lasting Father," for "without Him was nothing made that is made;" the thunder of almighty power is equally the Father's, the Son's, and the Holy Ghost's; the battle is the Lord's, insomuch, that He turneth it whithersoever He will, and crowns with victory which contending host He chooses. Glorious physician! thou art "the power of God unto salvation." It were folly indeed to doubt thy power; ridiculous to suspect thy willingness; absurd to question thy pleasure to save. Make us to doubt no more, but believe that both power and pleasure belongeth unto thee. If men delight in 66 degrees," as signs of distinguished attainments, how much more art thou worthy of all the titles, honourably thine own, because thou hast come down to help us, to heal, and to make alive; wherefore we say, "join all the glorious names of wisdom, power, and love," because thou hast shone forth from between the cherubims, hast opened wide the door from earth's sorrows to heaven's songs, and from the ruins of paradise lost, wilt set up the everlasting kingdom of paradise regained.

Secondly,-His practice. The system is divine, and so arranged as to give "glory to God in the highest," and perfect healing to the people. His treatment has differed not for the last six thousand years, and will never change 'till every elect vessel of mercy wears the health of His countenance. It is of faith, that it might be by grace, to the end that the cure might be sure to all the seed; hence the infallible principles of pardon and peace were promulgated in the garden: the devil had obtained for himself, a place in the man and woman's heart,a temporary incarnation, when the promise was made of Christ's incarnation, to dis-possess him; thus the devil, aiming at incarnation, or "transformation," was by this temporary triumph to be ruined for ever, by the incarnation of a greater than he! Man then having once listened, and possessed of the devil, it requires a greater than human power to dispossess a spirit superior in strength to man. Now for the glorious cure. It is in looking unto Christ, the sinless seed of the woman! a remedy that has never failed and cannot fail; hence, Eve's second son expressed

his faith by his works: he brought a lamb, typical of the fact that a lamb must be brought unto Him,-a lamb-like man, through the blood and righteousness of which He expected "the cherubim and flaming sword" to be withdrawn from the gates of Paradise, and to hear the Mediator's encouraging voice beckoning him within the sacred enclosure, and saying, "I am come into my garden." Thus, also, the "diseased woman," a convert to the excellency of Christ's system, expresses her extraordinary belief in the certainty of success to be, not according to the tedious principles of man's traditions, but, in a touch! How marvellous ! None ever spoke, none ever cured, like this man. His clothes are a cure! Yes, and the only cure! In paradise, the couple lost their clothes, which is proved by their effort to make fresh ones; henceforward men were born naked; king and commoner, the wearer of royal robes or wretched rags, are equally destitute of righteousness; for the only clothing recognized by the clothier of the blue heavens, and the green earth, is the blood-red garment of the Mediator's righteousness. But on what terms is this given? -"without money, and without price!" Nobody can buy it. It is to be given away. It is the blue heavens that give birth to the green earth. It is He that dwelleth above who freely clothes the saints below. Sun and clouds, fire and water, wet and dry, combine to make the earth bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the sower, and bread to the eater. No tax levied on the population could woo the sun or court the clouds,-the husbandman waiteth for the precious fruits of the earth; the efforts of men, the wealth of nations could not contribute a price sufficient to purchase the plenty of the skies: our harvests, our flocks, are the free gift of God; nor less free is that unspeakable, unpurchaseable grant, that donation divine-the clothing of the Lord, the righteousness of God.

Yes! surely the cure was free. The woman's words were not, "if I may but buy,' ," but "if I may but touch." Virtue went out of Him! Luke says, "the whole multitude sought to touch Him; for there went virtue out of Him, and healed them

all." Human curiosity is quite denied the discovery of the process, by which the spirit of health was instantaneously communicated, in answer to the touch of the diseased. When the finger of corruption touched its foe, it fled! Health triumphed over disease. The virtue expelled the vice. The diseased part felt the divine power: the identical weakness was subject to the infinite Word: the corrupt acknowledged the incorrupt. So then, "the body of Jesus," is the miraculous medicine for man's many miseries! Did the sick Jew and the groaning Gentile, resort to it as the healing elixir for every disease? Was it regarded, as the inscrutable residence of saving health,the fountain which was unsealed in answer to the touch of the thirsty, the well of wine, of which the fainting might drink, forget their poverty, and remember their misery no more? Yes! it was so; yet not by all the people. A few saw beauty in Him; many saw none. Blessed are the eyes that see, the ears that hear, the hearts opened to receive Him.

