brother overtaken in a fanlt." How wisely is the distinction made in this passage between the presumptuous sinner, who indulges his iniquity with allowance, and the real Christian, who, though he has been overtaken in a fault, can neither attempt to palliate, nor plead for it; but, with the royal penitent of old, conscious of his offence, goes humbly to the throne of mercy, with this cry," Against thee, O Lord, have I sinned, and done this evil in thy sight!" From such an affecting case, let us learn to tread with caution and circumspection the narrow and trying path to life: "Let him that thinketh he standeth, take heed lest he fall." May divine mercy enable us to resist the first approach of temptation; lest, like the little cloud which the prophet's servant saw, and which, at first, appeared only as an hand-breadth, it spread farther and farther, until it darken our evidences, and picrce us to the heart and let us not only get upon our watch-tower, but, as our divine Master hath recommended, be at the same time instant in prayer;" Watch and pray, lest ye enter into temptation." When the heart is thus, through grace, kept alive to God, and we see a brother overtaken in a fault, a feeling mind will be ready to ask, "What is duty in this case? The text in our view contains the best answer to that inquiry. 2d." Ye which are spiritual, restore such an one;" as if the apostle had said, "while you hate the sin, pity and admonish the sinner;" for such is the end for which our Heavenly Father uses the rod of correction: "By this shall the iniquity of Jacob be purged; and this is all the fruit, to take away his sin." Some have supposed that this exhortation has a primary reference to the ministers of the gospel, who have it in commission and command from their divine Master, to "strengthen the weak hands, confirm the feeble knees, and bind up the broken in heart." Agreeable to that solemn charge which is given to each of the English bishops on his admission to that most important office: "Be to the flock of Christ a shepherd, not a wolf; feed them, devour them not; hold up the weak; heal the sick; bind up the broken; bring again the outcasts; seek the lost. Be so merciful, that ye be not too remiss; so minister discipline, that you neglect not mercy." Happy for those churches of Christ, whose pastors are thus minded! But, surely, the admonition in the text is equally binding on private Christians as upon the ministers of 3T2 Jesus. Jesus. "Ye which are spiritual (saith the apest'e) restore such an one;" i. e. as some render it," set him in joint again;" do not, under such affecting circumstances, trample the poor sufferer under your feet, but, with a feeling heart and a tender hand, endeavour to heal and restore him. Such is the Redeemer's command: “If thy brother trespass against thee seven times in a day, and seven times in a day turn again to thee, saying, I repent, thou shalt forgive him." And, in order to excite us to this duty, allow me to adduce some of the striking examples which are recorded in the Word of Life, to shew, that our God delighteth in mercy, and not in the death of sinners. When David had awfully fallen by his iniquity, and his slumbering conscience was awakened by the faithful reproof of the prophet Nathan; and in the bitter anguish of his wounded spirit, he cried, " I have sinned against the Lord!" what was the divine answer by his servant? "The Lord hath also put away thy sin; thou shalt not die." So also, when Ephraim, conscious of his ungrateful conduct, and repenting of his backslidings, returns with weeping and supplication to his God,-how gracious is the lauguage of the Father of Mercy towards him! "How shall I give thee up, Ephraim? How shall I deliver thee, Israel? How shall I make thee as Admah? How shall I set thee as Zeboim? Mine heart is turned within me; my repentings are kindled together. I will not return to destroy Ephraim; for I am God, and not man." Some have said there is nothing so rapid in its progress as light; but surely, the pardoning mercy of our covenant God, in the day when he returns to comfort his repenting children, comes more swiftly from the throne of his grace into the heart of the penitent, than the light of day can penetrate through the clouds. Let us now consider, 3d, In what spirit and temper of mind it becomes us to restore a brother who has been overtaken with a fault. "Restore such a one in the spirit of meekness." Do not desert or forsake him. Remember, the great and good Shepherd has set thee an example; he went after the wandering sheep; nor did he cease from his labour of love until he found and brought it back again. "Go, and do thou likewise!" Do not exult over thy fallen brother with sharp or bitter reproaches; but rather pour in the oil of consolation into the wounded heart. Neither, as is too often the case with those who profess the Gospel, make it your business to go from house to house to proclaim his fall; fall; but rather, " Go and tell him of his fault alone, that, by divine grace, he may be brought to repent, and thou gain thy brother" and, in so doing, 4th, Consider thyself, lest thou also be tempted."Think, O believer! how soon, if left to thyself in the moment of temptation, thou mayest be brought into the same circumstances, and need that pity which his case now requires of thee! Thou art not yet come to thy heavenly home: do not presume. Thou art on thy way to it; look continually unto Jesus, and so shalt thou be safe. As a bird, the higher it flies, gets further from the reach of the fowler, so the higher we soar heaven-ward, on the wings of faith and prayer, the less we are in danger from our spiritual enemies. Impressed by these considerations, be it our endeavour, "By gentle offices of love, to lighten "Each other's