the dark valley of trouble, he says, "Arise, shine, thy light is come, and the glory of the Lord is risen on thee." To the disciple of Jesus this light indeed belongs, and much he needs it in his pilgrimage. To him it is given by promise. Το the upright there ariseth light in darkness; light is sown for the righteous, and gladness for the upright in heart. The light of knowledge, the light of confolation, the light of holiness, and the light of eternal glory, are the Christian's inheritance, in and through Christ Jesus. Without Christ all is darkness, wretchedness, and death. With Him all is Light, Life, Love, and Peace. Stephen was a good man, yet he had to pass through the valley of tribulation. Perhaps he was more highly favoured than any other man in fimilar circumstances; probably this was on account of his being the first Christian martyrthe model for all fucceeding martyrs. He looked up through the clouds of persecution that furrounded him, and faw "the glory of God and Jefus; he could not keep filent; "Behold," he cried, "I see the heavens opened, and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God." The glorious light shone in him, and through him, and around him; he looked as an angel of the Lord. دو In darkest shades, if He appear, The opening heavens around me shine My foul would leave this heavy clay, WATTS. "He heapeth up riches, and knoweth not who shall gather them." Ps. xxxix. 6. " A rich man shall hardly enter into the kingdom of heaven."-MATT. xix. 23. THE WORLDLING. Lo! where the worldling, with his gathering rake, crown." Himfelf his foe he lives, and greatly poor; THE engraving represents a man hard at work; he holds a rake in his hand, with which he gathers dust and rubbish together. The yellow shining duft is called gold; he is altogether abforbed, loft, as it were, in his employment. He kneels down to his work; this shows his devotion to the object of his affections. For this grovelling work he has forsaken all intellectual and religious pleasures; all social and domeftic happiness. He is a poor man, although he has a great deal of that hard shining dust you fee lying there; he is craving after more; he is in want, therefore he is poor; he is a miser, therefore he is miferable. The poor man is altogether beside himself. The bright lovely one bearing a starry crown is Religion, daughter of the skies; she has many attendants, who are concealed at present; fhe has come a long way to meet the poor man; fhe looks upon him with compaffion; she sees his miferable condition, she knows his great folly. Addressing him, she says: "Poor foul, why labour you for the dust which perisheth? Why do you spend your strength for nought? Hearken unto me and I will give you riches, more abundantly than earth can give, and lafting as eternity. Look up, poor man, behold this crown, beautiful and glorious; it contains the riches of a million of fuch worlds as this, and the happiness of ages upon ages; throw by your rake, and be happy." Worldling, for that is the name of the infatuated mortal, takes no notice whatever. He still continues at his task; there is no voice nor any that regard; and Religion, after waiting a long time, departs and leaves him to his folly. They that will be rich-though by means ever so fair-fall into temptation and a snare, which drown men in perdition. Youth, beware! when men neglect to employ the talent of wealth according to the will of God, he gives them up to the love of it, and they become fools, intoxicated with the alcohol of mammon. The worldling lives in the world as though he was never to quit it. Bound for eternity, he makes no preparation for the voyage-going to the Judgment, and before a holy God-and continues unrepentant and polluted. He is treasuring up, what?gold; what else? wrath against the day of wrath. The love of money, an evil disease, has taken hold upon him; the more he adds, the more he feeds the disease; like persons with the dropsy, who drink and are still dry. When Garrick, the actor, showed Dr. Johnson an estate he had lately purchased, Johnson remarked: "Ah! it is these things that make death dreadful." But the love of money makes life miferable. The Roman citizen, Apicius, after spending some 800,000 pounds, and finding he was worth only about 83,000, fearing want, ended his life by poison. But the worldling heapeth up riches, and knows not who will gather them. Cupidus, with great labour, accumulated a great estate, |