until time shall be no more. And it is as sacred and certain a truth, that the Lord laughs all those plots to nothing, (ver. 13.) This is the church's remedy. God looks and laughs, he laughs them to scorn; when he looks, that their day is coming, even their dismal day, wherein they shall be slain with their own sword, (v. 14, 15, 17.) and fall by their own counsel. (Psalm 5. 9, 10.) Now while God laughs at the plots of the wicked, both to disgrace the plotters, and to degrade their plots, God's people have little cause to cry; especially considering that their God tells them of a time, wherein they shall laugh with him at their overwitted and overpowered adversaries. (Psalm 52. 6.)

The cause of the wicked plotting against the righteous in all ages, is twofold; the first is, the inward cause; to wit, the old enmity which the fall of man brought judicially betwixt the two seeds: (Gen. 3 15.) ever since, there hath been a boisterous and bloody disposition, in all the seed of the serpent against the seed of the woman. This enmity had there its beginning; but it shall never have an ending until the world endeth; yea, it may be called an eternal enmity. For as the angels and the souls of men had a beginning, but shall never have an end, so this cursed enmity which had its beginning at the fall, will continue beyond this world, even in the world to come. As long as evil angels and lost souls continue in hell, which shall be for ever, so long will this enmity continue in them against the glorious angels and glorified saints: thus it is a bottomless, boundless, and endless enmity.

The second, or the outward cause, why the wicked plot, &c. is the malignant adversary of mankind, the devil; so called, because 1st, he is their father, and they are his children; and the lusts of their father they will and must do; (John 8. 44.) 2dly, he is their lord, and they are his vassals; and they will and must run his errands. Yea, 3dly, he is their god. (2 Cor. 4. 4.) and they are his creatures. And as God, at the creation of the world did but speak the word, and it was done, so if the devil do but speak the word, hold up his finger, his will is done; he leads them captive at his will. (2 Tim. 2. 26.)

Now as long as there be the same original corruption in wicked men to be drawn forth, and the same devil to draw forth that depraved disposition, so long there will be a wicked plotting and practising against the church of God in the world. Solomon saith,

there is no new thing under the sun; the thing that hath been, it is that which shall be; (Eccles. 1. 9, 10.) and the apostle tells us, as it was then, he that was born after the flesh, persecuted him that was born after the Spirit, as Ishmael did Isaac; even so it is now: (Gal. 4. 29.) Paul saith, "so it is now"-in my days; and we may say, it is even so now in our days. It was so then, it is so now, and it will be so for ever; so long as there be any wicked in the world, and the old man-slayer to set them on, who is that evil spirit which worketh, as the artificer doth in his shop, in the children of disobedience. (Ephes. 2. 3.) We read of the dragon's war with the woman, the church and her seed; (Rev. 12.) and if this war were in heaven, (v. 7.) how much more on earth? (v. 17.) This war is managed and maintained with great wrath, (v. 12.) having the assistance of an inveterate, implacable, and everlasting enmity in all his auxiliaries, all acted and agitated by the devil, who lends them his seven heads to plot with, and his ten horns to push with against the church. And we read of the Lamb's war with this dragon, even our blessed Michael and his angels, in the behalf of the woman and her seed. (Rev. 12. 7, 8.) And though the beast to whom the dragon gave his power, (Rev. 13. 2.) make war with the saints, and overcome them, during his lease of 1260 years allotted him, (Rev. 13. 7.) yet the Lamb shall overcome the dragon and all his auxiliaries, (Rev, 17. 14. and 19. 19, 20. and 20. 10.) And in the meantime, though the beast seems to overcome the saints, so it seemed, but so it was not: (Rev. 13. 7.) for the saints overcome the beast by the blood of the Lamb; when they seem to be most overcome by him, to the shedding of their own blood. (Rev. 12. 11.) This Lamb laughs all the plots of the beast to nothing, and all as vain things, whereof no good reason can be given, nor any good issue can be expected. Christ sits in heaven, seeth and smileth, is no more concerned, save only to ask the many and the mighty that club their craft and cruelty against Christ, if they be all mad, to attempt that which shall assuredly come to nothing. (Psalm 2. 1, 2, 3, 4.) The little stone dashes all in pieces. (Dan. 2. 34.) So that it may be said of the church, as it was said of the old Romans; she hath lost now and then a battle, but never a war. And as it is said of Gad, a troop may overcome Gad, but Gad overcomes at last; (Gen. 49. 19.) so the church may sometimes be shaken, but never shivered into nothing; she always gets and gains by her losses;

