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MR. ALCOTT. Would you like the world better, if there was no punishment and no suffering?

SEVERAL. Once I thought so.

MR. ALCOTT. Do you see any good in suffering or in punishment now? Who makes you suffer?

CHARLES. Ourselves.

Lucy. The "Spirit's anointing him" means, that God had made him good, to make those who were poor in goodness-rich.

MR. ALCOTT. Then there is another kind of poverty than of riches. Which is the worst kind of poverty? LUCY. Poverty of kindness.

MR. ALCOTT. Do you suppose there are any very poor people, who are rich in spirit?

Lucy. Yes; the broken-hearted means being sorry for wrong-doing; and he gives them repentance to bind them up. The captives means those who are bound by their wickedness,

MR. ALCOTT. Give me an instance of such a captive.

Lucy. A little girl, who has done wrong and is not sorry, is captivated by her sin; and being blind means that they cannot see goodness.

MR. ALCOTT. Did they lose their sight all at once? LUCY. No; not all at once; but they do wickedly, and then forget the difference between right and wrong. MR. ALCOTT. Do we begin by knowing right and wrong?

LUCY. Yes.

MR. ALCOTT. Have you lost any of your spiritual sight?

LUCY. I suppose I have since I was a baby.

WELLES and NATHAN. I did not know any thing when I was a baby. There is no right or wrong in a baby.

LUCY. "The bruised " means those who are a little wicked, but want to be good; and Jesus will show them how.

MR. ALCOTT. Was the Spirit of the Lord ever upon you?

JOHN B. When I have been doing right it has helped me, and when I have been helping others.

LEMUEL. I think "to preach the acceptable year of the Lord" means, that he taught what would be acceptable to God all the time.

LUCIA. I was interested in the "6 Scripture's being fulfilled" - - it was fulfilled by Jesus and by the apostles.

JOHN B. And, in a small degree now, by preachers.

CHARLES. But on not near so large a plan, as that on which Jesus preached. He had to find out what he preached in himself. And so should all.

MR. ALCOTT. Those may hold up their hands, who think one is preaching the Gospel to the poor, when he is making money to hoard, and setting that example. (None.)

Or who is angry every day and oppressing the weak. (None.)

Do you preach the Gospel even to one?

(None held up hands.)

Do you heal the broken-hearted? make it a point to comfort your little friends when they are troubled?

(None.)

Do you ever deliver the captive- those captured by bad habits -even yourselves?

(None.)

Are any of you blind?

(Several.)

Do you begin to recover your sight?

(All held up hands.)

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How many spend all the year acceptably to the Lord? (None.)

ELLEN.

JOSIAH.

I want to know what Josiah thinks.

I have no thoughts.

MR. ALCOTT. What does it mean by the words, "And all bore him witness"?

CHARLES. They all saw him.

I

ELLEN. And some felt the truth of the words. GEORGE K. Gracious words mean comfort. should not think they would have wanted to cast him off the hill.

Prejudice and
Partiality.

MR. ALCOTT. What did they mean by saying, "Is not this Joseph's son?"

LEMUEL. They knew Joseph, and that he was a carpenter; and when they saw there was something great in Jesus, they envied him, and said, Can this be the Carpenter's son, whom we all know?

MR. ALCOTT. What is meant by "A prophet is not accepted in his own country"?

MARTHA. We are more likely to think highly of those we don't know who come from some other place.

AUGUSTINE. No; I think we are more likely to think our own countrymen great.

MR. ALCOTT. These people had seen Jesus ever since he was a child- they had doubtless seen him at play. Do you suppose Jesus played?

GEORKE K. and OTHERS. Yes.

MR. ALCOTT. Did he play well do you think?
SEVERAL. Yes.

Moral Influence.

MR. ALCOTT. Suppose a person is greater, better than people around him, how will they treat him?

AUGUSTINE. He must make them understand him.

MR. ALCOTT. Suppose they are interested in other things?

AUGUSTINE. He must talk to them and convince them, not all at once, nor every one. Those people thought a carpenter was not so high as others. But there is no reason why a carpenter's son should not be as great as any other man.

LEMUEL. Because they are poor! Some people think their riches include goodness.

MR. ALCOTT. How many of you think that, if you were to go into another town or school, and begin to talk as you do here on spiritual subjects, you should be understood; or would it be disagreeable?

LEMUEL. The schoolmaster would not let you stay. GEORGE K. He would be glad, if he was a spiritual man, for then he would teach so himself. But I guess he would not be a spiritual man if he did not have spiritual scholars.

MR. ALCOTT. Most schoolmasters mean to be spiritual.

LEMUEL. I know one who is not spiritual,

CONVERSATION XXXVII.

INSPIRATION OF GENIUS.

DIVINE ELOQUENCE.

Jesus teaching on the Sabbath at Capernaum, from the Sacred Text. - Effect of Eloquence.-Person and features of Jesus. -Gravity and Sincerity.Seriousness and Soberness. Eloquence. Spiritual Perversion. - Spiritual Doctrine. - Agency of Faith. Thought and Language. - Genius. Supernatural in Conscience.

Mr. Alcott read the

POWER OF THE PREACHING OF JESUS.

Vulgar Æra, 27.

Julian Period, Genius. 4740.

Capernaum.

LUKE iv. 31, 32.

31 And Jesus came down to Capernaum, a city of Galilee, and taught them on the Sabbath days.

52 And they were astonished at his doctrine: *for his

* Matt. vi. 29. word was with power.

He asked what thoughts they awakened?

Effect of
Eloquence.

SUSAN. They could not understand his words, because they were so great.

MR. ALCOTT. Were the words hard words,

or was the meaning great?

SUSAN. The meaning was great — inward.

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ANDREW. They were not used to hear about Spirit; they were in the habit of talking about bodies, and they were surprised at the new words.

MR. ALCOTT. Did Jesus make new words?

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