12. Carried out.-The dead were generally buried without the walls of their cities. It was usual for the friends to attend in great numbers on such occasions. (Matt. ix. 23-25. John xi. 19.)

14. The bier.-The stand on which the body was carried. The corpse was wrapped up in grave-clothes, and buried without a coffin.

16. A fear.-An awe or dread from the presence of One who had so plainly proved that he was more than man.

Glorified.-Gave glory to God.

A great prophet.—Some one whom they felt to have come from God, and looked upon with some hesitation as to whether he were not the promised Messiah.

SUMMARY.

On entering Nain, our Lord meets a funeral procession; a young man was about to be buried who was the only son of a poor widow; he stops the procession, and, in the presence of them all, raises the dead to life.

LESSONS.

I. The young may die as well as the old. V. 12-14. (2 Kings iv. 18-20.)

II. One trouble often comes upon another, till the afflicted are brought to the extreme of misery. V. 12. (Ps. xlii. 7.)

III. Christ can feel for all our sorrows. V. 13. (Is. lxiii. 9.)

IV. One word from the Saviour can give life either to the body or the soul. V. 14, 15. (John v. 21.)

V. Let us learn from Christ to do what we can to comfort the sorrowing. V. 15. (James i. 27.)

VI. What we see of the power and goodness of God, should lead us to fear and praise him. V. 16. (Ps. cv. 1-5.)

FOURTEENTH SUNDAY AFTER TRINITY.

JOHN THE BAPTIST'S MISSION.

MATT. xi. 2-15.

(See also Luke vii. 18-30.)

2. In prison.-He was cast into prison by Herod. (See ch. xiv. 3, 4.)

3. He that should come.-The expected Messiah. (Ch. xxi. 9.) There seems some reason to suppose that John was growing impatient, having been kept some time in prison, and finding that Jesus did nothing to release him, nor even avowed himself to be the Messiah so clearly as he expected that he would. Others suppose that this message was only sent to satisfy the minds of his disciples.

5. The blind.-In fulfilment of such prophecies as Is. xxxv. lxi. 1. &c.

5,6. 7. Into the wilderness.-There crowds came to hear John. (ch. iii. 1-6. Our Lord puts it to them that they did not surely go for nothing-merely to watch the wind blowing among the reeds -or to satisfy their curiosity with some splendid spectacle-(they would go to a far different place to see such); but their confessed purpose was to listen to a prophet from God.

9. More than a prophet.-As he was the immediate forerunner of the Messiah, and himself the subject of prophecy.

10. Written.-(Mal. iii. 1.)

11. In the kingdom of heaven.-Under the new dispensation, called "the kingdom of heaven," by John himself (ch. iii. 2.,) and our Lord, (ch. iv. 17.) The least favoured under that dispensation would possess greater privileges and clearer knowledge than John.

12. From the days.-From the time of his public preaching, the minds of many have been stirred up with an earnest desire to enter into that kingdom, so that it is like a besieged city into which numbers are eagerly pressing.

13. Prophesied.-The law and the prophets; that is, the Old Testament (Luke xvi. 29.) was the only revelation given to men. 14. Elias-or Elijah.-Spoken of by Malachi iv. 5, 6. (Compare Luke i. 17.)

SUMMARY.

Two disciples are sent by John the Baptist from his prison to enquire whether Jesus really is the Messiah. Our Lord answers them by simply bidding them report to their master the miracles he was then performing. He afterwards speaks to the people about John reminding them of how great a prophet they had believed him to be, and assuring them that he was indeed the Elijah of whom Malachi spoke.

LESSONS.

I. The faith and patience of the strongest saint may sometimes fail under heavy and continued trials. V. 2. (1 Sam. xxvii. 1.)

II. The miracles of Christ were a full proof of his Messiahship. V. 4. (John iii. 2.)

III. Happy those who are kept stedfast in the faith! V. 6. (Rev. iii. 8-10.)

IV. It is not a trifling matter, or merely to gratify curiosity, that we go to hear God's word. V. 7, 8. (Acts x. 33.)

V. Let us then take heed how we hear. V. 9. (Luke viii. 18. James i. 21-25.)

VI. How great are the privileges we now enjoy! V. 11, 13, 14. (Heb. i. 1, 2.)

VII. If we would be real members of Christ's kingdom, we must exert ourselves, and be truly in earnest about it. V. 12. (Heb. vi. 11, 12. 2 Peter iii. 14.)

FIFTEENTH SUNDAY AFTER TRINITY.

WARNING AND INVITATION.

MATT. xi. 16-30.

(See also Luke vii. 29-35.)

16. Their fellows.-Companions, or playfellows. These were uuwilling to join them in any of their sports, whatever kind of game they proposed; and just so the Jews would not listen to God, whatever kind of messenger he sent.

18. Neither eating nor drinking.—He was an austere man, living in the wilderness; and the tone of his preaching was stern and severe. (See Matt. iii. 1—12.)

19. Eating and drinking.—Associating familiarly with them, and coming among them in a friendly and social manner: but they found fault with him likewise.

