shall give sign of it, and the moon and the stars of heaven, the elements also, and the distress of nations, earthquakes, and the sea and its waves roaring. Many, very many methods of mercy will he take; he will cause the voice to be lifted up, "Behold the Bridegroom cometh, prepare ye to meet him ;" and loth, loth is he to break in upon the world with judgment; fain, fain would he save them all. He lingers long, he sends his angels through the midst of heaven, preaching the everlasting Gospel, saying, Fear God, and give glory to him, for the hour of his judgment is come.

Besides this application of these words, "Behold I stand at the door and knock," to the warnings and alarms which in his mercy he will send forth through every region of nature, just before his breaking in upon its long revelry of wickedness; I think there is also signified, and perhaps more specially signified, the warning voice of the ministers of religion, which shall go forth to the ears of men, calling upon them to prepare to receive into their hearts the Lord of glory. And, in concert with the preacher's warning voice, I believe there will likewise go forth throughout the natural region of man's apprehensive mind, a certain dread and forecast of something awful about to fall in upon the world's ordinary course. The disturbances of nature's laws, the misgiving of man's spirit, with respect to the future, will keep harmony with the preacher's voice, and make men inexcusable if they flee not from the impending ruin into the ark of salvation, which the Gospel holdeth forth continually. To believe that there will be given by preaching, or by the church in general, some notable signs of Christ, while he is just at the door, I am led on many accounts, but especially for this, that whenever the Supper is mentioned in the Gospels, or elsewhere, such an earnest entreaty to the people is given as may be seen by examining the parable of the marriage supper, contained in the xxiid chapter of Matthew, and the xivth of Luke. In the latter of those narratives, there are three distinct biddings to the marriage. The first given to the worthy part of the people, the landholders, the agriculturists, and the comfortable well-conditioned classes, who would not come. These, I make no doubt, signify the Jews, God's chosen people, bidden from of old to the

feast of fat things which God should make in the mount of Zion, unto all people, a feast of wines on the lees, of fat things full of narrow, of wines on the lees well refined. But they, instead of welcoming the invitation to the marriage of the King's Son, did settle themselves down contentedly in their several enjoyments, and refuse the honour and the duty which they owed to their sovereign Lord and Master. Yea, and certain of them took his servants and entreated them spitefully, and slew them; but when the king heard thereof, he was wroth, and he sent forth his armies and destroyed those murderers, and burnt up their cities. Then went forth a second bidding, not as formerly to the privileged Jews, the nation of kings and priests, but to the wretched and worthless Gentiles, who had given themselves up to all manner of open and abandoned wickedness. "Go out quickly into the streets and lanes of the city, and bring in hither the poor and the maimed, and the halt and the blind." And such is the invitation which the Gospel carrieth abroad over the face of all nations. But lo! there is a third bidding goes forth: " And the servant said, Lord it is done as thou hast commanded, and yet there is room. And the Lord said unto the servant, Go out into the highways and hedges, and compel them to come in, that my house may be filled." Now I ask, what is this the note of in the dispensations of God? I think it is the note of that knocking at every man's heart, which, on the eve of Christ's coming, shall more importunately be made. After the poor, the maimed, the halt, and the blind, had furnished their complement of guests, there yet was room. The number of the election was still incomplete. There wanted many to make up. the Lamb's bridal company, whom to complete, there shall be a hasty ingathering at the time of the end, and this ingathering shall be from all classes, both bad and good, from the highways and the hedges, the resort of wayfaring and outlawed men. This now I believe is the voice with which the church is called, in her last or Lao-; dicéan state. She shall hear an invitation such as the Jews heard by their Prophets, and the Gentiles by the Apostles of the Lord. A voice of preaching, such as hath been heard only once before, shall be heard again. Christ shall speak once more, by men fully gifted with

the Holy Ghost. A free Gospel, and a full one, the Gospel of the marriage supper of the Lamb, shall be heard, yea, and now is heard in the Laodicean church, and blessed are they which are called unto the marriage supper of the Lamb. And who are these by whom this invitation shall be given? They are the servants of the Lord Jesus Christ. Themselves of the Laodicean church? I think rather of the Philadelphian; for the angel of the Philadelphian church is faithful to his Master, whereas the angel of the Laodicean is altogether faithless. As the Lord took out from the Jewish church a body of men, who gathered by their faithful witness a glorious company of guests, so from the present Gentile church I believe he is gathering another band of brothers to go forth amongst the churches, and amongst all nations, and complete the number of his elect people; after which the door shall be shut, and there will be no more admitted to that blessed communion.

