will surely do you good, and do you good even by your present trials and troubles. Hope in God; for he has an infinite variety of blessings to bestow. He has all you need, and has it for you. He has all you ever will want, and he will supply all your need. He has all you can consistently desire, and he will fulfil the desire of them that fear him; he also will hear their cry, and will save them. Hope in God; for he has said to the coming sinner, "I will in no wise cast out." To the tried saint, "Cast thy burden on the Lord, and he shall sustain thee." To every believer, "My grace is sufficient for thee." To the weary, way-worn pilgrim to the celestial country, Thy shoes shall be iron and brass, and as thy days so shall thy strength be." To each Christian, "I will never leave thee, I will never, no never, forsake thee." Hope thou in God; for he will do as he has said; yea, he will do exceeding abundantly above all we can ask or think. He will make all his goodness pass before us, and show us great and mighty things which we know not.

Hope in God; for you may; his invitations warrant you. You ought; for his commands lay you under obligation. You

should; for his promises are exceedingly great and very precious. Hope, then, in God;-not in circumstances, however favourable; not in creatures, however kind; not in events, however propitious; not in connexions, however encouraging; not in evidences, however bright; not in prospects, however blooming. Hope in God, when you read his word, when you attend his ordinances, when you face his foes, when you circulate his truth, when he hides his face, when your comforts wither, when your gourds die, when friends forsake you, when foes slander you, when health declines, when poverty approaches, when storms gather, when Satan assaults, and when death stares you in the face. Hope, and be not dismayed. Let hope be the helmet that guards your head; the anchor that steadies your vessel; and the friend that holds up your head when the water-floods overflow you. In a word, at all times, in all places, under all circumstances, hope thou in God, for thou shalt yet praise him, who is the health of thy countenance and thy God.

PURITY.

"Keep thyself pure."-1 Tim. v. 22

HAT cleanliness is to the body, holiness is to the soul; essential to its health, happiness, and beauty. But many who have clean bodies have very filthy souls. They pay attention to the outward man, but altogether neglect the hidden man of the heart. Yet nothing impure can enter heaven,-nothing unholy can enjoy the gracious or glorious presence of God. The Most High cannot hold fellowship with impurity or sin: where iniquity is indulged, communion with God is effectually prevented. Therefore he says, "Wash ye, make ye clean." "Be ye

clean that bear the vessels of the Lord." Purity flows from grace. It is the effect of a living faith in Christ. It evidences the indwelling and work of the Holy Spirit of God. Where the Spirit dwells, sin is hated; the defilement of sin causes loathing, mourning, and fervent prayer. Those who are much with God contract a natural dislike to sin, a love to holiness,

and a growing desire for perfection. But "if we say that we have fellowship with God, and walk in darkness, we lie and do not the truth." Light has no fellowship with darkness, but chases it away; God has no fellowship with sin, but condemns it in his law, crushes it by his Spirit, and cleanses it away by his gospel, brought home with power. He purifies the heart by faith. He sanctifies us through his truth. He washes us in the laver of his word, and effectually cleanses us by the power of the Holy Spirit. Blessed Lord, carry on the purifying process in our hearts! Set our whole hearts against sin, make it the abhorrence of our souls. Fill us with the deepest hatred to it, and make us groan whenever we in any measure indulge in it. Oh, to find sin the plague of our lives, the loathing of our souls, and holiness our element and delight!

But Paul was writing to a holy man. To one who was washed, sanctified, and justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God. To one who was serving the Lord with a pure conscience. To his dearly beloved son. To a minister of the gospel of Christ. To one who had received both the grace

and gifts of the Holy Spirit. To one eminent alike in station, usefulness, and grace. Still to him he says, "Keep thyself pure." The purest vessels may be soiled. The cleanest garments will contract defilement. The holiest may be overcome by temptation. The best need caution, counsel, and exhortation. None of

us are safe any longer than God keeps us, and we have no right to expect that God will keep us but in the exercise of watchfulness, prayer, and faith. The best of men have fallen, and the best may fall. Those whom we least expected have, in an evil hour, given way to temptation; and what has been may be again. There is now very much impurity in the church. Few think that there is such a depth of defilement as there is. The curtain is now and then partially drawn on one side, and we are astonished at what the children of Israel do in the dark. Our young men need the exhortation of the apostle especially, "Keep thyself pure;" but they are not the only parties on whom it should be enforced.

"Keep thyself pure" from mental uncleanness. Some seem to revel in mental debauchery and filthiness. Their speech