and though she may be trampled underfoot all the night of her affliction, yet is she sure to have dominion in the morning; (Psalm 49. 14.) and that morning ushers in the dismal doomsday of all her enemies.

"Dipt may the church's ship be, but not drown'd;
"Christ will not fail her enemies to confound."

No weapon that is formed against her shall prosper, (Is. 54. 17.) nor ever did prosper; that precious promise hath blunted the point and turned the edge of many thousand weapons that have been formed against her. The gates of hell, though in a combination of all its power and policy, shall not prevail against it. (Matt. 16. 18.) All the plots both of the wicked one, and of all wicked men, from Adam to our day, have been as the waves of the sea succeeding one another; yet all have dashed themselves to pieces upon this Rock of ages, whereon the Lord hath founded Sion. (Is. 4. 32. and 26. 1, 4. and 54. 10.) The church is invincible, and can never be demolished either by angry men or enraged devils. "Truth is great, and will prevail."

PRAYER BEFORE WRITING A BOOK.

Before Dr. Johnson began to write his celebrated work, "The Rambler," he offered up a prayer to God to bless his undertaking, and to make his book a means of religious good to himself and to others. Well would it be if every man who set about writing a book would set about it in this spirit. If this had been so, numbers of books which we now see would never have been written ; and many of the afflictions which have harassed this and other nations, would have been avoided. The following is the prayer which Dr. Johnson offered up, and which is printed in his works: Almighty God, the giver of all good things, without whose help all labour is ineffectual, and without whose grace all wisdom is folly; grant, I beseech thee, that, in this undertaking, the Holy Spirit may not be withheld from me; but that I may promote thy glory, and the salvation of myself and others. Grant this, O Lord, for the sake of thy Son Jesus Christ. Amen,"

THE PESTILENCE.

"Before him went the pestilence."-Hab. iii. 5.

The word is spoke, the plague begun,

And England from her God hath won
The guerdon of her shame;
Lo! here his blazing chariot rolls,
And pestilence, like burning coals,
Enkindles at its flame.

But we, invited by thy word,
Lay hold upon thy strength, O Lord,
And find our terrors cease;

Despoiled of death's envonomed sting,
We hide us underneath thy wing,
And claim thee for our peace.

Lord of our life, behold we stand,
We bow before the awful hand,
Upraised to seal our doom.

For oh! in that dear hand we see,
The deep-struck prints of Calvary-
The trophies of the tomb.

Here, tainted with rebellious sin,
Defiled without, corrupt within,

These bodies we resign;

Thou canst renew their forfeit breath,
Or bind each guilty face in death,
For every pulse is thine.

Oh Father, glorify thy name!

Oh Saviour, thy dear purchase claim!
Oh Comforter, descend!
Now in temptation's coming hour,
Omnipotent! put forth thy power,
To keep us to the end.

Around be nature's ruins spread,
We'll raise aloft a fearless head,
And hail redemption nigh;
So then faith's firm assurance give,
That tells us 'twill be Christ to live,
And glorious gain to die!-

Charlotte Elizabeth. ALIX.

HERBERT'S CHRISTMAS HYMN.
The shepherds sing; and shall I silent be?
My God, no hymn for thee?

My soul's a shepherd too; a flock it feeds
Of thoughts, and words, and deeds.

The pasture is thy word; the streams thy grace,
Enriching all the place;

Shepherd and flock shall sing, and all my powers "Out-sing the daylight hours."

A. FOSTER, PRINTER, KIRKBY LONSDALE,