Virtue goes out of Him! The honoured attributes of Jehovah combine to create the virtue. The pure river flows from beneath the throne, nor shall the healing tide stay its course until all the wilderness has become a fruitful field. The church receives her virtue from Christ. It has gone, it goes, it shall be ever going, out of Him. He shall practice until the people are pure. He shall practice until the multitude which no man can number, awake up, white and ruddy. He shall practice until the earth is full of the glory of the Lord.

Thirdly, His patient. She was a type of the pride of human nature: many physicians had drawn from her purse; and many painful things she had suffered at their hands, but, all to no purpose: it required a skill too high for human reach, and she was abandoned as an incurable. Tired of men and manners, of physicians and their physics, she hears of Jesu's fame, and be it remarked, possessed of a vital faith, she published her creed,—" if I may touch but His clothes I shall be whole !" Thus blessed with the full assurance of faith, she presses through the crowd, and touches, "and

straightway the fountain of her blood was dried up, and she felt in her body that she was healed of that plague." It was not the touch of reason's cold finger, nor the mere mechanical cling to the garment of Christ which signalised the woman's effort, and crowned it with success; our Lord describes the special character of the touch-it was of faith: "the woman, fearing and trembling," sweetly feeling herself cured, supposes it has been abstracted at some injurious sacrifice of the virtue of Christ, till "the Good Physician's" voice quiets her, explaining the instrumental cause of her recovery, and pronouncing upon her the blessing of peace.

Yes! truly this woman was a type of her species, in confining her applications for a cure to the world's physicians. She had been at a great expense of purse and pain, just to learn out the greatest painthat they could do her no good. Nature likes nature, and likes nothing superior; nor has she indwelling strength and wisdom to seek her cure of God. believes it to be of the will of man, of flesh, and of blood, and acts accordingly; till, proving herself "nothing bettered," she listens to the invitation-" come unto me,

She

all ye that are weary and heavy laden, and I will give you rest."

Blessed is the man that has deeply proved the weakness of everything but the strength of Christ; for his heart's experience is thus a counterpart of what is written he possesses two copies of one book,-the Bible on paper, the Bible in power the print on the leaf, the print in the life. All saved men are destined to know this, "that power

belongeth unto God"; thus is Jehovah glorified, in Jesus, the way; and in His being known to be the only way, whereby we can be saved. Some trust in the antiquity of their temples, in the classic fame of their ministry, are beguiled by the eloquence of their priesthood, and content to die in the arms of their friendship, till grace occasionally reveals the delusion, and, pouring glory on the person of Christ, says, emphatically,-"This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased."

All saints shall touch the cross and live; they shall come on the mind's

wings from the east and west to do so; they shall break through every hindrance and "lay hold on eternal life," meekly coming behind Him on earth, they shall stand boldly before Him in heaven, the virtuous witness,-the witnesses of the virtue that has gone out of Him; "fearing and trembling" will then belong to the past, and eternal filiation, in all its glory be bountifully enjoyed; then the countless wheels of this complicated world shall have resigned their office, subject to His omnific touch, and new volumes of virtue have covered the earth as the waters cover the sea.

We have thus put together a few words, faintly expressive of the glory of Zion's good Physician, of the efficiency of His practice, and the character of His patients; and what shall we say to these things? It ought to inspire the church in the wilderness with the strongest courage, the most dauntless hope; their mouth should be filled with laughter, and their tongue with singing, while they acknowledge "the Lord hath done great things for us." But how little we drink of the brook by the way! How addicted to taste the world's streams with more freedom than the sweet waters of paradise; yet the one is of the earth, earthy; the other of the heavens, heavenly. The world says, Arbana and Pharpar are best. May we exhibit our preference for Jordan: thus let us shew ourselves members of the true church, by our true thirst::-aye, dissenters indeed. Northamptonshire, April 18, 1853.

THE EDITOR.

