speak of them with the utmost contempt. But who that had witnessed the kind and benevolent and compassionate character of the Lord Jesus, would have supposed that He could have adopted their language of reproach towards other nations? But even this did not divert the poor woman from her object. Instead of taking offence at the epithet applied to her, she made use of it as an argument to press her suit the more effectually. She said, Truth, Lord; yet the dog's eat of the crumbs which fall from their master's table. She could not claim the privileges of the children, she therefore asked only for the benefits conferred upon dogs, or upon the meanest and most unworthy. It was as if she had said, that He was bountiful in His gifts to His own countrymen; but they despised and rejected Him. They cared not for His gifts, they cast them away in disdain. She only wanted to receive what they disregarded and refused. She desired one solitary blessing to be conferred upon a poor Gentile, since He had come to the borders of the country in which the heathen lived.

Such humble importunity as this, could not be resisted by Him who had directed His disciples to be importunate in prayer, who taught that men ought always to pray, and not to faint; who said, Ask, and it shall be given you: seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you. And indeed while He spoke to the poor

woman in the manner which has been described, He was all the time resolved to grant her request, and even to do more for her than she desired. When therefore she had confessed her unworthiness, and yet had put in her claim for the smallest of His blessings; He would no longer withhold from her that which He had determined to give, and she was so anxious to obtain. Jesus answered and said unto her, O woman, great is thy faith: be it unto thee even as thou wilt. Thus while He granted her humble petition, He highly commended the faith, which had enabled her to stand so severe a trial; and to persevere, notwithstanding the obstacles thrown in the way, until her desire was obtained. This commendation of her faith, the poor woman was doubtless not prepared to receive. She had clung to Him as her only hope for deliverance from the power of the oppressor of her soul, but she had no idea whatever that her importunity was pleasing to Him, and would be commended by Him. This unexpected commendation was therefore an assurance to her of His goodness, and that He was indeed the Person whom she had been informed He was, to whom the title by which she had addressed Him on her first application justly belonged. She had called Him the Son of David. She was now convinced that this honourable title was of right to be given to Him. Her faith in Him was

established by the manner in which He had acted towards her. It was shown that she had received a spiritual as well as a temporal benefit. She obtained her petition. And her daughter was made whole from that very hour. But she had also obtained the blessing of faith in the Lord Jesus Christ; a belief in His Divine power, which brought salvation to her own soul, and enabled her to go on her way rejoicing in His favour and protection.

It is in this point of view that we are called upon particularly to consider this event; as affording to us an assurance that faith in the Lord Jesus Christ is pleasing to Him, and must obtain its object from Him. We have greater reason to rely on the Divine power of the Lord Jesus Christ than this poor woman had. She had merely heard of Him, as a great Prophet, as the Son of David, who it had been foretold should come into the world, and whose coming had been long expected as the Deliverer of His people; and that He went about doing good, healing all manner of sickness and disease She therefore applied to Him in the character which had been described to her, in order to obtain relief from the distress under which she laboured, on account of her daughter's state, who was grievously vexed of the devil. We have heard more of the object of His coming into the world, than this poor

among the people.

woman had heard, or than any person at that time was acquainted with. We know that His acts during His public ministry were not the most important ends of His mission, but that He was delivered for our offences, and raised again for our justification that He suffered for sins, the Just for the unjust, that He might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh, but quickened by the Spirit, that therefore, being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, we have access with acceptance in His sacred presence, enjoy a sense of His favour to us in our own souls, and are enabled to rejoice in hope of the glory of God; or that when we are called out of this sinful, dying world, an entrance shall be ministered unto us abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. As our hopes for futurity are thus directed to the Lord Jesus Christ; as we are assured that He has wrought out redemption for us, and will put His believing people in possession of all its blessings hereafter; surely we have every encouragement given us to make our application to Him for that help which we need for our souls, to enable us day by day to fight the good fight of faith, and to lay hold on eternal life, whereunto we are called by His blessed gospel. The manner in which our Saviour

5 Rom. iv. 25, v. 1. 61 Pet. iii. 18. 72 Pet. i. 11. 81 Tim. vi. 12.

acted towards this poor woman is left on record for our instruction; that we may learn to continue in prayer, and watch in the same, that we may persevere with importunity in our supplications at the throne of grace, and not imagine that because we do not receive immediate relief in our spiritual distresses, our prayers are not heard, and therefore it is needless for us to ask help of God. He is the Hearer of prayer, and they who seek Him earnestly shall find Him. He will be inquired of for the blessings which He has promised to bestow, and He will be sought unto importunately and perseveringly. And it is promised that they shall not be ashamed who wait for Him. If then He should not seem at once to notice our humble and fervent supplications, we are not on that account to desist, as though it were in vain to seek the Lord. He defers His answers in order that our importunity may be increased; that it may appear that we really believe Him to be able to supply our wants, and that we have no hope of obtaining relief from any other quarter.

We learn further from this account of the woman of Canaan, that the Lord may not only seem to disregard our petitions, but that in the course of His Providence, discouraging obstacles may be thrown in the way. Our trials may be increased, instead of being diminished, while we are praying earnestly for relief. Such additional