when its stories may appear, at first | embraces perhaps all that can be sight, to be merely amusing and harmless. I must make a few observations in explanation of our Lord's words in v. 10,-"I say unto you that in heaven their angels do always behold the face of my father which is in heaven.' Observe, our Saviour is not here speaking merely of young children, but of his humble, meek, child-like disciples, of whatever age. He has been speaking of them from verse 5; where he said 'whoso shall receive one sUCH little child in my name,' i. e. one who shall humble himself as the little child at that moment present, -one who is a child, not in years, but in heart and spirit,-humble, teachable, and mild. So then our Lord is here speaking of the angels of his faithful and humble disciples and he declares, with allusion to the custom of earthly courts and palaces, where certain favourites and high officers are admitted into the royal presence, that these angels are always in the presence of God. But what is meant by "their angels?" I answer that perhaps it is too much to deduce from this expression the doctrine that each saint on earth has a guardian angel assigned to him; but that it is certainly necessary to regard this verse as coinciding with the general tenor of Scripture, by which we are given to understand that God vouchsafes to employ the ministry of angels for the benefit of his faithful and holy servants upon earth. The following judicious note of Burkitt safely and wisely said in explanation of this interesting verse. We may learn hence, says he, "first, what is the office and employment of the glorious angels; namely, to be the immediate attendants upon the royal person of the supreme King and Sovereign of the world:-and, secondly, in what esteem good men are with God, and what a mighty regard he has for the meanest of his children, that he commits the care and preservation of them to the holy angels, who are nearest to him and in highest favour and honour with him. It is Jerome's note upon this place, that great is the dignity of these little ones, seeing every one of them from his birth has an angel delegated to preserve him. But though others think that the opinion of a tutelary angel, or of one particular angel's having the custody of one particular saint as his continual charge, has not a sufficient foundation in the holy Scriptures; yet all the angels in heaven are ministering spirits unto them; and though they do not always attend upon their persons, for they stand before the face of God, yet it is to receive his commands either to help them in their exigencies, or to punish those that injure them." In verse 12, we shall perhaps keep more nearly to the sense of the original if we adopt the translation which has been sanctioned by Luther and others,-"Doth he not leave the ninety and nine upon the mountains, and goeth, and seeketh that which is gone astray?" The sense is still the same; but the picture is perhaps more natural. The figure of a shepherd leaving his flock in search of a strayed sheep was familiar among the Jews, and was used to denote the exercise of great zeal and affection on the part of the destitute and lost. READER. Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven ?-Needless, painful, and even sinful, inquiry,-if it relates to worldly preeminence, dignity, and power. Would that it had altogether disappeared from the church of Christ! But, alas, the fire of unholy ambition still burns in the midst of many churches, great and small. Still there are lordly claims, and factious oppositions, and wretched controversies upon this endless question, Who shall be the greatest? Who shall establish the strongest claims to power, who shall enjoy the largest share of it, who shall be the most undoubted and most absolute lord over God's heritage? But let it not be so with us. Let us rather entertain a question like this with reference to Christian temper, character, and practice. Let us consider what is the spirit-what is the conduct-which God loves best, and which he most delights to honour. And let us humbly resolve, in dependence on divine grace, that that which is most pleasing and precious in the sight of our heavenly Father shall be also most delightful and welcome to ourselves. Let us "covet earnestly the best gifts." Verily I say unto you, Except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven.-Our Lord warned his apostles that they must cease to entertain those proud, domineering, and ambitious desires to which they had yielded, and must possess a more meek and peaceable temper, before they would be fit to enter into the kingdom of heaven. Their views respecting the office and reign of the Messiah needed to be reformed before they could even understand aright the nature of those blessings and dignities of which they seemed anxious to partake. Repeated conversions from various particular errors, evil tempers, or bad habits are needful in the progress of Christian sanctification. When occasions have led to the detection of any latent evil, or the development of any sinful propensity, then we are more especially called upon to seek the aid of divine grace in enabling us to correct what is amiss in us, and to give a new and holy bias to our depraved inclinations and desires.-In these words of our blessed Lord, we find also a general truth of great importance to us all. We must be converted from our naturally proud, self-willed, worldly state of mind and heart, and must become humble, teachable, and free from the enslaving influence of earthly desires. "Converting grace makes us like little children; not foolish as children (1 Cor. xiv. 20), nor fickle (Eph. iv. 14), nor playful, (ch. xi. 16); but, as children, we must desire the sincere milk of the word (1 Pet. ii. 2); as children, we must be careful for no thing, but leave it to our heavenly Father to care for us (ch. vi. 31); we must, as children, be harmless, and inoffensive, and void of malice (1 Cor. xiv. 20), governable, and under command (Gal. iv. 2); and, (which is here chiefly intended), we must be humble as little children." See Ps. 131. Matt. v. 3, 5.