A REMARKABLE LETTER: Written by a woman without hands or feet. THIS poor woman, when young, was afflicted in such an extraordinary way as to deprive her of the use of her hands and feet; and notwithstanding surgical assistance, the disorder so increased that she lost both her feet: one arm also was taken off above the elbow, and the other a little below. She was withal so poor that she was obliged to be sent to the workhouse: but the report of her extraordinary case brought several neighbouring gentlemen and ladies to visit and relieve her. After some time she became

under great concern of soul, and so continued for about two years, in great spiritual distress. At length it pleased the Lord to set her mind at liberty; her language was changed, and she began to talk continually of the great things which God had done for her. Her benefactors were astonished, thought she must be beside herself, and as such neglected and forsook her: but the Lord raised her up other benefactors, to one of whom the following letter was addressed.

It is necessary to observe, that she wrote with a pen fastened to a stump, and was obliged to move her body at every stroke she made; yet she wrote intelligibly, and even fair.

"To Miss Ann P-. Dear Madam,With gratitude to God and you, I write a few lines to return you my humble thanks for your kind favours to me from time to time, for which I pray God reward you even an hundred fold. I have been very poorly this winter, with my arms and head: I hope I can say, Father, thy will be done. The Lord deals most graciously with me, and keeps my mind staid on Him, though for some time past my walk has been in the valley, and not upon the mount. God leads His people the sure way, though not at all times the most pleasant way; so there is no cause to complain, but much to be thankful for. The Lord has preserved me from wounds, though my pains have been great. As I grow in years, my strength decays; disorders make the tabernacle totter, but the Lord will support it till the pin falls out. His mercy and goodness has been, is, and will continue to be, great. I long to love Him more and serve Him better.

The Canaanites still abide in the land; the Lord promises to drive them out by little and little, and I believe that in His own time He will deliver me according to His word; therefore my hope is in Him. He will try me as gold, and bring me forth when meet for Himself. Salvation work is great, and all of God, and free grace from the beginning to the end: and sure I am it is a mercy that it is so; if it were not, my deceitful heart would not hold out unto the end. But God's wills and shalls are His people's security. My redemption is by many years nearer now than when I first believed: yet I

fear my heart is not so earnest and diligent in the work of the Lord as it was some years ago. I am often aiming to exert myself, and calling upon my soul and spirit to praise the Lord. I fain would have Him take the sole dominion, and drive out every rival in my heart. With the Psalmist, I know that it is good for me to hold fast by my God, that He will give grace to bring to glory, and never leave nor forsake the work of His own hands.

When I look back upon the years past, and call to remembrance the works of the Lord, my soul is humbled within me; many Ebenezers has He given me to raise up to Him, and as yet He gives me to go on, and will do so till He brings me to glory.

I hope you are kept walking in the the ways of Zion. I have you and all my kind friends in remembrance, and wish you and them God speed in your journey. God will fight in, as He has done for us; and will make us more than conquerors over His and our enemies. Then need we not give way to fear, but look to Jesus, who is the Saviour and Friend of sinners. All our straits and snares are known to Him, and He will preserve us safe, and make a way for our

escape.

Providences look dark; but the God of them can make them become light to` the nation. Hope your and my heart, and those of our friends, will experience the Lord dwelling in them. Then all will be well, and we shall sing, and give thanks, and wonder at the love which has been extended to us; not because we are better than others, but because the Lord is good, and His tender mercy is over all His works. May the good Lord bless you abundantly in your soul and substance, and give you every blessing richly to enjoy.-I am, madam, your ever affectionate, and much obliged J. R."

servant,

THE SALUBRIOUS BREEZE. THE late Mr. Robinson, of Cambridge, called upon a friend just as he had received a letter from his son, who was surgeon on board a vessel then laying off Smyrna. The son mentioned to his father, that every morning about sun-rise,

a fresh gale of air blew from the sea across the land, and from its wholesomeness and utility in clearing the infected air, this wind is always called the doctor." "Now," says Mr. Robinson, "it strikes me that the prophet Malachi, who lived in that quarter of the world, might allude to this circumstance, when he says, 'the sun of righteousness shall arise with healing in His wings.' The Psalmist mentions the wings of the wind,' and it appears to me, that this salubrious breeze which attends the rising of the sun, may be properly enough considered as the wings of the sun, which contains such healing influences, rather than the beams of the sun, as that passage has been commonly understood."

THE POWER OF PRAYER.

