may record that such a man lived, but the same pen will add, his days upon earth were numbered, and as a shadow he has passed away, and will return to earth no more. The Targum gives this part of the verse a very beautiful and striking comment:" As the shadow of a bird flying in the air, "beneath the faint rays of the setting sun, such "are our days upon earth; nor is there any hope or expectation to any son of man, that he shall live upon earth for ever." Is not this a very fine thought for man to improve; especially for those of us whose age admonishes us that our sun is setting, and like a shadow we shall soon pass away and be seen no more?

Perhaps my reader may ask, Can David's description of our days be correct? Did he not indulge the flight of his poetic fancy? Are the days of man so empty, and so fleeting, that eventually they will leave no trace behind? If so, where is any substantial good for him to enjoy while upon the earth? We may certainly say, that it is not only the days, but the riches, honours, and every thing else of the kind which he possibly may enjoy; all these are equally unsatisfying, prove as empty as the shadow, and eventually pass away and return not again. There be many that say, Who will show us any good? And the answer is subjoined by David in his address to his God: Lord, lift thou up the light of thy countenance upon us. Psalm iv. 6. Here is the only suitable, satisfying, and neverfailing good, which not only filleth the days, but

the souls of the righteous; so suitable, that here are pardons for infinite offences, a robe of righteousness to justify our persons, and abundance of grace to comfort and support in the absence of all created good. All these are to be found in Christ; and however remote from the carnal eye, God shows us these good things in the Gospel by the instruction of his blessed Spirit. God, for just causes, frequently hideth his face from his children, and covereth himself like the sun in a cloud; but when he lifteth upon us the light of his countenance, it creates that peace, joy, and happiness, which filleth our days with pleasure, and maketh us willing that they should pass away as a shadow, in the lively hope of entering into the mansions of glory, where, in the Lord's presence, there is fulness of joy, and at whose right hand there are pleasures for evermore. To an aged person on whom the long shadows of the evening of life have advanced, what a strong consolation is it to his heart, that he hath found durable riches and substance in Christ his Lord. And I cannot conclude without expressing my fervent wish that my aged reader may seek, receive, and enjoy these blessed realities in the richest abundance, in prospect of passing away to the delightful scenes of immortality and glory. Amen.

Lord! what is man, poor feeble man,

Born of the earth at first?

His life a shadow, light and vain,

Still hastening to the dust.

Watts.

SERMON V1.

The Christian's Course terminated.

2 TIMOTHY iv. 7.

I have finished my course.

LIFE is the natural journey of man from his birth to his long home in the grave, and various are the characters, both good and evil, which human beings act while on their road; but all at last shall be aroused from the bed of death, to stand in judgment before their God. The Christian's life, however, is peculiar to itself; the course he pursues, and his final end, are the most interesting and invaluable. The text I have selected expresses the triumphant language of Paul, a prisoner at Rome, by the cruel Nero, waiting the executioner's bloody hand to put him to death. A striking instance this of the influence of grace in producing the most serene composure and undaunted courage while the awful appendages of violent death were imme-diately before his eyes! Nor was this the sudden impulse of the mind on the exigency of the case.

About five years before this, when he was at Miletus, he sent to Ephesus, and called for the elders of the church. To them he appealed as witnesses of his humility and tears, of his temptations and sufferings, and of his fidelity in preaching repentance towards God, and faith in our Lord Jesus Christ. On that occasion, he assured them, although he was confident future bonds and afflictions awaited him, none of these things moved him; he counted not his life dear unto himself, so that he might finish his course with joy, and the ministry which he had received of the Lord Jesus, and testify the Gospel of the grace of God. Acts xx. After a lapse of time, it pleased God in his providence that Paul, for preaching the Gospel, should become a prisoner at Rome. While in his chains, believing that the time of his departure was at hand, he wrote this second Epistle to his beloved Timothy, to direct and animate him in the faithful discharge of his important duties in the church of Christ; at the same time, in order to prepare and console him on his hearing of the violent death which the apostle should have endured, he assured him of his confidence and joy in the following animated lines: I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, 1 have kept the faith: henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, shall give me at that day; and not to me only, but unto all them also that love his appearing. While these assurances were admirably calculated to assuage the pangs of anguish in the breast of young Timothy, under the loss of Paul the aged, the sen

timents themselves have often been verified in the last moments of many faithful servants of Jesus Christ, and still remain a charming excitement to every aged Christian to perform his duty, and finish his course with joy.

The commencement, and the progress of the Christian's course, though subjects of the highest interest, are unnecessary to be introduced in this discourse, as they have been more or less explained in several of the essays comprised in this volume. Your attention therefore will be directed to the PERIOD OF THE CHRISTIAN'S COURSE, which is so charmingly described by Paul in the chapter out of which I have selected the text, and which possibly may form a suitable subject with which to close this work.

It is an observation made by some intelligent Christians, that no man's character can correctly be determined, until the finishing stroke by death; and indeed our Saviour said, He that endureth to the end, the same shall be saved. Death is the trying hour; for we know not how far a transgressor may wander in the paths of iniquity, and yet, by the grace of God, have his feet turned into the way of peace; so neither do we know how far a man may support a profession of religion, and afterwards throw off the mask, and end his days in shame and misery; therefore let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall; and at the same time let us remember, that the Lord alone can preserve us unto his everlasting kingdom, and grant us grace