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different light, and we must carefully read both before we can rightly estimate what he said and did just then. In the Book of Samuel we have the dark side of the question: the man whomthough but a shepherd-God had chosen to be a king, ungratefully distrusts him in the hour of danger, and stoops to deceit in order to save his life. Now, though this is the truth, it is but half the truth; the other half is given us in the 31th Psalm, penned just after his deliverance from the Philistines. Here he not only heartily thanks God for his deliverance, but shows great dependence on him and great confidence in his protection. We can only reconcile the seeming discrepancy by bearing in mind the peculiar circumstances of the case, and the naturally impulsive character of David: these might mislead him in a moment of danger, and betray him into sins of surprise, but could not destroy his love towards God or his general confidence in his mercy and protection. For, as Tennyson writes

"The sin which passion burns into the blood,

And not the one dark hour which brings remorse,

For ever stamps us of whose fold we be."

There were too many of these "dark hours" in David's life; but, as a rule, when he fell he soon rose again. Affliction might drive or bend him out of his usual course, but before long he sprang back to his old position.

While, however, the subject before us is (especially to ministers and Sunday-school teachers) of great interest and importance, it is not without its difficulties. Where David's Psalms are prophetic,* they receive their full accomplishment in Christ and the extension of his kingdom; and it requires all the skill of the interpreter to bring out their double meaning, so that they shall be made to apply without constraint both to Christ and to David. Yet, when once we un

I speak only of those that have a double sense.

derstand clearly their lower sense -that relating to David-the better shall we be able to see how they point to One far greater than David; just in the same way as he who is well grounded in the earthly or literal meaning of a parable will (all other things being equal) be far more likely to bring out fully its heavenly meaning than he who has paid but little attention to its Eastern imagery and its allusions to Eastern customs. More on this subject hereafter; but we must now notice a second difficulty. I shall have occasion to allude to many of the Psalms. How can we tell, in any given case, whether or not the Psalm was penned by David? In many ways. The titles of the Psalms are here of great service to us; some of them may be incorrect, but to reject on such grounds the whole mass, would be as absurd as to reject every shilling paid over the counter because you know there are bad shillings in circulation. Without wearying the reader with a long controversy, I may remark that its results are well summed up by Dr. Angus"The titles may be accepted except when they disagree with the contents of the Psalms." But there are other ways of testing whether any given Psalm was penned by David. Does it contain his own peculiar experiences, and are these expressed in his own style and characteristic phrases? When these questions can be answered satisfactorily we need not scruple to accept the title.

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On two points the Psalms cast light upon the early life of David. First of all, upon the way in which he spent his boyhood. Boaz, his ancestor, was a wealthy man, and the Rev. E. Wilton tries to show that Jesse was also well off, though, to be sure, his wealth did not lie much in sheep. To my mind, Ps. lxxviii. 70, 71, upsets this view, for it shows that Jesse's youngest son, while a

* Dr. Angus's "Bible Handbook." + Journal of Sacred Literature Oct., 1848.

distress and pain, it is true, but of comfort and happiness also." If sentences ill-constructed and ungrammatical like these were only few and occasional, we should not have noticed them; but such sentences are plentifully scattered over the book, and as the writer of these sentences advertises at the end of the volume eleven other literary productions, we think it is about time somebody pointed out his errors and advised greater carefulness in the construction of his sentences for the future.

MISSIONARY

ENTERPRISE NO FICTION: a Tale founded on Facts. Elliot Stock. 12mo, 203 pp.-Of this work we can only say, we would rather have had the facts without the tale.

THE GOSPEL CHURCH, delineated from the New Testament, in its Constitution, Worship, Order, Ministers and Ministrations: an exhibition in detail of the special privileges and authorized duties of Christian fellowship. By HENRY WEBB. Simpkin, Marshall, & Co. Svo, 294 pp. A weary, wandering dissertation on a church which, according to the author's notion, is "a brotherhood of mutual instructors," who are to "break bread,' manage finance, hire rooms and the like for service, and, without appointed ministers, are to teach one another the right way. frankly confess that we do not find such a church organization in the New Testament, and we have no idea of joining such.

