ple has become a warehouse or a broker's office. Let such backsliding professors look out for the scourge! Perhaps it may come in a sore spiritual distress; perhaps in commercial disaster, which shall overturn the tables and scatter the hoards of coveted wealth. In 1857 the Lord entered into the American Church with the scourge of commercial chastisements, and threw down the tables of traffic in terrible bankruptcies; but it was to prepare the way for the most glorious revivals known in this century. What was the meaning of the late war, but the entrance of Christ into a profaned temple, where the foul demon of slavery had been allowed to entrench himself behind the very altar.

Sinful ambition is another intruder into the heart sanctuary. "Seekest thou great things for thyself? Seek them not!" But in spite of this tender warning, ambition gets possession; until at length the indignant Master enters to overthrow our guilty schemes, with the stern rebuke, "Take these things hence;" "he that exalteth himself shall be abased." Methinks that some of us may have set up domestic idols in the temple of the heart. We loved them more than we loved Him

who gave them. And when the scourge came-came, too, in an unlooked-for hour-it drew the heart's blood! The surgery of bereavement was terrible. The death-query sounded through the innerchamber, while the Master was carrying off our idols. But, when the idol was gone, there was more for Him to whom the whole heart had once been promised. When our loved ones are taken, then, like the sisters of Bethany, we send for the FRIEND who had been quite too much forgotten or neglected before. Blessed be the chastisements, however bitter, which purify the heart for Jesus. Blessed be the scourge, if it is only in that hand which was once pierced for our redemption! Love never gives one blow too many, or too hard.

There is one other thought worth noting here, if it be not too close a torturing of the very words of the inspired narrative. You will observe that when Christ cleansed the temple of intruders, he "made a Scourge of small cords." He wove the little withes that laid about the floors into the shape of chastisement. So does that same loving Lord now employ little trials as well as great bereavements, in the spiritual discipline of his people. Many a Christian has a daily vexation to try his patience or to punish his besetting sins. Little pains, little annoyances, little discomforts, are as much a part of our discipline as are the formidable adversities that occasionally smite us like hurricanes. Little vexations often creep into the secret places, and, by finding out the sore spots, discover to us our faults. Let us not despise the chastening of our Divine Physician and purifier, when he sends small trials as well as great ones to test our graces or to drive out our sins. Remember that it was with a scourge of small cords the Lord of the temple expelled the profane intruders from his dwelling place. Better, far better, to bear the scourge of little cords, when laid on by the hand of love, than to endure the whip of scorpions in that world where punishment can torture and sting, but may never purify.-Rev. T. L. Cuyler:

THE PRACTICAL VALUE OF THE PSALMS.

IT is not a little remarkable that the Psalms, in the e religious persons, hold substantially the same place in the of the Christian dispensation which they did under the co obscure Hebrew economy, and that with all the additional has been imparted under the Christian revelation, the Psaln been superseded. The Christian looks to the Psalms with as intense as did the ancient Jew; and as expressive of pers ious experience, as well as for the purpose of a manual f the Psalms are selected by the Christian, from the whole Bil were by the Jew from the books in his possession-the Old! As such, they will retain their value in all times to come, no ever be in our world such an advance in religious light, e and knowledge, that they will lose their relative place as conn the exercises of practical piety. How far this fact is to be as a proof that the authors of the Psalms were inspired; was communicated to them a knowledge of the principles and of true piety, so in advance of their own age as to be on a what will be possessed in the most advanced periods of relig ture; that there must have been an influence on their minds posing the Psalms, beyond anything derived from mere poeti is a question which must occur to all reflecting minds. It question to propose to one who doubts the inspiration of the how he will account for this fact, consistently with his idea authors of the Psalms were men endowed only as other men o are, and with the acknowledged fact that they lived in an age views of truth in the world were comparatively obscure. Ho happen that a Hebrew bard, in the matter of deep religious ex and knowledge, placed himself so high as to be a guide to mar all coming times, after a new revelation should have been int to the world, and after all the attainments which men would ha in the knowledge of religion and of the human heart?

