CHAPTER IV.

THE PRESENTATION IN THE TEMPLE.

THE baby Jesus was just six weeks old when His mother and Joseph carried Him to Jerusalem, to present Him to God in the Temple.

The Temple was God's house; and Mary wanted to take her baby there, and to thank God, in His house, for all His goodness to her.

So the beloved Son was brought into His Father's house, to receive His Father's blessing. The priest who took the child in his arms to present Him before God, did not know who this baby was! He thought He was just like any other little baby.

Just then an old man, called Simeon, came into the Temple. He was a very good man, and loved to pray to God. He knew that God was going to send His Son into the world, and he wanted so much to see the Lord with his own eyes. God had told him that he should not die

till he had seen Jesus Christ, and he believed God.

It was the Holy Spirit that made Simeon go into the Temple at that moment; and what did he see there?

He only saw a poor man and woman with a little baby? Yet he felt God's message in his heart saying to him, 'This is the promised Saviour;' and at once, with a heart full of love and thankfulness, he took the holy babe in his arms, and sang a song of joy and praise to God for sending Jesus.

How Joseph and Mary wondered when they found that this stranger knew who their baby was!

Then good old Simeon blessed them both. But he told Mary that though Jesus was the Saviour, yet people would speak against Him, and would not believe in Him. He also told her that one day she would have such a great sorrow that it would be like a sword piercing her heart.

When did she feel like that?

Ah! I am sure you know! It was when she saw her dear Son hanging on the cross.

But how did Simeon know what was going to be done to Jesus?

God told him by His Holy Spirit. Those

people to whom God speaks, and tells them what He is going to do, are called prophets.

Just as Simeon had done speaking, a very old woman came into the Temple. You have never seen any one so old as she was: she was more than a a hundred years of age. Her name was Anna, and she was a prophetess. She loved God so much, that day and night she used to pray to Him, and serve Him.

As soon as she had seen the baby in His mother's arms, she believed that He was the Lord, and she thanked God, and spoke about Him to all those who were longing for the Saviour to come into the world.

After all these things, Joseph and Mary took the holy babe back to Bethlehem.

And the child grew. Not only His little limbs grew bigger and stronger, but He grew in wisdom and perfect holiness. The Bible says He was filled with wisdom, and the grace of God was upon Him.'

Think of Him, dear children, and try to be like Him. Remember, He was quite holy, without one spot or stain of sin. As a tiny baby, He was

never even cross.

Will you try to be like Jesus? a child of God?

CHAPTER V.

THE WISE MEN.

IN a country far, far away from Bethlehem, there lived some wise rich men. They were very clever and very learned. They liked to watch the stars, and they knew a great deal about them.

One night they saw a new star! It was very bright and very beautiful; and they knew that God had put this star in the sky, to tell them that He had sent His Son into the world to be a little baby.

The wise men thought they would like so much to see the Lord Jesus, and so they said they would go and try and find Him. They said,

'Let us go and worship Him, for He is God's Son; and let us take Him some presents, for He is a king.'

What does it mean to worship? When we pray to God, and give Him thanks, and praise Him, then we worship Him; and the wise men knew that Jesus was God, and so they wanted to worship Him, though He was only a little baby.

So the wise men took some gold and other things, and then they mounted their camels and set off on their long, long journey.

When the

At last they came to Jerusalem. people saw these strangers from a strange country, they wondered what they had come for. But they soon knew, for the wise men began at once to ask,

'Where is the baby King that is just born? For we have seen His star, and are come to worship Him?'

The people said, 'We do not know of any baby King.'

How surprised the wise men were to hear this! What were they to do now? Good old Simeon and Anna could have told them about Jesus, but they did not know the wise men were seeking Him. Would these men give up trying to find Him, and go back to their own country again? No, they left Jerusalem at once, to go further on. And lo! once again they saw the star! When they saw it, they were very glad, and were filled with thankfulness and joy.

The star moved on. The wise men were quite sure that God was guiding them to the right place; so they followed it, till at last it led them to Bethlehem, and stood still over the very house where the young child was. Joseph and Mary

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