new vigour in the storms of adversity and the night of affliction. As other sources have dried up, the fountain of living waters has become more valuable. And thus the dejected Christian, instead of exclaiming as before, "All these things are against me," has been often obliged to say with the Psalmist, “Truly God is good to Israel :" his mourning is turned into joy, and his dejection into a hope full of immortality and glory. The body may be oppressed, and the mind afflicted, but the soul is sustained and comforted. "By these is the life of the spirit."

It would be easy to point out many other ways in which afflictions produce the effect attributed to them by Hezekiah. They try what is in our heart, whether we will keep God's commandments or not. They deaden us to the world, and thus leave us in a fit attitude for spiritual blessings. They humble our pride, and teach us to think lowly of ourselves. Thus they render us milder and more considerate to others, and allay the irritation of our natural self-importance. They teach us to be habitually ready for new calamities; they prepare us for the approach of sickness, and death, and judg

ment.

It must, however, be remembered that affliction has no natural tendency to produce these "peaceable fruits of righteousness." It

is only when sanctified to us by the Holy Spirit, and received with humility and a desire to learn the lessons which they were intended to teach, that troubles become spiritually useful to the sufferer. Affliction, where it does not soften the mind and lead us to God, usually hardens it, and drives us from him. A proud and impatient spirit will prevent all the advantages of the Divine chastisements. We must humble ourselves, therefore, under his mighty hand, if we would desire that his providential inflictions should be rendered beneficial to our souls. Our language should be, "I was dumb and opened not my mouth, because thou didst it:" or like that of the pious Reformer, Luther, who said in his affliction, "Lord, lay what burden thou seest fit upon me, only let thy everlasting arms be my support; strike and spare not, for I am submissive to thy will: I have learned to say Amen to thy Amen." Affliction, coming upon a mind thus prepared, will be like dew upon the hill of Hermon: it will improve and fertilize a barren soil, and by the Divine blessing produce an abundant harvest of the fruits of the Spirit, to the praise and glory of God.

Let us, then, view our "light afflictions, which are but for a moment," in their proper aspect; as designed to promote our spiritual life, and to fit us for an eternal world. Then

may we say, with a venerable prelate of our church, "Before sorrow comes, I will prepare for it; when it is come, I will welcome it; when it departs, I will take but half a farewell of it, as expecting its return." The great privilege of the Christian is to be fitted to bear all events, by knowing that He to whom he has committed himself and his concerns, is the Wonderful Counsellor, the Mighty God, the Everlasting Father, and the Prince of Peace. To him let us devote ourselves as unto a faithful Creator; and then, whatever may be our lot here, we shall be safe for eternity, and prepared "for the inheritance of the saints in light."

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SERMON II.

CHARACTER OF ABIJAH.

1 KINGS xiv. 12, 13.

The child shall die; and all Israel shall mourn for

him, and bury him; for he only of Jeroboam shall come to the grave, because in him there is found some good thing towards the Lord God of Israel in the house of Jeroboam.

THE child, or young person, spoken of in the text, was Abijah, a son, and probably the eldest son, of Jeroboam, the first king of Israel after the separation of the ten tribes from Judah and Benjamin. His father was a man of notoriously irreligious principles, who is frequently mentioned in Scripture as "Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who did sin, and made Israel to sin." Very different was the character of his son, who seems to have been a child of great promise, beloved both of God and of man. But neither his tender age nor his endearing qualities, neither his exalted rank nor his opening piety and virtues, could rescue the princely

youth from the calamities entailed by sin upon

our fallen humanity.

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Abijah, the son of Jeroboam, fell sick," and his sickness appeared unto death. In this extremity, the father, overwhelmed doubtless with affliction at the sufferings and danger of his child, and dreading, perhaps, lest his fond projects and ambitious hopes respecting the succession to his throne should be blasted by the death of this the heir to his newly attained honours, directed his wife, the mother of Abijah, to proceed in dis-. guise to Shiloh, to inquire of the prophet of the Lord "what should become of the child." Fearful, alas! were the tidings that met the ear of the trembling mother, as her footstep sounded on the threshold of the prophet's habitation. The man of God could not behold her, "for his eyes were set by reason of age; but there was One above, to whom all hearts are open, and who can penetrate the darkest disguise; and, forewarned of her coming by his Divine inspiration, the prophet accosted her as the wife of Jeroboam, and poured forth into her ear the unerringly predicted doom that awaited her ungodly household. "Come in, thou wife of Jeroboam; why feignest thou thyself to be another? for I am sent to thee with heavy tidings. Go, tell Jeroboam, Thus saith the Lord God of Israel, Forasmuch as I exalted thee from among the people, and made