We

DISCOURSES ILLUSTRATIVE OF SACRED TRUTHS. By W. COOKE, D.D. Price 5s. 6d. Hamilton, Adams, & Co., and H. Webber. -There are nineteen of these discourses in the present volume. The author says, in a prefatory note, that they have for the most part been preached on special occasions. Often and urgently has the author been requested to publish them in one volume. A higher aim, however, than the gratification of friends, is the desire to establish God's people in the faith, to promote sound doctrine and a healthy,

earnest, and benevolent Christianity. Such is the supreme desire of the author. We are glad of the appearance of this volume of sermons from our venerable brother

in the gospel. "The higher aim"

which he avows as his reason for publishing them will, we are sure, be reached wherever the sermons are read, for they do decidedly tend to " promote sound doctrine and a healthy, earnest, and benevolent Christianity.' We sincerely wish for the volume an extensive circulation.

STRANGE FOOTSTEPS, or Thoughts on the Providence of God. Illustrated by incidents new and old. By Revs. C. & H. KENDALL. London: George Lamb. 12mo, 300 pp. -This is a readable book, rather of the sensational kind, dealing largely as it does in "visions and revelations." Some of its positions are open to question, but on the whole it will encourage God's people to trust in him, and be calm and hopeful in all their trials. It is never dull; the style is fresh and lively, and the "incidents" striking. Few readers will desire to lay it down till they have read it through; the fourth chapter might have been omitted, as in no way directly connected with the main object of the book.

are

THE METHODIST QUARTERLY for June, 1871.-This is a good number, above the average in merit. The articles are vigorous, fresh, and readable. They comprise"Resurrection of the Dead," we presume by the editor, concerning which there may be some difference of opinion as to the positions taken; but it is well written, and gives us the most recent results of theological thought in England upon the subject. Mr. Scott's article on "Our English Bible" is clear, fresh, and interesting, and will be read with pleasure. 66 Notes on North China,' "Lancashire Nonconformity," ," "The Government and the Liquor Traffic," and Notices of Books, comprise the other items in the list, and the whole are creditable to the writers.

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mere youth, was forced to follow a menial employment; he was, in fact, no mere general overseer, but a working shepherd. "He chose David also his servant, and took him from the sheepfolds: from following the ewes great with young." The whole tenor of the passage seems to show that this was his usual occupation. Now this fact reads us a useful moral lesson, one that may bring encouragement to many who greatly need it. If God designs a man for eminent usefulness, it matters little what is his calling or in what sphere he moves; God can make use of any calling or any sphere to fit him for his future work. Another fact taught us in the Psalms, but taught nowhere else, is that David's mother was a pious woman; such, at least, is a fair inference from Ps. lxxxvi. 16, where he prays-"O turn unto me, and have mercy upon me; give the strength unto thy servant, and save the son of thine handmaid." It may indeed be urged that she, like every other woman, was God's "handmaid" by creation, but unless she had also been his "handmaid" through grace David would never have asked God to show him mercy for her sake. This view also gains support from Ps. cxvi. 16, if, with Drs. Kitto and Barth, we ascribe the Psalm to David. It is remarkable in how many cases the great men of the Church have, like David himself, had pious mothers. We are told that the great want of the Church just now is a number of burning and shining lights; well, if so, she has only to train first-rate Christian mothers, and her end will be soon gained. If the responsibility of the Christian mother is great, great also is her reward. The artist who produces a splendid painting or statue, the architect who gives us a splendid building, each of these may gain great applause from the world, but, after all, his work will "perish in the using." Very different is the case of the faithful Christian mother; she spends her strength in doing

* Rev. W. Arthur.

two great works. In the first place, by God's aid, she forms in her own heart Christian virtues which will not only fit her for usefulness on earth, but will flourish for ever in heaven; in the next, when she has led her child to the Saviour's feet, the same virtues are found in his heart also. Thus her work lives for ever in a double sense-lives in herself and in her child. Such is God's appointed way of blessing and reviving the Church, and in this way must we walk if we would see the Connexion all that we could wish it to be. S.

