crucified him with two thieves, one on the right hand, and another on the left, and Jesus in the midst.

5" And one of the malefactors which were hanged, railed on him, saying, 'If thou be Christ, save thyself and us.' But the other answering rebuked him, saying, 'Dost not thou fear God, seeing thou art in the same condemnation? And we indeed justly; for we receive the due reward of our deeds: but this man hath done nothing amiss.' And he said unto Jesus, 'Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy Kingdom.' And Jesus said unto him, 'Verily I say unto thee, to-day shalt thou be with me in Paradise.""

1 John xix, 16. 2 Luke xxiii, 33. 3 Matt. xxvii, 38. 4 John xix, 18. 5 Luke xxiii, 39-43.

ILLUSTRATION. The brazen serpent.

"The children of Israel spake against God, and against Moses, in the wilderness. And the Lord sent fiery serpents among them, and they bit them; and much people of Israel died.

"Therefore the people came to Moses, and said, 'We have sinned, for we have spoken against the Lord, and against thee; pray unto the Lord, that he take away the serpents from us.' And Moses prayed for the people. And the Lord said unto Moses, 'Make thee a fiery serpent, and set it upon a pole and it shall come to pass, that every one that is bitten, when he looketh upon it, shall live.'

"And Moses made a serpent of brass, and put it upon a pole, and it came to pass, that if

a serpent had bitten any man, when he beheld the serpent of brass, he lived."

1 Num. xx, 22. Num. xxi, 5-9.

Exhortation to believe in Christ.

"As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so was the Son of man lifted up; that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life.

"We are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away. 3 But God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.

"Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world,-Look unto him and be ye saved; for the Son of man is come to save that which was lost. "He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him.

8"Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.-Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved. 10 For this is the will of God, that every one who seeth the Son, and believeth on him, may have everlasting life; and he will raise him up at the last day."

2Is. lxiv, 6. 3 John iii, 16, 17. 4 John i, 29. John iii, 18, 19, 36. 8 2 Cor. vi, 2.

1 John iii, 14, 15. 5 Is. xlv, 22. 6 Matt. xviii, 11. 9 Acts xvi, 31. 10 John vi, 40.

Chapter Eighteenth.

THE SINNER HUMBLE.

Prayer of the poor in spirit.

"I BESEECH thee, O Lord God of heaven, the great and terrible God, that keepeth covenant and mercy for them that love him and observe his commandments; let thine ear now be attentive, and thine eyes open, that thou mayest hear the prayer of thy servant, which I pray before thee now, day and night.

"Lord, my heart is not haughty, nor mine eyes lofty; mine iniquities have taken hold upon me, so that I am not able to look up. They are more than the hairs of my head; therefore my heart faileth me. Thou hast

heard the desire of the humble; thou wilt prepare their heart, thou wilt cause thine ear to hear. "Be pleased, O Lord, to deliver me; O Lord, make haste to help me. "O my God, I am ashamed and blush to lift up my face to thee, my God; for my iniquities are increased over my head, and my trespass is grown up unto the heavens.

7 "Lord, what is man, that thou takest knowledge of him? or the son of man, that thou makest account of him? 8Woe is me! for I am undone; because I am a man of unclean lips. Behold, I am vile; what shall I answer

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thee? I will lay mine hand upon my mouth. 10 For thou desirest not sacrifice; else would I give it; thou delightest not in burnt offering. The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and a contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise."

1 Neh. i, 5, 6. 2 Ps. cxxxi, 1. SPs. xl, 12. 4 Ps. x, 17. 5 Ps. xl, 13. 6 Ezra ix, 6. 7 Ps. cxliv, 3. 8 Is. vi, 5. 9 Job xl, 4. 10 Ps. li, 16, 17.

ILLUSTRATION. The Pharisee and Publican.

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"Jesus spake this parable:-Two men went up into the temple to pray; the one a Pharisee, and the other a Publican. The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself; God, I thank thee that I am not as other men are, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this Publican. I fast twice in the week, I give tithes of all that I possess.'-And the Publican standing afar off, would not lift up so much as his eyes unto heaven, but smote upon his breast, saying, 'God be merciful to me a sinner.'—İ tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other; for every one that exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted."

1 Luke xviii, 9-14.

Promises to the humble soul.

"Thus saith the high and lofty One that inhabiteth eternity, whose name is Holy; I dwell in the high and holy place, with him also that is of a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite ones. I will not con