GOD IS THE PARENT OF ALL.

Behold the shepherd of the flock, he taketh care of his sheep, he leadeth them among clear brooks, he guideth them to fresh pasture; if the young lambs are weary, he carrieth them in his arms; if they wander, he bringeth them back.

But who is the shepherd's Shepherd? who taketh care of him? who guideth him in the path he should go? and if he wander, who shall bring him back?

God is the shepherd's Shepherd. He is the Shep-herd over all; he taketh care of all: the whole earth

is his fold; we are all his flock; and every herb and every green field is the pasture which he hath prepared for us.

The mother loveth her little child; she bringeth it up on her knees; she nourisheth its body with food; she feedeth its mind with knowledge; if it is sick, she nurseth it with tender love; she watcheth over it when asleep; she forgetteth it not for a moment; she teacheth it how to be good, she rejoiceth daily in its growth.

But who is the Parent of the mother? who nourisheth her with good things, and watcheth over her with tender love, and remembereth her every moment? Whose arms are about her to guard her from harm? and if she is sick, who shall heal her? God is the Parent of the mother; he is the Parent of all; for he created all. All the men and all

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the women, who are alive in the wide world, are his children; he loveth all, he is good to all.

The king governeth his people. He hath a golden crown upon his head, and the royal sceptre in his hand. He sitteth upon a throne, and sendeth forth his commands. His subjects fear before him. If they do well, he protecteth them from danger; and if they do evil, he punisheth them.

But who is the Sovereign of the king? Who commandeth him what he must do? Whose hand is stretched out to protect him from danger? and if he do evil, who shall punish him?

God is the Sovereign of the king. His crown is of rays of light, and his throne is amongst the stars. He is King of kings, and Lord of lords. If he bid us live, we live; and if he bid us die, we die. His dominion is over all worlds, and the light of his coun'-te-nance is upon all his works. Shepherd, therefore we will follow him: Father, therefore we will love him: King, therefore we will obey him.

MORTALITY.

God is our

God is our

God is our

Child of mortality, whence comest thou? why is thy coun'-te-nance sad, and why are thine eyes red with weeping? I have seen the rose in its beauty; it spread its leaves to the morning sun.I returned: it was dying upon its stalk: the grace of the form of it was gone: its love'-li-ness was vanished

away; the leaves thereof were scattered on the ground; and no one gathered them again.

A state'-ly tree grew on the plain; its branches were covered with verdure; its boughs spread wide, and made a goodly shadow; the trunk was like a strong pillar; the roots were like crooked fangs. I returned: the verdure was nipped by the east wind; the branches were lopped away by the axe; the worm had made its way into the trunk, and the heart thereof was decayed: it mouldered away, and fell to the ground.

I have seen the insects sporting in the sunshine, and darting along the stream; their wings glittered with gold and purple; their bodies shone like the green em'-e-rald; they were more numerous than I could count; their motions were quicker than my eye could glance.I returned: they were brushed into the pool; they were perishing with the evening breeze; the swallow had devoured them; the pike had seized them: there were none found of so great a multitude.

I have seen man in the pride of his strength; his cheeks glowed with beauty; his limbs were full of activity; he leaped; he walked; he ran; he rejoiced in that he was more excellent than those.I returned he lay stiff and cold on the bare ground; his feet could no longer move, nor his hands stretch themselves out; his life was departed from him, and the breath out of his nostrils. Therefore do I weep:

because death is in the world. The spoiler is among the works of God: all that is made must be destroyed; all that is born must die: let me alone, for I will weep yet longer.

IMMORTALITY.

I have seen the flower withering on the stalk, and its bright leaves spread on the ground.—I looked again, and it sprung forth afresh: the stem was crowned with new buds, and the sweetness thereof filled the air.

I have seen the sun set in the west, and the shades of night shut in the wide ho-ri'-zon: there was no colour, nor shape, nor beauty, nor music; gloom and darkness brooded around.- I looked: the sun broke forth again from the east, and gilded the mountain tops; the lark rose to meet him from her low nest, and the shades of darkness fled away.

I have seen the insect, being come to its full size, languish and refuse to eat: it spun itself a tomb, and was shrouded in the silken cone: it lay without feet, or shape, or power to move.I looked again : it had burst its tomb; it was full of life, and sailed on coloured wings through the soft air; it rejoiced in its new being.

Thus shall it be with thee, O man! and so shall thy life be renewed. Beauty shall spring up out of ashes, and life out of the dust. A little while must thou lie in the ground, as the seed lieth in the bosom

of the earth but thou shalt be raised again; and, if thou art good, thou shalt never die any more.

Who is he that cometh to burst open the prison doors of the tomb: to bid the dead awake, and to gather his redeemed from the four winds of heaven? He descendeth on a fiery cloud; the sound of a trumpet goeth before him; thousands of angels are on his right hand.

It is Jesus the Son of God; the Saviour of men; the friend of the good. He cometh in the glory of his Father: he hath received power from on high.

Mōurn not, therefore, child of immortality !For the spoiler, the cruel spoiler, that laid waste the works of God, is subdued: Jesus hath conquered death:Child of immortality! mourn no longer.

HEAVEN.

The rose is sweet, but it is surrounded with thorns : the lily of the valley is fragrant, but it springs up amongst the brambles. The spring is pleasant, but is soon past the summer is bright, but the winter destroys the beauty thereof. The rainbow is very glorious, but it soon vanishes away: life is good, but it is quickly swallowed up in death.

There is a land, where the roses are without thorns, where the flowers are not mixed with brambles. In that land there is eternal spring, and light without any cloud. The tree of life groweth in the midst thereof; rivers of pleasures are there, and