OLD Mr. Thomas Bradbury was remarkable for a strict punctuality in family devotion. One evening, when the bell had rung, the servants ran hastily up to prayer, and forgot to shut the area door, next the street. Some fellows seeking an opportunity to commit a robbery, happened to observe the door open, and one of them, getting over the pallisades, entered the house. Creeping up stairs, he heard the old gentleman at prayer, that God would preserve his house from thieves. The man was thunder-struck, and unable to persist in his design. He therefore returned and told the circumstance to his companions, who abused his timidity. But the man himself was so affected, that some time after he related the event to Mr. B., and became an attendant on his ministry.

THE SCOTCH COOK CATECHIZED.

THE witty Earl of Rochester being once in company with King Charles II, his Queen, chaplain, and some ministers of state; after they had been discoursing on public business, the King of a sudden exclaimed," let our thoughts be unbended from the cares of state, and give us a generous glass of wine, 'that cheereth,' as the scripture saith, both God and man.'" The Queen hearing this, modestly said, she thought there could be no such text in scripture, and that the idea was little less than blasphemy. The King replied, that he was not prepared to turn

to chapter and verse, but he was sure he had met with it in his scripture reading. The chaplain was appealed to, and he was of the same opinion with the Queen. Rochester, suspecting the King to be right, and being no friend to the chaplain, slipt out of the room to enquire among the servants, if any of them were conversant with the bible. They named David, the Scotch cook, who always carried a bible about him; and David' being called, recollected both the text and where to find it. Rochester ordered him to be in waiting, and returned to the King. This text was still the topic of conversation, and Rochester moved to call in David, who, he said, he found was well acquainted with the scriptures. David appeared, and being asked the question, produced his bible and read the text (Judges ix. 13). The King smiled, the Queen asked pardon, and the chaplain blushed. Rochester now asked the doctor if he could interpret the text, since it was produced; but he was mute. The Earl, therefore, applied to David for the exposition. The cook immediately replied, "how much wine cheereth man, your lordship knows: and that it cheereth God, I beg leave to say, that, under the Old Testament dispensation, there were meat-offerings and drinkofferings. The latter consisted of wine, which was typical of the blood of the Mediator, which, by a metaphor, was said to cheer God, as He was well pleased in the way of salvation He had appointed; whereby His justice was satisfied, His law fulfilled, His mercy reigned, His grace triumphed, all the divine perfections harmonized, the sinner was saved, and God in Christ glorified."

The King was agreeably surprised at this evangelical exposition; Rochester applauded, and after some severe reflections upon the chaplain, very gravely moved that his majesty would be pleased to make the chaplain his cook, and the cook his chaplain.

PETER'S KEYS.

THE catholics,-by which I mean roman catholics, since though a Protestant, I believe in the holy catholic, that is, universal church, and profess to be a member of it, at the same time that I

waive all pretensions to being a roman catholic, they make a great noise about the keys having been given to Peter, the keys of the kingdom of heaven. Well, it is true enough-they were given to him. The bible says so, and we protestants want no better authority than the bible for any thing. We do not require the confirmation of tradition, and the unanimous consent of the fathers. We do not want any thing to strengthen "thus saith the Lord." Yes, the keys were given to Peter; it is said so in Matthew xvi. 19. This is one of those passages of scripture' which is not hard to be understood, as even they of Rome acknowledge. I am glad our brethren of that communion agree with us that there is something plain in the bible; that there is one passage, at least, in which private interpretation arrives at the same result which they reach who follow in the tract of the agreeing fathers! I suppose, if we could interpret all scripture as much to the mind of the catholics as we do this, they would let us alone about private interpretation.

Well, Peter has got the keys. What then? What are keys for? To unlock and open is one of the purposes served by keys. It was for this purpose, I suppose, that Peter received them; and for this purpose we find him using them. He opened the kingdom of heaven, that is, the gospel church, or christian dispensation, as the phrase "kingdom of heaven" often signifies. He opened it to both Jews and Gentiles: he preached the first sermon, and was the instrument of making the first converts among each. With one key he opened the kingdom of heaven to the Jews, and with the other to the Gentiles. This was a distinction conferred on Peter, it is true: but it was necessary that some one of the twelve should begin the business of preaching the gospel. The whole twelve could not turn the keys and open the door. The power of binding and loosing, which was conferred on Peter when the keys were given him, was not confined to him, but, as Matthew testifies in the next chapter but one, was extended to all the disciples.

Well, Peter opened the kingdom of heaven; and what became of the keys