idolatry." There are those who make riches the object of their worship-who allow the idol of gold to como between their souls and God, having more regard for the possession of wee.Ith than for God's approval, and a greater desire to be rich on earth than to be saints in heaven. What abject and grovelling folly is this! Wealth I So many pieces of yellow mete.I to be our object in life, the end-all and be-all of our existence-pieces of metal that we cannot take away with us when we die (Ps. xlix. 17) or even make sure of keeping with UH during our lifetime; pieces of metal tl,at do not save us one twinge of pain in sickness, or one pang of remorse at death! The idolatry of wealth is even greater folly than the idolatry of persons, and even more degrading to a rational being. III. THE IDOLATRY OF BANK AND STATION. Some, who despise wealth, and have no strong affection for any individuals, have an inordinate regard, a profound ,·eneration, for the possessors of high worldly station. To number princes and nobles among their friends and acquaintances is the highest pleasure of which they are susceptible. They idolize rnnk, consider it a sufficient set-off against all demerits, and will stoop to any- thing in ordel' to bring themselves into contact with it. Here, again, one can only exclaim-What folly! Rank and station, like wealth, belong to this world only. They have to be left bl'hind, with our e,·eryday clothes, when we step into the grave. They are accidents which no way affect a man's true worth, or the estimation in which be is held by those whose esteem is of the slightest account. The prince of to-<lay is the exile of to-morrow; the noble may become bankrupt in purse, and too often is bank- rupt in reputation. Such as idolize rank and court the favour of nobles are despised by men of sense, disliked for the most part and ridiculed by those to whom they labour to make themselves acceptable, Ver. 28.-The duty of kings to be God's shephe:rds. "By me kings reign," says God, "and princes dect·ee justice" (Prov. viii. 15). Though the expression, "the Divine right of kings,'' has been greatly abused, it is yet a truth which all must acknowledge, that monarchs are placed in their responsible position by God, and must answer to him for the use which they make of that position. The whole world is, in a certain sense, God's flock, and the various chief rulers who hold authority over different portions of the human race are rightly viewed as shepherds entrusted by God with the care of this or that division of the flock which is primarily and really bis. Thus- I. EACH KING IS REQUIRED TO ACT AS A SHEPHERD TOWARDS THE NATION OVER WHICH HE IS BET. A. true shepherd seeks the good of his flock, not his own good. He is watchful, vigilant, wisely proviilent. He seeks to benefit hls flock, not to pleasure them. Oftentimes he must check their desires, restrain their wanderings, keep them back from alluring pastures, confine them to high regions, where the herbage is short, scant, and far from succulent. He must be specially careful of the weak and sickly, and of such as have suffered any hurt. He must spare no trouble or pains to secure, so far as he can, the well-being of every sheep and lamb committed to his charge. And furtber- II. EACH KING IS SPECIALLY REQUIRED TO ACT AS .A SHEPHERD TOWARDS THE PORTION OF THE CHURCH OF CHRIST WHICH IS WITHIN HIS KINGDOM. Within the universal flock, which is coextensive with mankind, our Lord bas a special flock, enclosed within a special fold, which he calls in a special sense his own (John x. 1-16). This flock is not, however, confined to one place-it is "dispersed thronghout the whole world." Kings are required to look to its interests in some special way. 'fhe.v are to be "its nursing fathers," as queens are to be "its nursing mothers" (eh. xlix. 23). Cyrus, from the time of his conquest of Babylon, while in a general way the shepherd of all the nations under his rule, was especially the shepherd of Israel. A.ad the case is the same with all those monarchs within whose dominions any portion of the Church of Christ has its abode. England's monarchs bear, among their other titles, the proud one of Fidei Dejensor-" Defender of the Faith." The faith whlch they have to defend is the faith of Christ, and in this defence is neces~arily included the special protection of Christ's faithful ones, or of the Christian community within their realm.
UAUII-U. 162 THE BOOK OF THE PROPHET ISAIAH. [en. XLIV. 1-28.