In this opinion, that just before the coming of the Lord, there will be considerable ingathering, the preparation of a goodly company to meet him, I am confirmed by the parable of the Ten Virgins, which represents the church, and the part she takes on the eve of the Bridegroom's coming from heaven to this earth to be married to his church; for that the marriage residence is on earth, is clear from the language used of the new Jerusalem: "I saw new Jerusalem descending out of heaven, like a bride adorned for her bridegroom." I have no doubt the earth is the marriage residence; but I think the cloud in which he comes, and into which his church ascends to meet him, is like Sinai of old, the place where the covenant of wedlock is sealed. Thither the church ascends and meets her descending Lord, as Rebekah met Isaac in the eventide. Conceiving, then, the fulness of the Father's times to be well nigh accomplished, the time of the Son's session at his right hand to be drawing to its long expected close, and the Father about to bring in the only begotten a second time into the world, and in his mercy giving the world warning, and likewise the church, this parable of the Virgins reveals to us the effect which the warning hath upon the church. They are all found in a state of slumbering and sleeping at the time the voice is lifted up in

the midnight," Behold the Bridegroom cometh." But part of them being both sincere in their expectation, and wise in their preparation, starting from their sleep, arise and trim their lamps, and, being ready, go in with him to the marriage, and the door is shut. The others, having been only formal and hypocritical in their professions of expecting the Divine presence, and being in no state of preparedness, but deeming that there would be time enough to get ready, are taken all in hurry and confusion; and while they are in perplexity, in the midst of the night, the Bridegroom comes, and enters into his chamber, and shuts the door, and opens it not again. They knock, but it is in vain they cry "Open unto us, but he answereth, Verily I say unto you, I know you not;" and so they lose the great blessedness of those who sup with the Bridegroom, who sit at his table in his kingdom, and ever enjoy the sight of his beauty.

This parable, besides confirming the doctrine of our text, that the Lord on the eve of his coming, while he is just at the door, will cause a voice to be heard loud enough to break the slumber of the church, doth likewise give us some insight into the meaning of the expression," If any man will open unto me, I will come in and sup with him, and he with me." His supping with us, is previous to our supping with him, and is doubtless a pre-requisite thereto. Now, the pre-requisite to our supping with him, is wisdom. The wise virgins, and they only, are admitted to the marriage supper of the Lamb. We must receive therefore Christ as our wisdom, before he will receive us as his marriage guests. As wisdom he sendeth his Holy Spirit, who is the Wisdom from above, peaceable, gentle, easy to be entreated, full of mercy, and of good fruits, without partiality, and without hypocrisy. This wisdom is now crying aloud in the streets, in the chief place of concourse, in the opening of the gates in the city, she uttereth her words, saying, "How long, ye simple ones, will ye love simplicity; and the scorners delight in their scorning, and fools hate knowledge? Turn you at my reproof: behold, I will pour out my Spirit unto you, I will make known my words unto you" (Prov. i. 22, 23). This spirit of power and of love, and of a sound mind, is now crying aloud in the ears of men, and entreating access

unto their hearts, and she promiseth to them many blessings: "Length of days is in her right hand, and in her left hand riches and honour. Her ways are ways of pleasantness, and all her paths are peace." She also pro miseth to them a supper and a banquetting-house, speak ing on this wise; "Wisdom hath builded her house, she hath hewn out her seven pillars. She hath killed her beasts, she hath mingled her wine; she hath also furnished her table. She hath sent forth her maidens, she crieth upon the highest places of the city, Whoso is simple, let him turn in hither: as for him that wanteth understanding, she saith to him, Come, eat of my bread, and drink of the wine which I have mingled. Forsake the foolish, and live; and go in the way of understanding" (Prov. ix. 1—6).

While I have interpreted these last two verses of our good Bishop's charge, chiefly in a historical sense, as relating to this last age of the church, and applied them chiefly to the ministers of the word, I am well aware that they contain together, one of the most perfect statements of the Saviour's love unto, and dealings with, every believer, and indeed every man; and it would be an unpardonable omission, did I not present them also in this aspect to every one who hath an ear to hear. To do so I feel not only drawn by inclination, but likewise directed by the language itself, which is of the most general kind: "As many as I love I rebuke and chasten; be zealous therefore, and repent; behold I stand at the door and knock, if any man will open I will come in and sup with him, and he with me." Let us therefore endeavour to conclude this the last of the seven charges, with a practical exposition of these words.

Rebuke and chastisement are two stages of the same action, each being a penal infliction of God our Father; the one expressed in rebuke of words, the other in visitation of distress; the one manifested in the conscience, hearing and acknowledging the rebuke of God, whether brought home by the voice of the preacher, or by secret meditation of our own; the other manifested to the sight of all men, in the afflictions and adversities of this present life. Now, in what way soever the rebuke of God doth reach us, we ought to regard it as a token of his love. No matter from what apparent cause