The special value of the Psalms arises (a) from the fact th are adapted to the worship of God; (b) from the fact that they ords of deep religious experience.

(a) As adapted to the worship of God. For this many of the originally designed in their very composition; to this the entir seems to have been intentionally adapted by those who made t lection. It is not necessary to suppose that these sacred song prise the whole of the Hebrew lyrical poetry, for as we kno some of the books mentioned in the Old Testament, though in accomplished their purpose and have been lost, so it may have regard to a portion of the lyrical poetry of the Hebrews. Ma the words of the Saviour, though all that he spoke was pure tr truth such as no other man ever spoke-truth such as the Sp God imparts were lost from not having been recorded (John 21 and in like manner it may have been that truths which were u

ished their

ch productions which have not come down to us, we have doubt that they were of the same general character as have survived, and which now constitute the Book of 7, it is remarkable that the poetry of the Hebrews is so blic worship above all other poetry, and that the poetic nation took so exclusively a religious turn. In this rerew lyric poetry stands by itself, and is unlike that of ation. Among the Greeks there are, indeed, hymns to nns designed to be used in the worship of the gods; but o means the general character of their lyric poetry. ersians, the Arabs, the Romans, the Babylonians, there s such hymns; but this is not the prevailing character of try. In the early Scotch, French, Spanish, Italian, and 7, there are such hymns; but this is by no means the he predominant character of the early lyric poetry of Few of all their lyric compositions can be used in the e true God; nor is that which can be thus used always xalted character as poetry. The composition of psalms a separate poetic art; and though there are specimens, n these languages, of the highest kind of lyric excellence, admitted that a large portion of that species of literaarcely be regarded as even respectable, if it related to than religion. Of the Hebrews, however, this is their ve no other poetry whatever. They have none merely storal which will compare with the Bucolics of Virgil, or he poetry of Burns. Their poetry of the religious kind, a high order. There is none that can be placed on the with much that is found in the hymn books of most deChristians-very good; very pious; very sentimental; upted, as is supposed, to excite the feelings of devotion. flat, so weak, so unpoetic, that it would not, in a volume be admitted to a third or fourth rank, if, indeed, it would all. It is for him who rejects the idea of inspiration, Le Book of Psalms, to account for this fact.

k of Psalms is a record of deep religious experience. , in the estimation of religious persons in general, gives e. It is the guide of young believers; and it becomes > the companion, the comforter, and the counselor, as ves along through the varied scenes of life, and as gray n him, and as the infirmities, which pre-intimate the se of all things, press him down. A religious man is placed in circumstances where he will not find somelms appropriate to his circumstances; where he will e Hebrew sacred bard has not gone before him in the ous experience. Hence, in sickness, in bereavement, in old age, on the bed of death, the Book of Psalms iable and so valuable a companion; and hence, not as enience, but as supplying a want in the minds of men,

aged, for the sick, for those whose powers of vision fail by disease or by years, the Psalms and the New Testament are printed in large type, and bound in convenient forms, that the truths contained in these volumes may be still accessible to the saint ripening for heaven, as the light fails, and as life ebbs away. To the end of the world the Psalms in religious experience will occupy the same place which they now occupy; to the end of the world they will impart comfort to the troubled, and peace to the dying, as they have done in the ages that are past.-Barnes.

PSALMODY.

THE following article was published in the Fresbyterian of Sept. 11th. We reproduce it here in order to put before our readers the true issue on the subject of Psalmody. EDS. R. P. & C.

MESSRS. EDITORS-It is in no spirit of controversy that I desire again a little space in your columns, to make plainer some things in my former communication, noticed in your paper of August 29th, by Dr. M'Laren and your correspondent "H." As I have mislaid the number containing my article, I must depend chiefly on the quotations taken from it by those who have replied to it, aided by my memory and judgment.

