you

in him. He cometh when death cometh; and know not how soon that may open or shut the door for ever.

SECTION LXV.

Chap. xxv. ver. 14-30.

PARABLE OF THE TALENTS.

14. For the kingdom of heaven is as a man travelling into a far country, who called his own servants, and delivered unto them his goods.

It is of the utmost importance to us, to bear it continually upon our hearts, that we are all the servants of the most high God, have our daily task assigned to us, and are accountable to him for our fidelity. Not knowing, or not sufficiently attending to this, is the great blindness and sin of the world.

15. And unto one he gave five talents, to another two, and to another one; to every man according to his several ability; aud straightway took his journey.

Consider what is before you. Know your own work, and keep your thoughts bent upon it. Look not on those who are higher in grace or abilities, to be discouraged, but to imitate them; nor at those who are lower, to nourish pride, but to be thankful, and double your diligence.

16. Then he that had received the five talents went and traded with the same, and made them other five talents.

We know that those who would be successful in trading, must be sober and diligent, and keep their thoughts close to it day by day. Are you thus trading for the greatest of all gains? Can you think of one day in your life, one sabbath, that was ever so employed for heaven?

17. And likewise he that had received two, he also gained other

two.

18. But he that had received one went and digged in the earth, and hid his lord's money.

He that had the least work to do, was the only one of the three that made a difficulty of it. God, who knew this man's heart, would not entrust him with five or two talents, to increase his condemnation, but could not dispense with his doing nothing.

19. After a long time the lord of those servants cometh, and reckoneth with them.

This is said to assure us of the certainty of his coming, and that whether it is sooner or later, we may not make a handle of it for being slothful.

He has an eye upon what we are doing, though we think him absent, and his accounts, when he comes, will be exact. Suppose it should be to-morrow, what account have you kept? Would you say, as you do now, that you have done what lay in your power? For the love of God, let the thought of this reckoning bring you to Christ without delay, to cleanse and heal you, and put you upon a new work of careful preparation for that time. And whatever you are, never forget you are servants.

20. And so he that had received five talents came and brought other five talents, saying, Lord, thou deliveredst unto me five talents: behold, I have gained beside them five talents more.

21. His lord said unto him, Well done, thou good and faithful servant: thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord.

O sweetest of all sounds! This it is that supports and enlivens the faithful soul in all its labours and conflicts.

22. He also that had received two talents came and said, Lord, thou deliveredst unto me two talents: behold, I have gained two other talents beside them.

23. His lord said unto him, Well done, good and faithful servant: thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord.

24. Then he which had received the one talent came and said, Lord, I knew thee that thou art an hard man, reaping where thou hast not sown, and gathering where thou hast not strawed:

"I knew thee that thou art an hard man." Horrid blasphemy! and yet it lies lurking at the heart-God's work is hard. Surely he will not exact it strictly from us. But the parable says he will; and believing, or not believing it from Christ's mouth, gives us up to heaven or hell. Man's thoughts of God are generally according to their dispositions. A wicked, slothful man, is averse to the belief of a just, pure, holy God. And from hence it comes to pass, that the revelation he has made of himself is disregarded by some, and rejected by others. "Reaping where thou hast not sown." O! not so. All we have is of his own giving and blessing; and if he has not a full harvest from us, it is because we do not look to him for it, but set bounds to his power.

25. And I was afraid, and went and hid thy talent in the earth: lo, there thou hast that is thine.

His fear wrought just the wrong way, it should have put him upon action. This shows to what miserable shifts we are driven, to excuse ourselves from not doing God's work. "Lo, there thou hast that is thine." Indeed he had not. If you were to put seed into the hands of a servant, under a strict charge and obligation to sow it, and look well to the growth of it, you would not think it enough to have the seed returned unsown.

26. His lord answered and said unto him, Thou wicked and slothful servant, thou knewest that I reap where I sowed not, and gather where I have not strawed.

Wicked, in God's account, because slothful. He had done no harm, but then he had done nothing. And how slothful! not to be full of concern for the recovery of the soul, for growth in grace, for Christ, and all his blessings.

27. Thou oughtest therefore to have put my money to the

exchangers, and then at my coming I should have received mine own with usury.

Hear this; thou oughtest; it is thy duty; this will be strictly required of thee. God has appointed thee a work, and whatever thou art, whatever else thou art doing in the world, it must not be neglected; his talent must not rust in thy hands.

28. Take therefore the talent from him, and give it unto him which hath ten talents.

29. For unto every one that hath shall be given, and he shall have abundance: but from him that hath not shall be taken away even that which he hath.

દ

Every one that hath," namely, by diligence in improving" that hath not:" does not value, and improve what he has received.

30. And cast ye the unprofitable servant into outer darkness: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

Now stand forth with your hopes and pretensions, you who are in a thoughtless, dozing, inactive state, with respect to God and religion. Behold, your condition is damnable, and if you die in it, will consign you to outer darkness, weeping, and gnashing of teeth.

SECTION LXVI.

Chap. xxv. ver. 31-46.

THE LAST JUDGMENT.

31. When the Son of man shall come in his glory, and all the holy angels with him, then shall he sit upon the throne of his glory :

He is a Christian who makes this awful time present to

himself, lives continually under a sense of it, and is in a state of diligent preparation for it according to the mind of Christ.

32. And before him shall be gathered all nations: and he shall separate them one from another, as a shepherd divideth his sheep from the goats:

According to their own choice, and separation of themselves now.

33. And he shall set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on the left.

34. Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.

For none but the faithful; and for them only by the grace and love of God.

35. For I was an hungred, and ye gave me meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me in: 36. Naked, and clothed me: I was sick, and ye visited me: I was in prison, and ye came unto me.

ye

Confessed me, relieved me in my difficulties, in my distressed, suffering, persecuted members, and proved your faith by its effects.

37. Then shall the righteous answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungred, and fed thee? or thirsty, and gave thee drink?

38. When saw we thee a stranger, and took thee in? or naked, and clothed thee?

39. Or when saw we thee sick, or in prison, and came unto thee?

Thinking themselves unworthy, having kept no register of their good deeds, knowing the imperfection of them, and their reward to be of grace, and far beyond their desert.

40. And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.

41. Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, Depart