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"She wondered how he could eat, or drink, or sleep in quiet." Madam," said he, "my chains do not terrify me, or break my sleep; on the contrary, I glory and take delight therein, esteeming them at an higher rate than chains and rings of gold, or jewels of any price whatever. The rattling of my chains is like the effect of an instrument of music in my ears; not that such an effect comes merely from my chains, but it is because I am bound therewith for maintaining the truth of the Gospel."

Chap. xxviii, ver. 30.—And Paul dwelt two whole years in his own hired house, and received all that came in unto him.

Mr. Newton was in the habit of receiving his religious friends at an early breakfast; when many used to be gratified by his pious and instructive conversation, and esteemed it a privilege to unite with him in family devotions. On one of those happy occasions, a friend introduced to him a young minister from the country, who had expressed a desire to see him. "Ah!" said Mr. Newton, "I was a wild beast once, on the coast of Africa, and the Lord tamed me; and there are many people now who have a curiosity to see me !"

ROMANS.

Chap. i, ver. 21.-Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God.

A gentleman, who seemed strongly impressed with the opinion, that in order to exalt revelation, it is necessary to maintain that there is no such thing at all as natural religion, visiting a celebrated public seminary in Edinburgh, on occasion of some mention of the ancient philosophers in a passage which the pupils were then reading, asked a blind boy the following questions: "What did their philosophy do for them?" The boy returned no answer. "Did it," resumed

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the examiner, "lead them to any knowledge of religion?" "They had no RIGHT knowledge of God." "But could they be said," rejoined the visitor in a marked tone of disapprobation, "to have any knowledge of God at all?" After a moment's thought, the child answered, "Yes." That," observed the gentleman to the superintendants, "is by no means a right answer. Upon which the pupil was asked whether he had any reason for making this answer, to which he replied, "Yes." "What is it?" apostle Paul, in the first of the Romans, says, that when THEY KNEW GOD," laying an emphasis on these words, "they glorified him not as God."

"The

Chap. i, ver. 31.-Without understanding, covenant-breakers, without natural affection, implacable, unmerciful.

Mr. Ellis, in his Missionary Tour, relates the following shocking instance of infanticide. A man and his wife, tenants of Mr. Young, who has for many years held, under the king, the small district of Kukuwaw, situated on the center of Waiakea bay, resided not far from Maaro's house. They had one child, a fine little boy. A quarrel arose between them on one occasion respecting this child. The wife refusing to accede to the wishes of the husband, he, in revenge, caught up the child by the head and the feet, broke its back across his knee, and then threw it down in expiring agonies before her. Struck with

the atrocity of the act, Mr. Young seized the man, led him before the king Tamehameha, who was then at Waiakea, and requested that he might be punished. The king enquired, " To whom did the child he has murdered belong?" Mr. Young answered, that it was his own son. "Then," said the king, "neither you nor I have any right to interfere; I cannot say any thing to him."

Chap. ii, ver. 23, 24.-Thou that makest thy boast of the law, through breaking the law dishonorest thou God? For the name

of God is blasphemed among the Gentiles through you, as it is written.

Mr. Brainard informs us, that when among the American Indians at one place, where there was a great number, he halted, and offered to instruct them in the truth of Christianity. "Why," said one of them, "should you desire the Indians to become Christians, seeing the Christians are so much worse than the Indians? The Christians lie, steal, and drink, worse than the Indians. They first taught the Indians to be drunk. They steal to that degree, that their rulers are obliged to hang them for it; and that is not enough to deter others from the practice. But none of the Indians were ever hanged for stealing;` and yet they do not steal half so much. We will not consent, therefore, to become Christians, lest we should be as bad as they. We will live as our fathers lived, and go where our fathers are when we die." Notwithstanding Mr. B. did all he could to explain to them that these were not Christians in heart, and that he did not want them to become such as these, he could not prevail, but left them, mortified at the thought, that the wickedness of some called Christians should engender such prejudices,

Chap. iii, ver. 14.-Whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness.

A minister travelling in a stage coach, had the mortification of being shut up for the night with a naval officer who was much addicted to swearing. At length the conversation turned on the topic of the day, the Boulogne Flotilla; when the officer observed, "If one of our ships meet with them, she will send them all to the devil." "There is a great deal of propriety, sir," said the minister, "in your observation; for as it is probable there are many profane swearers on board the French ships, should these men die in their sins, they will certainly go to the

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devil." He looked confounded, blushed, but swore no more, and in the morning took a respectful leave.

Chap. iii, ver. 25.-Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God.

Cowper, the poet, speaking of his religious experience, says, "But the happy period which was to shake off my fetters, and afford me a clear opening of the free mercy of God in Christ Jesus, was now arrived. I flung myself into a chair near the window, and seeing a Bible there, ventured once more to The first apply to it for comfort and instruction. verse I saw, was the 25th of the 3d of Romans.Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God.' Immediately I received strength to believe, and the full beams of the Sun of Righteousness shone upon me. I saw the sufficiency of the atonement he had made, my pardon sealed in his blood, and all the fulness and completeness of his justification. In a moment I believed, and received the Gospel. Whatever my friend Madan had said to me so long before, revived in all its clearness, with demonstration of the Spirit, and with power."

Chap. iv, ver. 5.—But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteous

ness.

Mr. Samuel Walker of Truro, was for some time a preacher, before he experienced the power of godliness on his own heart. He was brought to right views in the following manner:-About a year after, he came to Truro, being in company with some friends, the subject of whose conversation turned

upon the nature of justifying and saving faith, he, as he freely owned afterwards, became sensible that he was totally unacquainted with that faith which had been the topic of discourse; and also convinced, that he was destitute of something, which was of the greatest importance to his own, as well as the salvation of the people committed to his charge. He said nothing at that time of the concern he was brought under, but was ever ready afterwards, as opportunity offered, to enter upon the subject. He now began to discover, that he had hitherto been ignorant of the gospel salvation, inattentive to the spiritual state of his own, and the souls of others, and governed in all his conduct, not by the only Christian motives of love to God and man, but purely by such as were sensual and selfish; he found that he was a slave to the desire of man's esteem; and in short, as he himself expressed it, had been all wrong both within and without. Having, by prayer and study of the Scriptures, under the divine blessing, obtained just views of divine truth, and experiencing the power of religion on his own mind, he became a distinguished and successful preacher of the Gospel, whose praise is in all the churches.

Chap. v, ver. 1.-Therefore, being justified by faith, we have peace with God, through our Lord Jesus Christ.

A minister of the Gospel was once preaching in a public hospital. There was an aged woman present; who, for several weeks, had been aroused to attend to the concerns of her soul; and was now in a state of wretchedness, approaching to despair. When she heard the word of God from the lips of his servant, she trembled like a criminal in the hands of the executioner. She was an object of pity to all who knew her. Formerly she had entertained hope of acceptance with God; but she had departed from her comforter, and now she was the prey of a guilty conscience. A short time after this, the same minister

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