burdens, in our way to heaven !" "Let all bitterness, and wrath, and clamour, and evilspeaking, be put away from you, with all malice; and be ye kind one to another, tender-hearted, forgiving one another, even as God, for Christ's sake, hath forgiven you!" J. A. K. SIR, L To the Editor of the Evangelical Magazine. OOKING over your Magazine for October, I could not but notice that paragraph, p. 404, where it is said, "Thevenot mentions large troops of little foxes, or jackalls; and that Sampson caught 300 of them in wheatharvest (that being the season when they are most plentiful) and, tying the tail to tail, with fire-brands between thein, sent them into the corn-fields and vineyards of the Philistines, where they love to run, and where they must do immense damage in that dry season, when the eastern herbage will catch like tinder, and blaze like tow." "The Let me now quote from Mr. Orton, as follows:only difficulty in this chapter *, is to account for the story of Sampson's foxes. Where could he meet with such a vast number as 300? How could he unkennel and catch them? Where could he put them? and how feed and preserve them till he had collected the whole number, and found a fit opportunity for his purpose? and then, how could he manage such a vast number of beasts, tie them together, put them in their proper places, and set fire brands to them, and all this, without being discovered by the owners of the corn,-who might have risen in a body, with all their neighbours, and prevented their design? Truly, I cannot account for it; nor do I think he did any such thing. The Hebrew word schualim, which is rendered foxes, differs but one very small stroke at the top of one letter, from the Hebrew word schoalim, which signi fies sheaves. This very litte mistake might be made in transcribing; and allowing this, all the difficulty vanishes at once. When Sampson had determined to destroy their corn, he observed, that they had made up all their sheaves into 300 shocks; these 300 shocks could not be set on fire, one after another, without loss of time and danger of discovery: on this account he judged it necessary to lay two sheaves of corn, at length, upon the ground, to make a communication between every two shocks. For this purpose he turned tail to tail, or the bottom of one sheaf to the top of another.-Observe, It is not said he tied tail to tail; but he turned one towards the other, and then, putting some combustible matter between the two sheaves, such as hemp, flax, or the like, which he could easily carry, he set fire to it; which, probably aided by a dry season and the wind, spread directly from sheaf to sheaf, and shock to shock; and running over the neighbouring fields, consumed the standing corn, the vineyards, and olives. All this an ingenious active man, as Sampson was, could do in one night, and without discovery. Let the reader judge whether this is not the most easy, natural, and plain account of the matter." Ipswich. See Saurin's Dissertations, vol. 4. Diss. 17. THE CONVERSION OF POETRY. Abraham Cowley, the poet, towards the latter part of his life, lamented that he had ever written any poems of an idle or licentious tendency; and left orders in his last will, that in another edition of his works, such pieces should not be inserted. He wished that writers of a poetic genius would employ their talents on divine subjects, and to the honour of God. He used to say, "The Conversion of Poetry, and of the Jews, would bring great glory to the Christian Religion.” M REFLECTION. AN is mortal! a few days, months, or years, put a final period to all his activity, and the pleasures and sorrows of mortality: but his so is immortal! and, as soon as the body dies, the spirit wings its way to an eternal state, a fixed abode. The short space of a few years is given us for improvement; and an account must be given how that time has been employed. Love to God and our neighbour, is the express command of Jehovah; for the exercise of which, sufficient directions are given in the Scriptures of eternal truth. But, O iny soul! what use hast thou made of thy past years? What hast thou done for God? To what purpose have thy hours been devoted? Alas! I stand accused and. condemned by my own conscience! I must plead guilty before God. The body, which is the vehicle of the soul, and its members, which it employs in active exertions, is bounded by circumstances; but the spirit, ever in motion, traverses through creation, where a succession of events appear, some affording pleasure, and others pain; and all combine to condemn every species of indifference and inactivity. God, with penetrating eye, beholds all space, all beings, and all the secret motions of every soul! Angels, those ministering spirits, are witnesses to the transactions of men. Men view each other's conduct, and approve or condemn as their actions seem to deserve. Men that are made acquainted with themselves, will find sufficient cause for humility on the discovery of their defects; men who are strangers to themselves and slaves to their lusts, claim the pity and the prayers of others. Ministers, sent of God, stand as so many intercessors for their congregations, and mankind at large; and also as God's messengers, to declare his will to them in return.— As a minister, have I been faithful in this important office? 'Have I been zealous in my Master's cause? Have I the testimony of a good conscience in my favour? As a disciple of Jesus, have I been attentive to his voice, cheerfully walked in his ways, submitted to his authority, been patient under sufferings, unattached to the world, less selfdependent? In fine, Have I" grown in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ?" and has my conduct and general deportment, in the sphere in which Providence has |