Wisdom.-The wisdom of God, or God himself. (Compare Prov. viii.) Her children.-They who are truly wise, who would see and approve the wisdom of God in both these cases. The word "justified,' means either "made righteous," or "shown to be righteous;" according as it is applied to those who were before unrighteous, or righteous. Thus a sinner is said to be justified, or made righteous, by faith in Christ, when his sins are pardoned for his sake; (Rom. iii. 20-28.) and he is again said to be justified in the other sense, or proved to be righteous, when he shows by his holy life that this change has really taken place. (James ii. 21-24.) In this latter sense God is said to be justified; as here, so in Ps. li. 4. (Compare also, Deut. xxv. 1. Jer. iii. 11. Ex. xxiii. 7. Job ix. 20. Luke xvi. 15. Rom. ii. 13. &c.)

21. Chorazin.-This and Bethsaida were cities on the coast of the sea of Galilee, where our Lord often resorted. So completely has this woe been fulfilled, that their sites cannot now be traced. Tyre and Sidon were places noted for their trade on the Mediterranean Sea, inhabited by the Phenicians; but they had been destroyed before our Lord's time, according to the prophecies in Is. xxiii. Jer. xxv. 22. Ezek. xxvi. xxviii.

23. Sodom. (See the account, Gen. xix.)

24. More tolerable.-Though they "suffer the vengeance of eter

4

nal fire," (Jude 7.) yet their punishment shall be lighter than that of

those who have had greater privileges, and neglected them.

25. Because thou hast hid.—It does not mean (which the words

seem literally to imply) that our Lord thanked the Father for hiding these things from the wise; but that, while hid from the wise, they were revealed unto babes. (Compare Rom. vi. 17.)

Babes.-The ignorant and simple-minded, as contrasted with those who were proud of their wisdom.

28. Heavy laden.-Either with the burden of sin, or the bondage of the law. (See Luke xi. 46. Acts xv. 10—28.)

29. My yoke. My service. The yoke was a badge of servitude. (1 Tim. vi. 1.)

SUMMARY.

Our Lord continues to reprove the Jews for their unbelief, and especially those who had enjoyed most opportunities of hearing him, and seeing his miracles. He then rejoices at the thought of the Gospel being made known to the meek, and invites all the heavyladen to come to him.

LESSONS.

I. Those who reject the Gospel, do so without any reason, and simply from the unwillingness of their own minds to receive its truths. V. 16-19. John v. 40.)

II. All who are taught of God will learn and admire his ways. V. 19. (Hosea xiv. 9.)

III. The final condemnation of the wicked will be great in proportion to the advantages they have enjoyed. V. 20-24. (Luke xii. 47.) IV. While the proud are justly left in their blindness, the simple and humble-minded have truth made known to them. V. 25, 26. (Ps. xxv. 9.)

V. All who feel their burdens, are freely welcome to come to Christ. V. 28. (Is. xxxii. 2.)

VI. If we would gain rest to our souls in Christ, we must enter his service, and follow his steps. V. 29. (Mark viii. 34.)

VII. There is nothing gloomy and burdensome in true religion. V. 30. (Prov. iii, 17. 1 John v. 3.)

ILLUSTRATIONS OF SCRIPTURE.

WASHING THE FEET..

As in former times, sandals were very often the only covering on the feet, it will easily be supposed that travellers would feel very

uncomfortable from mud and dust, after walking any distance; so it was always the custom, when a guest arrived, that the servants should take off his sandals, and wash his feet. (Gen. xviii. 4; xix. 2; xxiv. 32; Luke vii. 44.) This was in general done by the lowest servants; it was a mark of great humility on the part of the master of a family if he did it himself, as well as a great honour to the person whose feet he washed. This may explain what John the Baptist said. (Luke iii. 16.) It shows us still more the love of Christ to his disciples: he rose from supper, laid aside his upper garment, tied a towel round him, and pouring water into a basin, washed his disciples' feet. (John xiii. 4, 5.) It may explain why the Apostle Peter was so unwilling to let his Master do this for him.

It also teaches two things: I. If Christ, who is "over all, God blessed for ever," performed this mean and humble, though kind action to his disciples, how ready we ought to be, to do what is kind to each other! 2. If our Lord was so mindful of his disciples, as to do this act of kindness to them, which was in itself of so little importance, how sure we may be that those who love him now will not be forgotten in any of the events of their lives! The needing to wash the feet after all the rest, (John xiii. 10.) is explained by Malcolm, who saw some men after bathing, come up from the river or tank, and then just before entering the house, rinse their feet, dirtied by coming up from the bath.

Martyn remarked the degree of abasement expressed in the act of washing the feet. This further illustrates 1 Tim. v. 10, and the reluctance again to go forth into the mire, when the feet are washed. (Sol. Song v. 3.)

JACOB'S WELL.

MR. BONAR engaged a very affable Jew to shew him the road to Jacob's Well, who, after leading him through the town, gave him in charge to another that knew the place. They went out at the Eastern Gate and proceeded along the vale of Sychar, keeping near the base of Gerizzim for nearly two miles, till they arrived at a covered well, which is marked out by tradition as the memorable spot. It is immediately below the rocky path by which we had travelled the day before, at that point of the road where we turned from the spacious plain into the narrow vale, between Ebal and Gerizzim. The guide removed a large stone that covers the mouth of the low vault built over the well; and then thrusting himself through the narrow aperture, invited Mr. Bonar to follow. This