Then think what it was. The brother fells the brother to the earth. Sad, sad type of much that has been since and is now in the world's history. Dark, dark page, thus beginning, and not yet full ! Profound wonder! Inexplicable mystery! A brother gives his brother a victim to the great last enemy, and the first victim!

7. There is further the first direct punishment for sin, after that sin was introduced into the world.

It was a fearful doom pronounced upon the first man, when it was said to him, "Cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life" (Gen. iii. 17); but heavier far is the doom pronounced upon the only remaining young man. Think of this. There is but one young man in the world, and that one bears with him this curse from the Almighty: "Thou art cursed from the earth; .... when thou tillest the ground, it shall not henceforth yield unto thee her strength; a fugitive and a vagabond shalt thou be in the earth." (Gen. iv. 11, 12.) Well might he exclaim, "My punishment is greater than I can bear" (verse 13). It is observable that the curse involved two forms of suffering to the young man. Already a curse rested upon the ground; but now for him and for him alone it is cursed again. Every portion of land he attempted to cultivate would share the curse as soon as his implement rested upon it. The curse accompanied him. It was where he was, and only there, an ever present memorial of his crime. This was one part of his punishment. His exclamation proves that he could feel; hence every where he carried with him the remembrance of his wickedness. What mental torture is involved in this. What a protraction and repetition of unmitigated misery. It would be easy to think that a guard was set about his life in order that he might feel the full burden of his punishment. What a solemn impression is produced by this scene of God's abhorrence of sin. It may be remarked in passing, that in this first murder a very decisive intimation is given against punishing murder by murder.

From this general view of the circumstances in which these young men come before us, turn to a more definite view of the young men themselves. The point from which I ask you to think of them is the altar of sacrifice.

We have already said that there is to be seen the first form of religious service. Mark now the contrast in the service they rendered. It will be seen from the narrative that the offering brought by each was according to the kind of toil in which he was constantly engaged. But this is not all nor the principal difference between their offerings. Abel's offering was at once an offering and a sacrifice, whereas Cain's was only an offering. In this peculiarity lies the essence of the distinction between them. The idea which is embodied in the sacrifice is much more spiritual than that in the simple offering.

There can be no doubt that the general bearing of the promise, "The seed of the woman shall bruise the serpent's head," was appreciated by Adam and Eve. There can also be no doubt that Adam understood that the sacrifice of certain animals should typically represent the means by which the fulness of the curse was to be averted. In this notion are involved all the leading points of what we call evangelical truth. It affirmed the justice of that moral relationship which existed between God and man. It acknowledged and confessed the equity of the penalty pronounced against sin. It affirmed the propriety of the law, "Without shedding of blood there can be no remission of sin." I do not say that the idea was realized by those first worshippers, but I say the sacrifice was homage done to the principle. The apostle tells us (Heb. xi. 4) "By faith Abel offered a more excellent sacrifice than Cain." And John

(1 Epistle iii. 12) tells us that "Cain slew Abel because his own works were evil and his brother's righteous." The only explanation of these statements is, that Abel brought the offering of a lamb, not simply because he was a shepherd, but because his heart confessed the truth which the sacrifice implied. He bowed in homage to the justice of Jehovah in inflicting the punishment for sin, and to his sovereignty in prescribing the means by which the punishment might be averted.

From this view of his conduct it follows that Cain's offering did no more than acknowledge the general relation between him and God, as the created and the creator, whilst it was an explicit rejection of the truth which the sacrifice of Abel involved and implied.

We can now account for the different effects following the two offerings. "The Lord had respect unto Abel and to his offering. But unto Cain and his offering he had not respect." (Gen. iv. 4, 5.)

The merely outward observer would not, perhaps, have appreciated the essential difference in the offerings. It consisted chiefly in the feelings which dictated the outward difference. Had they sympathized in heart, their offerings, there is every reason to think, would, in this instance, have been exactly similar. But they did not thus sympathize; and He who readeth the heart accepted the sacrifice but rejected the offering. It matters not how the approval and disapproval were expressed, it was evident to the worshippers, as the subsequent events fully prove, and as the apostle has affirmed, when he says, "Abel obtained witness that he was righteous." (Heb. xi. 4.)

