tuously every day, and are clothed in purple and fine linen;" and we cannot greaLly wonde: that men ,~hould grow hard, and lose the high and inspiring thought of ths " digmty of work. III. THE ONE CONDITION THAT LIFTS ALL HUMAN TOIL INTO DIGNITY. Its usefulness to others. It must be dons "not unto self." And so God has "set the solitary iu families," and put fathers and mothers under the pressure of family responsibility, that iu toiling for others they may win the joy of work. Illustrate from the artist the poet, etc., and ~ee how the condition may apply to all workers. ' IV. THE: YET HIGHER CONDITION WHICH SETS WORK IN ITS TRUE PLACE. It must be done as service to God. 'l'heu work bears upon the culture of religious character, and becomes a stepping-stone upward to the heaveuly. Character is both exhibited and cultured by it; and no kind of occupation can be regarded a._q mean into which character can be put, and by which others may be served, and God may be glorified. Potters, gardeners, hedgers, and workers in fine linen may all win the " ·well done, good and faithful."-R. T. Vers. 39-41.-Might and right. The placo named Gedor is not otherwise men- tioned in Scripture. Ewald and Hertheau think Gerar is the true reading; and thi~ is given in the Septuagint Vcrsion. Reference, then, iij to a portion of the Phili~tina country, which was remarkable for its fertility (Gen. x:x:vi. 6-12; 2 Chron. xiv. 14, 15). We cannot tell whether these princes had any justifiable ground for their ag~ression. But we may dwell on this as an instance of "might" overmastering "right;" for the earlier occupiers may be fairly considered to have had tho "right," and the point of the story is that these princes grew strong, and when they had" ruight" they used it to drive out, and possess the lands of, those who had only "right." 'l'he Eastern mode of kreping flocks by moving them to different parts of widtl pasture-grounds should be explained, and the rivalry and the quarrelling which this too often entails ruay be illustrated in the relations of Abraham and Lot. And the way in which weakening and decaying tribes have to yield before strong and rising tribes and nations, may illustrate the modern doctrine of the "survival of the fittest;" and instances may be found in the story of the great nations, such as Persia, Greece, Rome, etc. I. MAN'S MIGHT IS OFTEN THOUGHT nIGBT. 'fhe two things are perfectly distinct. What we can do is uot necessarily what we ought to do. And man's power must ever be held down under the mastery of a will guided by good judgrnent, right principles, sweet charity, and tender consideration for the claims and rights of others. The Nasmyth steam-hammer affords a good illustration of splendid power held in full control. Yet in tho commoner spheres of life, as well as by kings and great men, might is often mistnken for right. It is often one of the easiest pieces of sell~deception. One of the master principles swaying men is the love of power. 'l'herefore do men get large numbers of servants, retainers, and workmeu; they increase wealth and posses- sions; push into places of position and influence ; and in every possible way seek to gain sway over their fellow-men. And this becomes a peril, and, for many men, the ~evcrest test of virtue and charity. Every true-hearted man will feel tho peril of confusing might with right; and will accept the fact that these two will often be i11 conflict, nod that, for such conflict, the issue must always be the triumph of the right. Man's might is a fatal force for the liberty of his fellow-man, unless it not only seems to be to him, but it actually is, the same as the right. So the practical question ever and ngnin recurring in life is this: "I can, but way I? Will it bo right 'I" Mau',; nobility is full loyalty to the right. II. Goo's RIGHT ALWAYS PRovms TO DE MIGIIT. Always" in the long run." \Ve make many mistakes by only seeing pieces and pcirts of things; so we sometimes sny, "The way of the Lord is not equal." Yet right does always triumph, if we cau properly discern the" right," and propetly appraise "triumph." Hight i8 invincible. Nature, all the good there is in the earth, all the long ages, and Gud himself, are on the side of the rio-ht. 0 'l'his is true for the individual man when, in all simplicity and loyalty, he dues God'8 ri"ht, whatever of seeming disabilitic8 it may involve. llu may l.nve the most perfect confidence that God will make it might, and iu the duu time" brio" furLh his rio-hteousrnss as the light, and hi8 jndgmcut as the noomla.v." lt may Le "prnctically enforced that man's violence overreaches iL~c!l~ w; diJ. llu.mw,~. 60 TllE FIRST BOOK OF TllE CHRONICLES. [en. IV. 1-43,
And that all fo,·cings of his way and will by man imply a failing of trust in God's living lo,e and lead. It is a spirit in striking contrast with that expressed in Jabez's prayer (eh. iv. 10).-R. T.