiness of Jehovah; worship to the living and true God, freed from the trammels of tradition and idolatry, was now set up; and "Hezekiah rejoiced, and all the people:" messengers were dispatched throughout all Israel and Judah, to intreat them to turn again to the Lord, and such success accompanied their testimony, that multitudes flocked around the slain Lamb, so that such a passover of joy and blessing had not been known in Jerusalem since the days of Solomon the son of David. 2 Chron. xxx. 26. What encouragement is here presented to us! Does not the very sluggishness of spirit we exhibit for service like this, betray the carnality both of our affections and zeal? Could we be content, even if it were possible, that the work of God should revive while filthiness remained in the house of the Lord, if we were really seeking to please the Master and not ourselves? It ought not to be passed over, that the cleansing process seems to have been begun in the inner part of the house of the Lord; that part which more especially related to dealing with God about atonement and worship, rather than of outward activity, although in the progress not a vessel in the house was passed over. And where, I ask, should we begin to deal with ourselves, or with others? Surely not so much in our outward conduct, as in that which refers to our inward condition of soul; our secret behaviour rather than our public deportment; our thoughts and affections touching the Lord Himself the mercy seat, and blood, and incense of the holiest of all, rather than our zeal concerning the things which are around us, though all these have their place and time of judgment also; but outward order and even diligence in the most useful kinds of ministry, while uncleanness, whether of flesh or spirit, occupies the inner part of the house, cannot but quench and grieve Him, who honours the temple with His presence, and declares that holiness is the law of the house. In the time of Samuel the Prophet, we see another proof that "before honour is humility." 1 Sam. vii. For twenty years Israel had been under the tyranny and bondage of the enemy; and all the people "lamented after the Lord." But God's prophet was in the secret : it was easily accounted for by him. With all this sorrowing after the Lord, there was idolatry in the camp. Samuel thus addressed them: "If ye do return unto God with all your hearts, put away the strange gods, and Ashtaroth from among you, and prepare your hearts unto the Lord, and serve Him only and He will deliver you," &c. The sequel tells us they did so; they put away Baalim and Ashtaroth, and served Jehovah. only-they took a place of self-judgment, humiliation, and confession "BEFORE THE LORD;" and when their Mediator presented the burnt offering, a sucking lamb, to God, He thundered upon their enemies, wrought deliverance for His people, and restored them to the place of blessing again. : The revival in the days of king Josiah exhibits also the same principles of instruction. 2 Chron. xxxiv. He began his work in Israel by purging the house and the land. He repaired the house by adding new stones -hewn stone, &c., and returned with deep humiliation of soul to the written word of God, "which he read in the ears of the people;" the paschal Lamb was again the rallying point, and greater blessing than even in the times of Hezekiah followed, for there was no passover like it that had been kept in Israel since the days of Samuel the prophet. 2 Chron. xxxv. 18. In Ezra's and Nehemiah's days we have still greater encouragement. Israel had been given over to the captive power of the enemy, the temple laid in ruins, the wall broken down, and, humanly speaking, all hope of corporate restoration was gone. But, through faith and prayer, the beautiful temple was again raised, the wall repaired, the law of the Lord became the acknowledged rule of action, in which they discovered that the feast of tabernacles should be kept: and they did so with VERY GREAT GLADNESS, for since the days of JosнUA, THE SON OF NUN, had not the children of Israel done so. Nehemiah viii. What lessons of grace, and yet of admonition, these several actions present to us! Who can ponder them without justifying God, at the present lack of spiritual power and blessing! And who can be really desiring the work of God to revive, that refuses to cleanse himself, or to remove uncleanness from the house of the Lord! May we have hearts to turn again to the Lord! How pleasant the prospect before us, beloved, when that which is perfect will be come, and that which is in part shall be done away; Where love in every bosom reigns, KNOWLEDGE; ITS USE AND ABUSE. THAT knowledge may be underrated needs no demonstration. That it may be abused is no less evident. What then is the right use of it? The right use of knowledge is to lead us to know and to serve God; all intermediate uses, which do not lead to these ends, are injurious, and tend to the puffing up of self, to selfsatisfaction, and self-content, which includes self-ignorance. Of all ignorance this is the worst, and worse than all when it takes up with head-knowledge. All truth or knowledge, to be of use, must be practical, must be experimental. Let it be then our aim to study this matter with the gravity that becomes it. Have I knowledge of this or that truth? Do I practise it? If I do, it becomes knowledge really known; gold tried. If I practise it not, it becomes a burden, a clog, a hinderance, and the less I know the better. See Acts xvii. 30. Gal. iv. 9. 2 Peter ii. 21, &c. Does my heart reflect the knowledge of my judgment? Does my life express my knowledge? Alas! does it not often stop at the head, and leave the heart barren and empty? Yea, is it not a sorrowful truth, that in general, those with the least knowledge walk the humblest, and those with the most knowledge walk the |