desire to be filled with this wisdom that prompts to opportune action. "If any of you lack wisdom," says St. James, "let him ask of God, that gi_veth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him" (i. 6).-J. W. Vere. 9-11.-Desiderium a!ternitatis. The thought of there being a fixed order in the events of life, of le.ws governing the world which man cannot fully understand or control, brings with it no comfort to the mind of this Jewish philosopher. It rather, in his view, increases the difficulty of playing one's part successfully. \Vho can be sure that he has hit upon the right course to follow, the opportune time at which to act? Do not "the fixed phenomena" and "iron laws of life" render human effort fruitless and disappointing? Another conclusion is drawn from the same facts by a higher Teacher. We cannot by taking thought alter the conditions of our lives, and should, therefore, Christ has taught us, place our trust in our heavenly Father, who govems all things, and whose love for the creatures he has made is seen in bis feeding the birds and clothing with beauty the flowers of the field (Matt. vi. 25-34). The anxiety which the thought of human weakness in the presence of the immutable laws of nature excites is charmed away by the consolatory teaching of Jesus. But no solution is given of the difficulties that occasioned it. These will always exist as they spring from the limitations of our nature. We are finite creatures, and God is infinite. We endure but for a few years; he is from everlasting to everlasting. Our apprehension of these facts, of infinitude and eternity, prevents our being satisfied with that which is finite anu temporal. "God has set eternity" (vide Revised Version margin) "in our hearts." Though we are limited by time, we are related to eternity. "That which is transient yields us no support; it carries us on like a rushing stream, ancl constrains us to save ourselves by laying hold on eternity" (Delitzsch). We cannot rest satisfied with fragmentary knowledge, but strive to pass on from it to the great worlds of truth yet undiscovered ann. unknown; we would see the whole of God's work from beginning to end (ver. 1), and find ourselves precluded from accomplishing our desire. From Solomon's point of view, in which the possibility or certainty of a. future life is not taken into account, this desidei·ium reternitatis is only another of the illusions by which the soul of man is vexed. But we should contradict our better knowledge, and ungratefully neglect the Divine aids to faith which have been given us in the fuller revelation of tho New 'l'estament, if we were to cherish the same opinion. Dissatisfaction with the finite and the temporal is not a morbid feeling in those who believe that they have an immortal nature, and that they are yet to come into "an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadetb not away" (1 Pet. i. 4).-J. W. Vere. 12, 13.-.Another condition of pure happiness. In these words we have a repetition of the conclusion already announced (eh. ii. 24) as to the method by which some measure of happiness can be secured by man, but there is a very i.mportrmt addition made to the former declaration. Our author is referring to temporal things, and tells the secret by which the happiness they may procure for us is to be won. It consists ot two particulars: (1) a cheerful enjoyment of the gifts of God, and (2) a. benevolent use of them. This latter is the addition to which I have referred. It is a distinct advance upon the previous utterance, as it introduces the idea of an unselfish use of the gifts which·,God has bestowed upon us-an employment of them for the benefit of others less fortunately circumstanced than ourselves. "Over and above the life of _honest labour and simple joys which had been recognized as good before, tho seeker has learnt that 'doing good' is in some sense the best way of getting good" (Plumptre). It may be that beneficence is only a part of what is meant by" doing good," but in the connection in which the phrase is here employed it must he a large part, because it evidently suggests something more as desirable than a selfish enjoyment of the good things of life. This twofold duty of accepting with gratitude the gifts of God and of applying them to good uses was prescribed by the Law of Moses (Deut. xxvi. 1-14); and, to a truly pious mind, the one part of the duty will suggest the other. The thought thnt God in his bounty_he.s enriched us, who are unworthy of the least of all his mercies, will lead us to be compassionate to 1hose who are in want, and we shall find in relieving their necessities the purest and most exquisite of all joys. We shall in this way discover for ourselves the truth of that s&ying of our Lord's," It is more blessed to give 84 ECCLESIASTES; OR, THE PREACHER. [ell, III, 1-22,
than to receive" (Acts xx. 35). While those who selfishly keep all they havo for themselves find that, however their goods increase, their satisfaction in them cannot be increased-nay, rather that it rapidly diminishes. Hence it i11 that the apostlo counsels the rich "to do goo<l, to be rich in good works, to be ready to distribute, willing to c0mmunicate "(1 Tim. vi. 17-19). The general teaching of the Scriptures, therefore, is in harmony with the results of our own experience, and leads_to the same conclusion, that "doing good" is a condition of pure happiness.-J. W.