was

as

at

the value of Christ's blood ("the Lord's lot") God, as represented by Moses and Aaron, can come forth and bless the people outside, Melchisedec will do in a future day. They were never placed inside the veil. The grace is the same, and the blood is the same as to value, but the standing of Christians or Aaron's house, and that of Israel is not the same. Remember, too, that when Christ was the sin-offering, He the same time the burnt-offering; hence the mercy-seat, and the glory resting on it as God's throne, were fulfilled by "Jesus crowned with glory and honour." And ever since, the one object there on which the glory concentrates is Christ. Within the veil was the ark of the covenant, the cherubim overshadowing the mercyseat and NOTHING ELSE. This was the throne of God, the type also of Christ in whom God is revealed, the true ark of the covenant with the mercy-seat over it"--and His house is set there with Him.

FRAGMENT.

"THE gold is divine righteousness, as in the nature of God. According to this, Christ, having glorified God in all that He is, is received within as man, and sits at God's right hand; we, partakers of the divine nature, being of God in Christ Jesus, created after God in righteousness and true holiness, and renewed in knowledge after the image of Him who created us, united to Him whom God has set on high, have our place at God's right hand--(not personally, of course, that could not be but in Him)-in that heavenly place according to the delight of God's nature, for that is in Christ. It is fellowship with this, or restoration to it, which is the character of our approach to God, as simply enjoying it in the new nature; it is not in contrast with evil; it is not forgiveness of what is past, save as that is in its place. I have, for faith- and shall have in fact -entirely done with the nature which

sinned, and the whole state of existence in which flesh moved. I exist only in the new creation. Hence the apostle says he did not even know Christ after the flesh any more. It is the joy of the new man in the presence and blessedness and glory of God."

J. N. D.

COMING!

THOU art coming, Lord and Master!
Yes, at last.

Storm and shipwreck and disaster,
Wave and blast,

Seas of anger

Babel's clangor

Shall be past.

Thou art coming, blessed Saviour !
Matchless love,

Measured not by our behaviour,
Strong will prove,

Till Thou gather

To our Father,

Us above.

Thou art coming, Strong Deliverer!
Changeless Friend!

All who trust Thy love are ever
By Thy hand-
Held securely,
Shelter'd surely

To the end.

Thou art coming, Star of Morning,
For Thy Bride;

Faithful! from afar returning,

True and tried:
Who to save her,
And to have her,
Bled and died.

Thou art coming, Shepherd! Ever
Good and Great.

None from Thee Thy sheep can sever,
But 'tis late!

And all shatter'd,
Torn and scatter'd

Still we wait.

Thou art coming, Mighty Jesus !
Then shall be

Death's hold plunder'd to release us,
Jubilee !

In the power
Of that hour-
Victory!

J. B.

JOHN'S GOSPEL.

CHAPTER XIX.

IN reality the judgment against the Lord had been pronounced. He had been given up to the outrages of the Roman soldiers. The details of this part of the story are to be found in Matthew xxvii. 24-31. The Jews, notwithstanding Pilate's timid resistance, had chosen Barabbas the robber and rejected the Son of God, and Pilate giving way to their urgent requests, had entirely given up his position as judge to please a turbulent people.

But Pilate was uneasy. The majesty of Jesus' ways gave to the accused a superiority over the judge. There was something supernatural in Christ that frightened Pilate; and we know too that he had received warnings that God had sent to him in such a way that a Gentile could receive them. (Matt. xxvii. 19.) But these relationships of the Jews (not with Christ,

VOL. XIX.

G