eth, and scourgeth every son whom He receiveth." What was Hezekiah's first trial? Sennacherib came against Jerusalem with a very large army; when the king saw his danger, he was very much afraid, and he offered the king of Assyria a large sum of money to go away. Sennacherib took the money and went away; but soon he sent his army back to Jerusalem to take it. Hezekiah had no more money to give, so he did what he ought to have done at first, he cast himself upon God in prayer. You will find his beautiful prayer, (2 Kings xix. 15, 16.) God heard his prayer, and sent an angel, who slew 185,000 Assyrians in one night. How happy Hezekiah must have felt to be delivered from his great enemy; but God sent him another trial, He laid him upon a sick bed, and sent the prophet Isaiah to say to him: "Set thine house in order, for thou shalt die and not live,” (2 Kings xx. 1). Why did God send him another trial so soon? The book of Kings does not tell us, and the pro

phet Isaiah does not tell us, but if you turn to (2 Chron. xxxii. 23,) you will find the true reason. After Sennacherib and his host were smitten, "many brought gifts unto the Lord to Jerusalem, and presents to Hezekiah, king of Judah, so that he was magnified in the sight of all nations from thenceforth." What then was the reason? God saw that all these beautiful presents, and the admiration of so many people, might strengthen the pride of Hezekiah's heart, and therefore He sent him a sickness to teach him how very weak and sinful he was. But did Hezekiah die at that time? No, he prayed to God to restore him, and God raised him up. But alas! when he got well, he forgot the warning that God had sent, and when the king of Babylon, Berodachbaladan, sent letters and a present to him, we are told (Isaiah xxxix. 2,) that Hezekiah was "glad of them, and showed the messengers everything, that was in his house."

He became vain of his treasures

and presents, and as it says (2 Chron. xxxii. 25,) "he rendered not again according to the benefit done unto him, for his heart was lifted up." It is good, my dear friend, to have our hearts lifted up in prayer; it is good, as we read of Jehoshaphat (2 Chron. xvii. 6,) "to have our hearts lifted up in the ways of the Lord." But it is a sad thing to have them lifted up with vanity, as Hezekiah's was. God was displeased with Hezekiah's spirit. He is never pleased with a heart, that is lifted up with vanity. He was displeased with the prince of Tyre, because his heart was lifted up, (Ezekiel xxviii. 2.) He was displeased with Nebuchadnezzar, when his heart was lifted up (Daniel v. 20,) and St. Paul warns us against "being lifted up with pride," lest we fall into the snare of the devil, (1 Tim. iii. 6.)

It

What then was Hezekiah's sin? was the wish to display his presents and his treasures.

This, my dear reader, is a great danger still; some wish to be admired on account of the things they possess, some wish to be admired on account of their appearance, and others on account of their knowledge.

All these wishes grow from one root; what do you think it is? vanity, vanity, vanity!

Think for a few moments about the first of these.

Perhaps you sometimes receive nice presents on your birthday; may you not feel happy, when you receive such tokens of love? Oh, yes, you may; it would show an unloving and ungrateful heart, if you did not value them. It was not wrong in Hezekiah to value the presents, which neighbouring kings sent him, and there is far more reason to value a present, when given by a kind father or mother, brother or sister, or dear friend; but our hearts are so very sinful, that we must watch them always and in every

thing, and it is especially needful to do so when those, whom we love, give us nice things. Nothing is too small to draw away our hearts from God. If we knew the history of lost souls, we should find that little things, very trifling things, had much to do with leading them to forget God. There is nothing too small to be made the means of bringing us to Jesus; and there is nothing too small to injure our precious souls. If then, my young friend, you receive the kind presents of those, who love you, with thankfulness towards God, and humility towards man; if you think of God's most precious gift to us, His own beloved Son, then, whatever you have, it will not hurt you. But if you set your heart on presents or money, and begin to wish others to admire you, because you have so many beautiful things, then your heart, like Hezekiah's, is being lifted up. Vanity is working within you, and God is displeased.

Shall I tell you an anecdote of a little