up, you will be likely, with Isaiah, to feel your uncleanness, and, confessing it, to obtain its being taken away. Oh, that we might all seek to be reconciled unto God, whilst it is yet the fire which purifies, not that which consumes, which burns upon the altar. Whilst seraphim are yet ministering spirits, whilst we have not yet armed against ourselves the whole company of unfallen angels, let us turn unto the Lord with full purpose of heart. There is no reason why any amongst us should treasure up wrath against the day of wrath. Though there be such a thing as judicial blindness-for it was of this, that, according to our text, Esaias spake when he had seen the wondrous vision-" He hath blinded their eyes, and hardened their heart; that they should not see with their eyes, and understand with their heart, and be converted, and I should heal them"-O fearful fate, when in just judgment for protracted impenitence, God gives men up, and withdraws from them his Spirit-still we have no cause to believe this of any of you. The throne of Judgment is not yet ascended: the coal in the seraph's hand is that which purges away our dross: Oh, God is indeed a consuming fire; but let us fall before the cross of his Son, "the Lamb of God which taketh away the sin of the world," and we shall only be refined, "made meet for the inheritance of the saints in light."

LECTURE X.

St. John the Baptist.

NUMB. XI. 29.

"And Moses said unto him, Enviest thou for my sake? would God that all the Lord's people were prophets, and that the Lord would put his spirit upon them !”

WHEN the great lawgiver Moses found the management of the whole congregation of Israel a burden heavier than he could bear, he was directed by God to select seventy elders of the people, and to bring them up with him to the Tabernacle; God declaring that He would take of the Spirit which was upon Moses, and put it on those elders, that they might divide with him the charge of public affairs. Seventy were accordingly selected; but two of them remained, probably through some accident, in the camp, whilst the others set themselves round about the Tabernacle. The Spirit of the Lord came down according to promise; but it fell, not only on the sixty and eight who were at the Tabernacle, but also on Eldad and Medad, the two who had remained in the camp, so that all the seventy simultaneously prophesied.

It seems to have been counted a very surprising thing that men should prophesy in the camp; it would have been

nothing had Eldad and Medad prophesied in the Tabernacle; but such occurrences was not looked for elsewhere; and therefore we read, "There ran a young man, and told Moses, and said, Eldad and Medad do prophesy in the camp." On hearing this, Joshua, the son of Nun, the servant of Moses, immediately exclaimed, "My lord Moses, forbid them." And what feeling was foremost in Joshua's mind, that he was so prompt in desiring that Prophets might be forbidden to prophesy? Why, he was jealous for the honour of Moses, whom he counted supreme in the camp, whatever he might be in the Tabernacle. That men should prophesy in the camp, seemed therefore to Joshua an invasion of the province of Moses. Hence the sudden exclamation of Joshua-it was the exclamation of jealousy. That we do not wrong him in putting this interpretation on his words, is evident from the noble answer of Moses, an answer which at the same time exhibited the magnanimity of the lawgiver, and exposed the feelings which had dictated the speech of his servant. You have the answer in our text, " And Moses said unto him, Enviest thou for my sake? would God that all the Lord's people were Prophets, and that the Lord would put his Spirit upon them." Moses had no share in the narrow feeling which Joshua had displayed, the feeling of envy and jealousy; he had no wish to engross to himself the distinctions of Heaven, but, on the contrary, would have greatly rejoiced, had all the congregation been richly endowed from above, though he himself might then have ceased to be conspicuous in Israel. And we consider that the lawgiver, when thus firmly reproving Joshua for envying for his sake, was worthy of being intensely ad

mired, and earnestly imitated; for that in thus showing himself above all littleness of mind, content to be nothing, so that God might be magnified, and his cause advanced, he reached a point of moral heroism, ay, loftier than that at which he had stood, when, in the exercise of superhuman power, he bade darkness cover the land of the Egyptian, or the waters of the Red Sea divide before Israel.

Now we are not about to expatiate at any length on the magnanimity which was thus displayed by Moses. We have adduced the instance in order to show you how direct a parallel may be found in the history of the forerunner of our Lord, John the Baptist, to whose commemoration the Church dedicates this day. So soon as our Saviour had entered on his ministry, the great office of John was virtually at an end. It appears however that he still continued to baptize, and thus to prepare men for the disclosures of that fuller Revelation with which Christ was charged. In this way, the ministry of our Lord, and that of his forerunner, were, for a while, discharged together, though, inasmuch as Christ worked miracles, and John did not, there were quickly, as might have been expected, more attendants on the preaching of the Redeemer, than on that of the Baptist. This appears to have excited evil feelings in some of John's disciples, who, like Joshua, jealous for the honour of their master, thought that Jesus, by baptizing, entrenched on his province, and unwarrantably drew away his followers. You see how soon the spirit of partisanship showed itself in the Christian Church. No marvel if men afterwards said, "I am of Paul, and I of Apollos;" no marvel if, in later times, men

have lost sight of the perpetual ministry of the great High Priest, in their zeal to exalt some favourite pastor; since even the success of our Lord was viewed with jealousy by the disciples of John.

You read, "They came unto John, and said unto him, Rabbi, He that was with thee beyond Jordan, to whom thou barest witness, behold, the same baptizeth, and all men come to Him." There is an implied censure upon John, as though, by bearing witness in favour of Jesus, he had unnecessarily exposed himself to the being thought less of and forsaken. But the Baptist himself had no share in these unholy and mean feelings. He immediately answered and said, "A man can receive nothing except it be given him from Heaven." His commission had proceeded from God: its nature, extent, and duration, had been settled by Divine appointment; was it then for him to repine that nothing higher had been assigned? was it not rather for him to be thankful that so much had been vouchsafed? And however galling it might be to his followers thus to see their master eclipsed, to John himself it was matter of great gladness, that He, whom he had heralded, was drawing all men towards Him. His heart was in his office; and nothing could rejoice him more than to see that not in vain had he come as "the voice of one crying in the wilderness;" but that public attention had been excited, and was now fastening itself where he wished it to centre. "He that hath the bride," he goes on to say, "is the bridegroom." It was not for me to draw round me a Church: I am not He who is to bring sinners into a close and endearing relationship to Himself, giving Himself for them, and making them one, through mystic union