16. And what will the general produce of the earth be? Not briars, thorns, or thistles. Not any useless or fetid weed; not any poisonous, hurtful, or unpleasant plant; but every one that can be conducive in any wise either to our use or pleasure. How far beyond all that the most lively imagination is now able to conceive! We shall no more regret the loss of the terrestrial Paradise, or sigh at that well-devised description of our great Poet,

"Then shall this mount

Of Paradise, by might of waves be mov'd
Out of his place, push'd by the horned flood,
With all its verdure spoil'd and trees adrift,
Down the great river to the opening gulf,

And there take root, an island salt and bare!"

For all the earth shall be a more beautiful Paradise than Adam ever saw.

17. Such will be the state of the new earth with regard to the meaner, the inanimate parts of it. But great as this change will be, it is nothing in comparison of that which will then take place throughout all animated nature. In the living part of the creation were seen the most deplorable effects of Adam's apostasy. The whole animated creation, whatever has life, from Leviathan to the smallest mite, was thereby made subject to such vanity, as the inanimate creatures could not be. They were subject to that fell monster, DEATH, the conqueror of all that breathe. They were made subject to its fore-runner, pain, in its ten thousand forms; although "God made not death, neither hath he pleasure in the death of any living.” How many millions of creatures in the sea, in the air, and on every part of the earth, can now no otherwise preserve their lives, than by taking away the lives of others; by tearing in pieces and devouring their poor, innocent, unresisting fellow-creatures! Miserable lot of such innumerable multitudes, who, insignificant as they seem, are the offspring of one common Father, the creatures of the same God of love! It is probable not only

two-thirds of the animal creation, but ninety-nine parts of a hundred, are under a necessity of destroying others in order to preserve their own life! But it shall not always be so. He that sitteth upon the throne will soon change the face of all things, and give a demonstrative proof to all creatures, that "his mercy is over all his works." The horrid state of things which at present obtains, will soon be at an end. On the new earth, no creature will kill, or hurt, or give pain to any other. The scorpion will have no poisonous sting, the adder no venemous teeth. The lion will have no claws to tear the lamb; no teeth to grind his flesh and bones. Nay, no creature, no beast, bird, or fish, will have any inclination to hurt any other. For cruelty will be far away, and savageness and fierceness be forgotten. So that violence shall be heard no more, neither wasting or destruction seen on the face of the earth. "The wolf shall dwell with the lamb:" (the words may be literally as well as figuratively understood,) "and the leopard shall lie down with the kid." "They shall not hurt or destroy," from the rising up of the sun, to the going down of the same.

18. But the most glorious of all will be, the change which then will take place on the poor, sinful, miserable children of men. These had fallen, in many respects, as from a greater height, so into a lower depth than any other part of the creation. But they shall "hear a great voice out of heaven, saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men: and he will dwell with them; and they shall be his people; and God himself shall be their God," Rev. xxi. 3, 4. Hence will arise an unmixed state of holiness and happiness, far superior to that which Adam enjoyed in Paradise. In how beautiful a manner is this described by the Apostle! "God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow nor crying: neither shall there be any more pain; for the former things are done away." As there will be no more death, and no more pain or

sickness preparatory thereto: as there will be no grieving for, or parting with friends, so there will be no more sorrow or crying. Nay, but there will be a greater deliverance than all this; for there will be no more sin. And to crown all, there will be a deep, an intimate, an uninterrupted union with God. A constant communion with the Father and his Son Jesus Christ, through the Spirit: a continual enjoyment of the Three-One GoD, and of all the creatures in him!

"Thou shalt not hate thy Brother in thy Heart: thou shalt in any wise rebuke thy Neighbour, and not suffer Sin upon him."

A Great part of the book of Exodus, and almost the whole of the book of Leviticus, relate to the ritual or Ceremonial Law of Moses, which was peculiarly given to the children of Israel; but was such "a yoke," says the Apostle Peter, "as neither our fathers nor we are able to bear." We are, therefore, delivered from it: and this is one branch of "the liberty wherewith Christ has made us free." Yet it is easy to observe, that many excellent moral precepts are interspersed among these Ceremonial Laws. Several of them we find in this very chapter. Such as, “Thou shalt not gather every grape in thy vineyard: thou shalt leave them for the poor and stranger. I am the Lord your God," ver. 10. "Ye shall not steal, neither lie one to another," ver. 11. “Thou shalt not defraud thy neighbour, neither rob him : the wages of him that is hired shall not abide with thee till the morning," ver. 13. “Thou shalt not curse the deaf, nor put a stumbling-block before VOL. IX.

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the blind: but thou shalt fear thy God: I am the Lord,” ver. 14. As if he had said, I am he whose eyes are over all the earth, and whose ears are open to their cry. "Ye shall do no unrighteousness in judgment: thou shalt not respect the person of the poor," (which compassionate men may be tempted to do;) "nor honour the person of the mighty," to which there are a thousand temptations, ver. 15. "Thou shalt not go up and down as a talebearer among thy people," ver. 16, although this is a sin which human laws have never yet been able to prevent. Then follows, "Thou shalt not hate thy brother in thy heart: thou shalt in any wise rebuke thy neighbour, and not suffer sin upon him.”

In order to understand this important direction aright, and to apply it profitably to our own souls, let us consider,

I. What it is that we are to rebuke or reprove? What is the thing that is here enjoined?

II. Who are they whom we are commanded to reprove? And,

III. How are we to reprove them?

I. 1. Let us consider, first, What is the Duty that is here enjoined? What is it we are to rebuke or reprove? And what is it, To reprove? To tell any one of his faults, as clearly appears from the following words, "Thou shalt not suffer sin upon him." Sin is, therefore, the thing we are called to reprove, or rather him that commits sin. We are to do all that in us lies to convince him of his fault, and lead him in the right way.

2. Love, indeed, requires us, to warn him, not only of sin, (although of this chiefly,) but likewise of any error, which, if it were persisted in, would naturally lead to sin. If we do not hate him in our heart, if we love our neighbour as ourselves, this will be our constant endeavour, to warn him of every evil way and of every mistake which tends to evil.

3. But if we desire not to lose our labour, we should rarely reprove any one for any one thing that is of a dis