The result in the history of the two worshippers was, the one became a martyr to the truth, the other his murderer. The one was transferred suddenly to the kingdom of light and blessedness, the first result of the great promise and of the great atonement. The other, as the natural result of his iniquity, became an outcast and a vagabond upon the face of the earth. How wide the difference! A difference resulting simply from receiving or rejecting the doctrine of the atonement.

From this review of the history of Cain and Abel, I deduce the following inferences. Inferences which, I think, deserve to be especially remembered by every young man by whom this page may be read.

First, Ever since sin has been in the world, the only way of access to God has been by an atonement. I say 'ever since," because some allow themselves in the supposition, that the necessity for an atonement was not always inculcated. It is an interesting fact, that Paul begins his illustrations of the power of faith by quoting this case of Abel. Second, That only as the heart is fully surrendered to the truth involved in the doctrine of an atonement can we offer acceptable worship to God. Third, If this doctrine be rejected, the most powerful restraint from the commission of sin is removed.

Conduct may be sinful, though we should deny there is any such thing as sin. The doctrine of atonement involves the idea of individual responsibility, of our actual sinfulness, of the rectitude of the divine government, and of God's willingness to forgive iniquity and to blot out transgression. If this doctrine be rejected, then our view of every moral obligation is modified, the consciousness, of evil is weakened, the susceptibility to religious influence is lessened, and, as an inevitable consequence from the whole, our notion of morals in general will have little reference to that pure, spotless holiness of God, which will hereafter be the test and criterion to which all will have to submit who may appear at his tribunal seeking to be accepted of Him. May the heart of every one of my readers be fully and entirely surrendered to the all important truth, "The blood of Jesus Christ cleanseth from all sin."

Liverpool.

J. STENT.

AFFECTION BAFFLED.

I have a great liking to a village grave-yard, and seldom do I visit a country village but one of my first walks is to the grave-yard. The sight leads one's thoughts back to the past, and reflection is profitable; and from the past one looks forward to the future, when the dead, small and great, shall stand before God, and who can meditate upon that period without benefit? If we reflect upon the darkness of the past, we bless God for the light of the glorious gospel which we now enjoy; and if we think of the decisions of the future, we heartily pray to be found in Christ, and to stand accepted before God's throne. As we walk over the dust of the dead, we think of what they may have been, and of what we ourselves shall soon be. They lie in silence, and are most of them forgotten; we shall also soon be committed to our mother earth, and, except by a few tenderly attached friends, be remembered no more below.

A short time ago I went to preach in the village of Thurleigh, in Bedfordshire, and, as usual, soon strolled into the church-yard: nothing particular struck my mind at first, but I felt, as I often do in such places, a seriousness spread over my spirit. I walked among the long, rank grass, and read an inscription here and there; at length I was struck with the number of stones bearing the same family name. Each family seemed to have claimed a separate piece, and each appeared determined to perpetuate its name. But as I went toward one corner of the yard, I saw a number of stones, but not one word was legible on any of them; I tried, but could not decipher a word, time had erased the whole. Well, thought I, if affection placed these stones here, and the design was to perpetuate the names and good deeds of the departed, affection is completely baffled, for wind and weather has blotted out all. A durable material had been chosen, the letters had been deeply cut, the paint, or perhaps the gilt, had been laid on, but all was of no avail, the whole inscription was erased. Tradition may have handed down a few meagre particulars to a remaining friend or relative; but, with this exception, the name was no more remembered in the village. The family had died out, or had emigrated to some other place, or were sunk into poverty.

