the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory."

And how beautiful the counsel in 1 Tim. iv. 12 : "Let no man despise thy youth; but be thou an example of the believers, in word, in conversation, in charity, in spirit, in faith, in purity."

And in 1 Tim. v. 21: "I charge thee before God, and the JEHOVAH Jesus Christ, and the elect angels, that thou observe these things without preferring one before another, doing nothing by partiality."

And in the last chapter, after cautioning Timothy against covetousness and the love of money, he said: "Thou, O man of God, flee these things; and follow after righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, meekness.

"Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life." And the remainder of the charge is worthy of so high a dignitary of the Church as St. Paul. "O Timothy, keep that which is committed to thy trust."

The short Epistle to Titus was written during the same period as the first Epistle to Timothy, between St. Paul's two imprisonments at Rome. I therefore place it here, although I shall only extract two or three short passages from it.

"Paul, a servant of God, and an apostle of Jesus Christ, according to the faith of God's elect.

"In hope of eternal life, which God, that cannot lie, promised before the world began." This was ever St. Paul's hold, and the hold of all the sacred writers, that redemption was not a thing of our day economy only, but by "the Word" in a past eternity.

"To Titus, mine own son after the common faith: Grace, mercy, and peace, from God the Father and the JEHOVAH Jesus Christ our Saviour." And then this master mind gave to this second son in the faith the like wise counsel he had given to Timothy, concerning his office as bishop in the island of Crete; and told him to reprove sharply the unruly and deceivers, specially they of the circumcision, since they were, according to the suffrage of one of their own poets - as is supposed, Epimenides "always liars, evil beasts, slow bellies. This witness is true.

"Unto the pure all things are pure: but unto them that are defiled and unbelieving is nothing pure; but even their mind and conscience is defiled.

"But speak thou the things which become sound doctrine :

"That the aged men be sober, grave, temperate, sound in faith, in charity, in patience.

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Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ;

"Who gave Himself for us, that He might redeem us from all iniquity."

And in Titus iii. 5 he said: "Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost;

"Which He shed on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Saviour;

"That being justified by His grace, we should be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life." I might insert this epistle, but let my reader read it

for himself; for we have heard of the wisdom of Solomon, but a greater than Solomon is here.

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Greet them that love us in the faith. Grace be with you all. Amen."

It is said Titus preached the Gospel with remarkable success, not only in the island of Crete, but in the neighbouring islands. St. Paul made beautiful mention of him in his second Epistle to the Corinthians (ii. 13, 14; vii. 6; viii. 6, 16, 23; xii. 18; Gal. ii. 1, 3). Titus visited his venerable father in Christ in his second imprisonment at Rome (2 Tim. iv. 10), but we are not to suppose here that he forsook him then and there, as Demas did, "having loved this present world;" but that the old veteran gave him his parting blessing, and sent him to Dalmatia, a part of Old Illyria, lying along the gulf of Venice, to preach the Gospel he loved more than Titus. It is said Titus died at the age of ninety-four, and was buried in the island of Crete.

The second Epistle of St. Paul to Timothy was written during his last imprisonment in Rome, and was perhaps the last he ever wrote. To the Church of Christ it is particularly interesting and valuable, not only as the only document in her possession to tell of that last imprisonment, but as the last testimony to the truth of the great apostle. During thirty-three years we have never once seen him wince beneath the lash, never once flinch before the bar of judgment. Eternal life was his goal, and he undauntedly and triumphantly passed on, from what had been impiously named the eternal city, to his

eternal home. By revelation, by faith, and by the abiding presence of the JEHOVAH with him; by his highly wrought spiritual nature, the invisible world was visible to him. Let us follow him through the last short journey to the tomb.

"Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, according to the promise of life which is in Christ Jesus,

"To Timothy, my dearly beloved son: Grace, mercy, and peace, from God the Father and Christ Jesus our JEHOVAH.

"I thank God, whom I serve from my forefathers with pure conscience, that without ceasing I have remembrance of thee in my prayers night and day;

"Greatly desiring to see thee, being mindful of thy tears, that I may be filled with joy."

It is a part of one of our creeds, "I believe in the communion of saints." Is not the doctrine thus rightly indorsed? Do not the prayers and joy of St. Paul and the tears of Timothy confirm it? In human nature there are affinities, and repulsions, and the spiritual nature is the bond of union, or the secret cause of disunion. The spiritual man cannot love a person wholly animal, nor can the natural man appreciate the Christian for Christianity's sake. The apostle himself often made this clear (2 Corinthians vi. 14, to the end; Rom. viii. 5-8). But these two apostles loved each other, their spiritual natures were wholly one, their prayers and tears mingled in the sacred service of the Church of Christ. Youth is often a staff to the aged man, a buoyant spirit to the burdened mind; while the experience of age is the

safeguard of the young man, the wisdom that is life.

"Be not thou therefore ashamed of the testimony of our JEHOVAH, nor of me His prisoner: but be thou partaker of the afflictions of the gospel according to the power of God;

"Who hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began,

"But is now made manifest by the appearing of our Saviour Jesus Christ, who hath abolished death, and hath brought life and immortality to light through the gospel."

Here, as ever in the writings of St. Paul, is that going back into a past eternity, which makes the work of Christ eternal, and His Being eternal. Who can fathom the depth of this mystery? Who can grasp the purpose of the Eternal? Who can foresee the glory to be accomplished? Did we ever consider the expression, "Who hath abolished death"? that is, utterly done away with death, put an end to it. The penalty of the law was abolished, the Jewish economy was abolished in Christ, and so death was abolished in Him. The soul does not die, but still lives on in another state. He saw the human race subject to death, and He died, One for all. His life stood for all, and His death stood for all. Being perfectly holy, unfallen, there was infinite merit in His life. And being God, there was infinite satisfaction in His death, priceless ransom, salvation for all. The soul does not die, unless this salvation be rejected or neg