It will be, I think, admitted that there is a plain difference, both in regard to inspiration and authority, between a version of the Scriptures, or of any part of them, and another book, a merely human production, even though its sentiments be entirely scriptural-for instance, between the English version of the Bible and the Westminster Confession of Faith. Now, while we cannot say that the former of these is an inspired version, we can say that it is a version of the inspired word. But we can say neither of the latter. While we believe that it is thoroughly scriptural, we do not put it on a level with our English Bible. The same thing is certainly true of any one book in the Bible. The Book of Psalms, in the Scottish version, has a claim to inspiration and authority that the Presbyterian Hymnal has not, because the latter is a human work, while the former is a Divine production, that has passed through human hands in its versification. We claim for the Psalms in our metrical version what we do for them in the prose translation. The fact that the exigencies of metrical rules demands larger supplements and more transpositions, does not affect the position laid down, unless it be contended that in the prose version the utmost limit of license in translating was reached. This, we presume, will not be done.

I will illustrate my meaning by a quotation in both versions, from the 27th Psalm, verse 8-" When thou saidst, Seek ye my face, my heart said unto thee, Thy face, Lord, will I seek."

"When thou didst say, Seek ye my face,

Then unto thee reply

Thus did my heart, Above all things

Thy face, Lord, seek will I."

We have marked in italics in both versions the words added by the translators. These words are not inspired, and it is doubted by some if they constitute the proper supplement. But whether or not, the claims of the verse to be inspired is not affected in either case. I must, therefore, demur to Dr. M'Laren's statement, that our version is our Psalmody. Our position is, that the Psalms of David in our version constitute our Psalmody. I am aware that from want of precision in a sentence which the Doctor quotes, I gave occasion for his statement. That sentence is, "We prefer the Scottish version, and we sing it because it is a version of the inspired Psalms." The idea of singing a version, apart from the Psalms versified, never occurred to us, hence we added, "We can find a divine warrant for singing them" -the Psalms, of course, not it-the version distinct from the Psalms. We no more sing the version in that sense, than our Presbyterian brethren sing the Hymnal as distinct from the hymns composing it.

The different parts of family worship, as prescribed in the Directory, furnish another illustration. These are reading the word of God, praise, and prayer. In observing the first, we read a chapter in the English Bible. A chapter in the Confession of Faith, that would be very good reading at another time, would not do here, just because it is not the word of God, and to read it would be an innovation on the institution of worship. Now, suppose the head of the family sings the part of the 27th Psalm, in the metrical version, containing verse 8, quoted above, and then reads the same Psalm. Is the 8th verse, when read, inspired, and when sung, not inspired? Either this ground must be taken, or that neither is inspired, or the third alternative, that both are inspired. This is our ground; and hence we claim to sing, as well as to read, the inspired Psalms in worship.

These remarks bear on the point of the exclusive use of the Psalms of David, by showing that the true issue is between singing inspired and uninspired songs. In order to remove this difficulty in the way of union, our friend must convince us that the productions of men are as acceptable to God, and as profitable to the worshiper in praise, as the Psalms of inspiration.

My unknown friend, "H.," asks if the "direction in the Catechism is binding and unbending." That direction is, "Not to worship God in any way not appointed in his word." He seems to question if this be the law of the Bible, and infers if it be, we must both preach and pray in the very words of Scripture. My answer is: The Bible con-. tains commands to sing Psalms, Ps. 105: 2, James 5: 13; to read the Scriptures, John 5: 39; to preach and teach, 2 Tim. 4: 2, Matt. 28: 20; and to pray after the manner of the Lord's prayer, Matt. 6:9. An intelligent application of these precepts will, I think, save my friend from either questioning the propriety of the direction in the Catechism, or shutting himself up to use the very words in Scripture in prayer as well as in praise. THOMAS SPROULL.