It was to the two dear friends already mentioned, as having been selected for him by his father, Ephraim and Joseph Hirsh, that he thus communicated his new found hopes, knowledge, and peace; and strange to say, the intelligence was received with none of that anger, which usually arises in the heart of a Jew upon such an occasion; they had cordially participated in his former distress, and they sympathized in the relief he now experienced; glad perhaps, that he had found peace upon any terms, and astonished at the change which had taken place in him. Both of these young men afterwards became christians, one was a merchant, and the other a Shochet; the Rabbins, who have overburthened the precepts of the ceremonial, as well as the moral law, with superstitious observances of their own invention, have added, to the commandments concerning the clean and unclean beasts, such long and various additions, that the Shochet, or slaughterer, is a learned profession among the Jews, and requires study, and a knowledge of comparative anatomy to eat meat out of the shop of a Gentile would, of course, to the Jew, be an abomination.

Perceiving that the nature of the new covenant was spiritual, and receiving it as such, it did not at first occur to the new convert, that any open profession of his christian faith was required of him; and no doubt the formidable obstacles which opposed it, secretly weighed down the scale of conscience on the side of concealment. There is nothing more necessary in deciding upon our actions, than to pray for the single eye,' the power of divesting ourselves of all earthly

considerations, and conducting ourselves solely according to what we believe to be the will of God: not trusting to the dictates of our conscience, without first praying that it may be enlightened and guided by the Spirit of God, for in its fallen state the weights are deceitful. The misery and distress he should have to encounter, in making a public confession of christianity, caused him to draw back, and to cherish his faith in secret; and he succeeded in persuading himself that it was not required of him to renounce his fortune, and to become an outlaw shunned and abandoned by his family and friends; and besides which, that to forsake his father and mother, would be a breach of the fifth commandment, he therefore continued for some time outwardly a Jew, but worshipping the Lord Jesus in secret. It is scarcely possible for a person belonging to a professedly christian family, and surrounded by christian friends, to estimate the sacrifices, the self-denial, the renunciation of this world's hopes and prospects, required from one, even in a christian country, who, amidst worldly relations, connexions, and friends, makes an open profession of religion; to what a height then must these difficulties rise, in the case of one to whose friends, the religion he embraces is an object of hatred the most intense, and of opposition the most enduring. But, as in the case of a gentile christian, the convert, if he be a sincere one, must and will leave the enemy's camp, however painful the separation, or longing the look he casts back upon his beloved comrades there; so in the case of this christian Israelite, the love of Christ

constrained him eventually, to forsake all. Parents, family, fortune, a wife and a cherished infant; these were what he had to renounce. To obtain even Baptism he must fly from his friends, nor could he of course have taken his wife, even if she had been willing to accompany him; as he must, under such circumstances, cast himself entirely upon the charity of Gentile strangers. His resolution was very much fortified by the arguments and persuasions of his friend Ephraim, who had by this time, made up his mind to take the same step: he had been aided in his religious course by the same friend, to whom David Goldberg had been indebted for the present of the Hebrew Testament, Samson Meyersohn of Berditchef: and who had himself now come to the determination of forsaking both kindred and country for Christ's sake. David Goldberg went therefore to Berditchef, to see him, and to arrange with him the time and manner of their escape. Samson Meyersohn introduced him to the English Missionary, Mr. Moritz, who received him kindly, and seems to have suggested to both of them, that they might hereafter become missionaries to their brethren. To receive the instruction necessary for this purpose, and also for their own Baptism, and admission into the christian Church, they resolved, after some debate, to go to Berlin. They came to this resolution in consequence of their aversion to join the Greek Church.

At Berlin, as Mr. Moritz knew, there were many true christians and warm friends to the house of Israel; he therefore furnished them with letters to Mr. Elsner

in that city, and also to other christians in the various towns through which they would have to pass. David Goldberg then returned to Piatka, and declaring his intention of visiting some relations at Olanow, he, with many secret prayers, applied for a passport to that place, whither he travelled in company with Ephraim. Here as he was in the midst of celebrating, with his connexions, some bridal festivities, he beheld Samson Meyersohn, who had arrived in consequence of the agreement between them. Finding it difficult to get away from his friends, he pretended that he was going to visit a Tsaddik of the neighbourhood; neither he nor his friend appear to have scrupled to make use of these sort of expedients, which may be easily accounted for in the recent dawn of their religious experience, and their ignorance of the strictness of christian morality. His friends, thus deceived, permitted him to quit them.*

He hastened to Samson Meyersohn, and they took their departure immediately together, leaving Ephraim behind to join them with another companion at a town they had fixed upon when they came there, however, he had not arrived, and as he appears to have had in his possession the greater part of the money destined for their journey, they were thereby reduced to great

:

The Talmud is said to permit deception: even to the degree of affording countenance to those Jews, who dissemble, i. e. live in the outward profession of Christianity.--See Gisborne's Survey, &c. David Levi also speaks of this class of persons, and applies the promises of Scripture to them, in a manner which shows him to be by no means sufficiently sensible of the guilt incurred by a life of falsehood.

distress. Apprehending also the pursuit of their rela

tives, they turned aside from the town, there to await him; he what became of him does not

high road, to a small

never arrived, and appear; but David Goldberg afterwards, in speaking of him, observes, This dear young man has much to suffer for Christ's sake.'

It was the Sabbath day, and David Goldberg and his friend, who had been hitherto in the habit of distributing to others, were now thankful to accept the invitation to sit down to the dinner-table with some other Israelites, dependant on their charity.* Then, among their brethren for the last time, they celebrated this festival, which, among the Jews is one of great rejoicing: they compare the Sabbath to a royal Bride; in the Hymn which is part of the evening† service, they say, 'Come, my beloved, to meet the Bride; the presence of the Sabbath let us receive. Come, let us go to meet the Sabbath; for it is the fountain of blessing: in the beginning of old was it appointed.' &c.

On the next morning, to raise money for their journey, they sold every thing they had brought with them which they could spare, including their Sabbath dresses, for the Jews always put on their gayest and best attire on this day. It is pleasing and curious to see, as we often may, on many occasions in the common habits of every-day life, the traditional customs of remote antiquity. The country girl who puts on her

* Nehemiah viii. 10-12.

The Sabbath commences with the Jews, as is well known, on the previous evening.