"CHEER HIM!"

IN one of our large cities a fire broke out in a lofty dwelling. It was near midnight, and the flames had made headway before they were discovered. The fire companies rallied, but the smoke had become so thick that the outlines of the house were scarcely visible, and the fiery element was raging with fearful power, when a piercing cry thrilled all hearts as they learned that there was one person yet unsaved within the building. In a moment a ladder was swung through the flames and planted against the heated walls, and a brave fireman rushed up its rounds to the rescue.

Overcome by the smoke, and perhaps daunted by the hissing flames before him, he halted, and seemed to hesitate. It was an awful scene. A life hung in the balance, and each moment was an age.

"Cheer him!" shouted a voice from the crowd, and a wild "hurrah!" burst like a tempest from the beholding multitude. That cheer did the work, and the brave fireman went upward amid smoke and flame, and in a monent descended with the rescued one in his arms.

Friend, brother, when you see a brave soul battling with temptation, struggling under the cross, rushing forward to rescue dying men, and yet faltering in an hour of weakness or a moment of peril, then "cheer him!" And as a

pebble's fall may change a river's course, so your words of sympathetic kindness may uplift a drooping heart, and fix its faltering purpose for a noble life.

THE BOTTLE OF OIL. AN old gentleman occupied a large house. He had a number of servants, and apparently every comfort that could be desired. But he was naturally peevish; and when things went amiss he became cross, and often flow into a passion. At last his servants left him. out of temper, he went to a neighbour with the story of his distresses. "It seems to me," said the neighbour, "it would be well for you to oil yourself a little."

"To oil myself!"

Quite

"Yes. I will explain. Some time ago one of the doors in my

house creaked. Nobody liked to go in or out by it. One day I oiled its hinges, and it has been constantly used by everybody since."

"Then you think I am like your creaking door," cried the old gentleman. ་་ How! do you want me to oil myself?"

"That's an easy matter," said the neighbour. "Go home and engage a servant, and when he does right praise him. If, on the comtrary, he does something amiss, do not be cross; oil your voice and words with the oil of love."

The old gentleman went home, and no harsh or ugly word was heard in his house afterwards. Every family should have a bottle of this precious oil, for every family is liable to a creaking hinge, in the shape of a fretful disposition, a cross temper, a harsh tone, or a faultfinding spirit.

Editorial Department.

BOOK NOTICES.

SUNBEAMS IN SORROW. Recollections and Remains of Helena Loveday Cocks. By her Father. London: Elliot Stock. 16mo, 176 pp. -This little book contains recollections and remains of a precocious and saintly daughter, whose character we do not wonder that her father should wish to be known and contemplated by others outside her family circle. It is given to few parents to have such a child, and we are sure that the contemplation of her sweet life, and her literary remains, will refresh and guide many young disciples who, through this volume, may become acquainted with her character.

THINGS NEW AND OLD RELATIVE TO LIFE, being Sermons on different Subjects. By T. H. London : Hodder & Stoughton. 16mo, 342 pp. The author of these sermons was silenced by the Wesleyan Conference for something he had said about class-meetings. He has occu

pied his enforced leisure by sending forth these sermons. We cannot say that they transcend mediocrity. The thinking is often loose, and the style is in many instances harsh, and the sentences incorrect; for instance, in the sermon on the Law Hill Colliery calamity, in which twenty-seven workmen lost their lives, speaking of the seriousness of death the author says, "But if this is the case relative to one on his bed, surrounded with friends, and all the soothing attention of friendship, what must it be in the death of twenty-seven, as by this calamity it has been the case?" And again, p. 108, “Truth is sold in a hundred ways, little thought of and known by the public eye and the innocent gaze." We did not know previously that "the public eye and the innocent gaze" thought at all. And again, p. 137, "Life is different and superior from an inert body, in the power of consciousness. It is competent of

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