of apprehension ere the last enemy appeared. It is not terrible, however, to fall asleep in Jesus; and when the hour draws nigh, to hear the friendly inviting voice, which says," Come, my people, enter thou into thy chambers, and shut thy doors about thee: hide thyself, as it were, for a little moment, until the indignation be overpast," chap. xxvi. 20. Then are their labours suspended their tossings to and fro with trying vicissitude and change, terminate in unmolested peace, undisturbed with any painful sensation. What is sown in corruption, is nevertheless sown in hope, for at the last day, the slumbers of the tomb shall cease, and the body, re-animated, and fashioned like unto Christ's glorious body, shall rise to immortality, and to nobler functions than it now fulfils. Meanwhile, the Lord knows where the bed of death is made, and takes notice of the slumbering dust, and holds it in keeping until the great day of restitution dawn.

And until that blissful day break, let none suppose that the spirit of a man, like his breathless dust, lies dormant: All that thought, and reasoned, and rejoiced on earth, survives the stroke of death, and will think, and reason, and rejoice, will love and

praise the God of salvation, when divested of material structure. The soul sleepeth not. The righteous man walketh in his uprightness. O what a walk is there, "high in salvation and the climes of bliss,” through regions of glory, in the paradise of God, and by the river of life, with nothing to hinder the largest participation. They see the King in his beauty, in that land which is afar off; and to Him are these spirits of the just made perfect, conformed in righteousness, and true holiness. In their uprightness there is no flaw, no sin to be concealed, and nothing for which to be ashamed in all the walk of immortality. Shame is not

there, nor self-respect, nor weariness in devotion, nor any declining in the ardours of gratitude and love. As to their engagements and their joys, he who had those blessed abodes revealed to him, beheld there acts of solemn adoration, in which righteous men delighted while on earth, and heard the most rapturous ascriptions of praise, in terms like these: Worthy is the Lamb that was slain, to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and strength, and honour, and glory, and blessing." And again he heard them, saying "Blessing, and honour, and glory, and power, be unto Him that sitteth

upon the throne, and unto the Lamb, for ever and ever." Rev. v. 12, 13. And though these descriptions apply to scenes consequent on the Redeemer's incarnation, sufferings, and glory; in considering the state of separate spirits that went to the unseen world before those events took place, we may borrow the light of New Testament revelation for illustrating their glory, which doubtless was essentially the same in Isaiah's period, as in that of John.

But all description of it to mortals must prove inadequate. For eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man conceived how great the goodness is which God hath prepared for them that love him. Into that better country, when the righteous have been conveyed, will they deem the transition premature? Will they regret the shortness of their stay on this earth? Or rather, will they not confess with boundless gratitude the tender mercy of their God, which took them soon away from gathering evils, and introduced them to early beatitude, to behold his glory, in whose presence there is fulness of joy, and at whose right, hand there are pleasures for evermore.

But we must recal our thoughts from those heavenly places, to consider what is

ven.

A

our duty on earth, when righteous men perish, and the merciful are taken away. breach has taken place in the family of grace, and shall we not lay it to heart? The text tells that such an event is regarded in hea"Precious in the Lord's sight is the death of his saints." Ministering angels convey sanctified souls to glory. There is joy in heaven at the sinner's first turning unto God: doubtless, a more exceeding joy appears on his full admission into paradise. And if such interest is manifested in heaven when a righteous man dies, shall we cherish the apathy or the unbelief which is reproved in the text, and come under a like imputation for our want of feeling and of consideration ?

We have this day a call for consideration on such a subject. One has been taken away, whose name is familiar to you all,for she was as one brought up among you, and was a benefactress to not a few; and in speaking of whom, we think it is not too much to say, that her character was answerable to the description given in the text. She was among the righteous and the merciful of the earth; a distinction she valued more than any which belonged to her from the nobility of her family descent,—a fami

ly, however, which has been at sundry times graced with piety, and is not unknown in the annals of our church. Titles of nobility, however, may belong to the most worthless of mankind-to the base worldlingthe profuse or sordid to the very enemies of God, and the opposers of his Son our Saviour: But in her, rank seemed only to furnish an occasion for humility to appear more prominent, and for faith to show that it counted worldly honours to have no glory in comparison of the glory of the cross of Christ; and though far from contemning distinctions, which Divine Providence supports in order to consolidate the frame of human society, as well as to adorn it, by gradations of high and low, she was well aware that no distinction but what flows. from distinguishing grace, imparts any thing essentially valuable to its possessor. It was not name, but character, to which, in her judgment, the chief distinction belonged; and character to be truly estimable, she thought, must be formed by grace-free, effectual, sanctifying grace, that leads to faith and works by love.

Where that grace appeared, she was not reluctant to own a brother or sister in the subject of it, though in other respects un