Well, thought I, here is a lesson-book, and here are lessons to be learned. Let us be kind and attentive to our relatives while we have them; many, it is to be feared, who fail to perform their duty to their friends while they live, try to make up for this neglect by erecting a grave-stone for them when they are dead. The good that we do to the living will be remembered; but such acts for the dead will pass into oblivion. Let kindness carve our names on the hearts of the living, and they will carry the inscription beyond the bounds of this earth and the limits of time. Acts of kindness shewn to God's saints are recorded in heaven, and the record will endure through eternal ages. We are always engaged in erecting monuments, either to our honour or disgrace. Every poor christian that you relieve, every sorrowful soul that you comfort, every widow whose wants you supply, every orphan child whose tears you dry, will become a living monument, having inscribed upon it your good deeds, and there they will be read for ever. You need not keep a record of them, such works will follow you, and will be mentioned to your honour before assembled worlds by the Judge of all (Matt. xxv. 34, 40). Let every one remember, that he is raising his own monument, and is writing his own epitaph, and that both will be preserved to all eternity. Whatever we write by our conduct is permanent, nothing can erase a letter but the

blood of Christ, and that only erases the bad from those to whom it is applied. What appears transient to us is permanent before God; the volumes written in time will be read in eternity; the works performed in this world will be remembered in the next.

Brethren, let us not trouble about a grave-stone, or be anxious to have our names engraved on perishable materials, in characters that may be erased; but let it be our concern to have our names written in heaven. If written in the Lamb's book of life, if registered by the finger of God as born from above, the entry will remain for ever. There are no erasures there. No destructive elements, no mischievous beings, can ever affect them there; they are more durable than the deepest sculpture in the most lasting material; more durable than if written with an iron pen in lead, in the rock for ever. Let us, then, make our calling and our election sure. Let us never be satisfied until we obtain satisfactory evidence that our names are written on the heart of Jesus, and sculptured on his hands. And if we carry about with us this assurance, we may smile upon the attempts of our fues to mar our fair fame, or cast dishonour on our names; for we know that our God will bring us forth to the light, and we shall behold his righteousness. Let us imitate the conduct of Him who, though rich by nature, honourable by descent, spotless in character, and whose life was crowded with deeds of mercy and of might, lay in a borrowed grave, and never had a tomb-stone. But though he had no sculptured stone to mark the place of his burial, he had what was infinitely better he had his name engraved on myriads of human hearts, his praises sounded by all the hosts of angelic tongues, and the highest seat in glory awarded him by his righteous and delighted Father. Like him let us go about doing good. Like him let us minister to the poor, the sick, and the broken-hearted. Like him let us be known as the poor man's friend, the brother born for adversity. Like him let us spend our health, our strength, our wealth, and every talent, to glorify God and do sinners good. Then, though persecuted by bitter foes, though misrepresented by the selfish throng, though cast out as unfit to live, we may cheerfully say with Job, "My witness is in heaven, and my record is on high."

Let us, then, make it our daily care to do what is worth recording, and leave the recording of it to others. Let us aim to have a name in God's book, a name among God's saints, and a name in God's world, for aiming at his glory, walking by his word, and endeavouring to do the greatest amount of good to his creatures. In our grave-yards we often read what is silly, what is erroneous, and what is false; but if we live for God's glory and the good of our fellow-men, if we live with eternity before us and the love of Christ in our hearts, if we live as those that must give an account and whose desire is "to do it with joy and not with grief," we shall have an inscription that is wise, correct, and truthful; an inscription which angels will admire and saints read with pleasure; an inscription on which the beams of the Sun of Righteousness will ever rest, one letter of which eternity will never obliterate, and which will be placed before God's throne for ever. This will gratify our kindest friends, satisfy our largest desires, and please the benevolent heart of our beneficent Redeemer. Saviour, let my heart be thy monument, deeply engrave on it thy love; let my life reflect the glory of thy grace, and be a close copy of thine own; let my death bring honour to thy cause, and my endless employment be praising thy name! Blessed be God for a good hope through grace, and the prospect of a glorious immortality.

New-Park-Street, London.

JAMES SMITH.

Biblical.