-The contrary temper unfits men for the presence of God, and the blessedness of heaven. "Whatever profession men make, yet if they allow themselves in pride and ambition, they will be rejected both from God's tabernacle, and from his holy hill. Pride threw the angels that sinned out of heaven; and will keep us out, if we be not converted from it." In the church and kingdom of the Redeemer, the deepest humility is the highest greatness, and the sure road to exalted happiness and honour. He who possesses the largest share of Christian lowliness, simplicity, and meekness, as he has most of the spirit of Christ, so he will also receive the greatest measure of the blessings which Christ be stows. offend grievously against the laws of the Gospel, if we withhold our esteem and goodwill from our brethren merely because they do not belong to the same section or party in the church as ourselves. And this point is strongly set before us in the course of this narrative, as related by St. Mark ix. 38, 39, and by St. Luke ix. 49, 50: "And John answered and said, Master, we saw one casting out devils in thy name; and we forbad him, because he followeth not with us. And Jesus said unto him, Forbid him not: for he that is not against us is for us."-How great is the honour which the blessed Jesus here puts upon his meek and lowly followers! He speaks of them as his own representatives upon earth; he regards that which is done to them as done to himself.—And he added for our warning, Whoso shall offend i. e. put a stumbling-block, or an occasion of injury or falling, in the way of one of these little ones that believe in me,-one of my humble, childlike, disciples, it were better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and that he were drowned in the depth of the sea, (according to an ancient custom of punishing grievous malefactors in the east),—it were better for him to die at once than to bring the guilt of such a sin upon his soul.-Let us beware of doing anything which may vex the spirit, and especially anything which may lead to weaken the graces, of even the meanest believer in Jesus.—But alas, such is the wickedness of man, We-such the pride and obstinacy of And whoso shall receive one such little child in my name, receiveth me.It is our duty, and, if we are Christ's faithful servants, it will be our delight, to look with kindness and hearty goodwill upon all those who bear the image of the meek and lowly Saviour. We must love them, and do them good, for his sake. Every humble, meek, child-like believer in Jesus, of whatever religious denomination, whether a member of our own church or of another, has a claim upon our Christian sympathy and love. What many men's hearts, their love of dominion and power, and their scorn of a meek and lowly temper in other men, that it must needs be that offences come. What lamentable testimony do the pages of church-history bear to this mournful fact! an amount of sin and suffering has been produced by want of Christian charity and forbearance, by absence of tenderness and brotherly affection towards humble believers in the Lord Jesus Christ. How often have humility and meekness been the occasions of oppression, persecution, and contempt, instead of being rightly regarded as passports to confidence and love, and as demanding respect and cordial good-will! But woe to that man by whom the offence cometh. Let proud professors and proud churches tremble at their doom. And let us, for our own sakes, be on our guard against any thing which may drive or draw us into sin. If thy hand or thy foot offend thee, &c. (See note on ch. v. 29, 30). In heaven their angels, that is, the angels of these little ones, these humble child-like disciples,-do always behold the face of my Father which is in heaven. This is one reason assigned by our Lord why we should not treat any of his meek and lowly followers with contempt or disdain; namely, that God is pleased to employ the ministry of angels in their service and for their benefit. Does the king of heaven thus delight to honour them, and shall we esteem them lightly and cast out their names as evil? And while we do this, shall we still call ourselves Christians and children of God? Shocking inconsistency !And there is yet another consideration in their favour. They are the objects of the Saviour's love; they are those for whom he laid down his life; and in their welfare and eter nal happiness he sees of the travail of his soul and is satisfied. This is the second argument by which he enforces the duty of Christian ten derness and love. For the Son of Man is come to save that which is lost. He is the good shepherd, who came to seek the poor wanderer from the fold, and even gave his life for the sheep. And shall we, by our evil example or influence, by unkind and uncharitable tempers or proceedings, labour in an opposite direction, and throw hindrances in the way of the salvation of sinners? "Destroy not him with thy meat for whom Christ died!" Rom. xiv. 15. Rather let us concur with the gracious designs of God respecting ourselves and others, and thankfully remember, for our guidance and our comfort, that positive assertion, "It is not the will of your Father which is in heaven that one of these little ones i. e. humble, child-like disciples, meek, teachable, tractable believ ers,-should perish. HYMN I. Quiet, Lord, my froward heart, 0 he shall hear thee, thou hast gained thy brother. 16 But if he will not hear thee, then take with thee one or two more, that in "the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may be established. 17 And if he shall neglect to hear them, tell it unto the church but if he neglect to hear the church, let him be unto thee as an 'heathen man and a publican. 18 Verily I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall bind on earth shall be bound in heaven and whatsoever ye shall loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. 19 'Again I say unto you, That if two of you shall agree on earth as touching anything that they shall ask, 'it shall be done for them of my Father which is in heaven. 20 For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them. n Lev. xix. 17. Ecclus. xix. 13. Luke xvii. 3.-o Jam. v. 20. 1 Pet. iii. 1.-p Deut. xvii. 6; & xix. 15. John viii. 17. 2 Cor. xiii. 1. Heb. x. 28.-9 Rom. xvi. 17. I Cor v. 9. 2 Thes. iii. 6, 14. 2 John 10-r ch. xvi. 19. John xx. 23. 1 Cor. v. 4.-8 ch. v. 24.- 1 John iii. 22; & v. 14. Reader. Our blessed Lord here lays down some rules for the preservation of peace and good feeling among his followers. And it is observable that he has appointed the church, i. e. the particular congrega |