There is no man that hath left house, or parents, or brethren, or wife, or children, for the kingdom of GOD's sake,

30 Who shall not receive manifold more in this present time, and in the world to come life everlasting.

In this present time, for even now, and in this life, he, who for the sake of JESUS, gives up earthly things, will have GOD, and in GOD everything which is pure, and true, and lasting, and precious. And this will be to him, the fulfilling of the prophecy of Isaiah, though the words have another fulfilment also," For brass, I will bring gold, and for iron, I will bring silver, and for wood brass, and for stones, iron."

Well for him who all things losing,
E'en himself doth count as nought,
Still the one thing needful choosing,
That with all true bliss is fraught.
Well for him who nothing knoweth

But his GOD, Whose boundless love
Makes the heart wherein it gloweth,
Calm and pure as saints above.
Well for him who all forsaking
Walketh not in shadows vain,
But the path of grace is taking
Through this vale of tears and pain.

Thou abyss of love and goodness!
Draw us by Thy grace to Thee,

That our senses, soul, and spirit,

Ever one with CHRIST may be! Amen.

31 Then He took unto Him the twelve, and said unto them, Behold, we go up to Jerusalem, and all things that are written by the prophets concerning the Son of man shall be accomplished.

32 For He shall be delivered unto the Gentiles, and shall be mocked, and spitefully entreated, and spitted on:1

33 And they shall scourge Him, and put Him to death: and the third day He shall rise again."

1 Isa. 1. 6.

2 Isa. liii. 12.

3 Ps. xvi. 10.

He was betrayed, as though He were guilty; mocked, as though He were foolish; spitefully entreated and spitted on as vile and contemptible; scourged as a malefactor; slain as a breaker of the law He Who in Himself, and of Himself, was the only "holy, harmless, undefiled" One.

As by His sufferings and dying, the blessed One showed the reality and weakness of His human Nature, so by rising again He showed the power of His Divine Nature: in like manner, in His death, we see Him as a priest, offering the sacrifice of Himself, in His resurrection we see Him as King, coming forth in His might and glory; His dying sets before us, the death of death, the death from which He ransomed us; His rising again sets before us the life which He purchased for us; the life which we may hope to obtain from Him, even everlasting life, if we be ready to suffer with Him.1

GOD had already marked "the third day," as a day "to be observed:" it was on the third day Abraham came to the place where, "in a figure," he received Isaac back from the grave: on the third day Joseph released his brethren from prison: on the third day after the people had come to Mount Sinai, GOD gave the law on the third day, Esther put on her royal apparel, and prayed Ahasuerus to be gracious unto her people: on the third day, Hezekiah went up after his sickness to the Temple; on the third day Jonah was cast safe to land; and all this, it may be, with some secret reference to the mysterious and awful doctrine of the ever-blessed Trinity.

34 And they understood none of these things: and this saying was hid from them, neither knew they the things which were spoken.

35 And it came to pass, that as He was come nigh unto Jericho, a certain blind man sat by the wayside begging:

36 And hearing the multitude pass by, he asked what it meant.

37 And they told him, that JESUS of Nazareth passeth by.

38 And he cried, saying, JESUs, Thou Son of David, have mercy on me.

Rom. viii. 17.

He confesses Him to be GOD, when he cries for mercy to Him: he confesses Him to be Man, yea, the Man, the promised Messiah, when he calls Him "Son of David," and by the name "JESUS," he owns Him the SAVIOUR. May we too ever own Thee, Holy SAVIOUR, We, who are by nature blind, and see only when Thou dost enlighten us; we, who are at best, but poor supplicants; we, who are by the highway side of this toiling world, may we too ever own Thee, with like true and living faith.

39 And they which went before rebuked him, that he should hold his peace:

For they thought—but oh, how very wrongly-that it was beneath Him to attend to the cry of a blind beggar by the way side: but the blind man knew Him better; he had been taught of GOD.

but he cried so much the more, Thou Son of David, have mercy on me.

40 And JESUs stood, and commanded him to be brought unto Him; and when he was come near, He asked him,

41 Saying, What wilt thou that I shall do unto thee? And he said, LORD, that I may receive my sight.

The multitude probably thought that the blind man was only asking an alms;" therefore, to correct this notion of theirs, out of the poor man's own mouth, and at the same time to draw out the profession of his faith, in the presence of them all, the LORD asks this question.

42 And JESUS said unto him, Receive thy sight: thy faith hath saved thee.

43 And immediately he received his sight, and followed Him, glorifying GoD: and all the people, when they saw it, gave praise unto God.

S. Matthew tells us that he "followed JESUS," to this S. Mark adds that he followed Him "in the way :" here we learn further that he followed with praises, giving occasion to others to praise also.

In the time of his trouble he called upon Thee, O LORD, and Thou didst hear him: Bow down Thine ear to me also, for I am poor and in misery, for Thou, LORD, art good, and gracious, and of great mercy, unto all them that call upon Thee.

CHAPTER XIX.

1 And Jesus entered and passed through Jericho. 2 And, behold, there was a man named Zacchæus, which was the chief among the publicans, and he was rich.

3 And he sought to see JESUS who He was: and could not for the press, because he was little of stature. "For the press," that is, from among the crowd.

:

4 And he ran before, and climbed up into a sycomore tree to see Him for He was to pass that way. 5 And when JESUS came to the place, He looked up, and saw him, and said unto him, Zaccheus, make haste, and come down; for to-day I must abide at thy house.

The Good Shepherd knoweth His own, and calleth them all by their names. The blessed JESUS saw the invitation, which in his heart Zacchæus wished to give, and accepted it.

6 And he made haste, and came down, and received Him joyfully.

7 And when they saw it, they all murmured, saying, That He was gone to be guest with a man that is a sinner.

8 And Zacchæus stood, and said unto the LORD; Behold, LORD, the half of my goods I give to the

poor; and if I have taken any thing from any man by false accusation, I restore him fourfold. .

Zacchæus did not say, "I will give," but "I give," that is, now, for he knew, we may well believe, the danger of delay, "One half of my goods I give to the poor, in Thy honour, Who when Thou wast rich, for man's sake becamest poor; and the other half I keep not for myself, but that out of it I may restore whatever I may have wrongly taken, unconvicted, nay, unaccused, save by my own conscience; I give back fourfold; the same which the law would have required me to give, had I been convicted of stealing and making away with the stolen goods." Here, then, was an open and public profession of repentance.

9 And JESUS said unto him, This day is salvation come to this house, forsomuch as he also is a son of Abraham.

Zacchæus may have been, and probably was, a son of Abraham," by descent, that is, a Jew; he certainly was now by likeness, for he was "following in the steps of the faith of our father Abraham."2 As Abraham, at GOD's call, left his country and his father's house, so Zacchæus, at the inward call of the ever-blessed Spirit, gave up his goods to GOD in giving them to the poor; and verily he had his reward, in repentance not to be repented of, GOD's gracious gift; in the favour and love of the Everlasting; in the salvation Who came to Him. "Blessed is he that considereth the poor and needy, the LORD shall deliver him in the time of trouble."

An early writer tells us, that in after years Zacchæus was consecrated Bishop of Cæsarea, in Palestine.

10 For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost.

And me also, O my GoD, visit me with Thy salvation, that I may see the felicity of Thy chosen, and rejoice with, and give thanks with Thine inheritance.

11 And as they heard these things, He added, and spake a parable, because He was nigh to Jerusalem,

1 Ex. xxii. 1.

2 Rom. iv. 11-16; Gal. iii. 7—9.