is to pass into the possession of the heathen. Such was only the natural reenlt of Israel's wickedness, nnd it stands in history as an affecting warning against ungodly counsels. "Cursed be the man that trusteth in man, and maketh flesil his arm, and whose heart departeth from the Lord" (Jer. xvii. 6-8). "My brethren, it is a great mercy of God to be so wholly taken from a.II carnal props, from all vain shifts and hopes a.a to be thoroughly convinced that there is no help in any thing, or in any creature, in heaven and earth, but only in turning to God, and casting the soul down before mercy• if that saves me not, I am undone for ever" (Jeremiah Burroughs, vn loc.). ' II. THE l'OWER OF BIN TO HOLD FAST THE SOUL. (Ver. 7.) Israel was "bent on backsliding" from Jehovah. They were" fastened to defection" (Calvin); or," impaled upon apostasy as upon a stake" (Keil). The prophets "called" and exhorted the people, but in vain. They refused to raise themselves, in order to return to the Most High. Such is the effect of sin when long persisted in. All of us have by nature this fixed aversion to God and Divine things, unless he interpose in his grace to wean us from our idols. Even while the Word is calling 1lll to rise, the flesh persistently drags us downwards, and with a dead weight which only the might of the Spirit of God can overcome. Many professors of religion suddenly fall away, because, the" good work" never having been begun in them, they cannot restrain themselves from at last following visibly the "bent" of nature. And how hard it is, even for the Lord's true people, to escape from the entanglement of old habits of 11in I During the process the soul may be often convulsed, if not al.most torn asunder. A good man will sometimes continue throughout life to follow a trade or profession about the moral lawfulness of which his conscience is continually uneasy. Only by steadfastly looking to Christ, and allowing his love to flow into the heart, can we be set free from the dangers of backsliding. Clothed with his strength, the believer, instead of being "impaled upon aposta.My," shall daily "crucify the flesh with the affections and lusts." Once more, this passage reminds us that-- III. To" REFUSE TO RETURN" TO JEHOVAH IS THE SIN OF BINS. (Ver. 5.) Ephraim had done more and worse than to reject the Lord as the chief good. He had, besides, scorned the Divine grace and mercy which had so long and lovingly "called" him to "return," and promised to " heal his .backsliding." For such foul and shocking ingratitude the ruin of the northern kingdom was a righteous retribution. And so now, in these gospel times, the denial of the Lord Jesus Christ as the Saviour is the crowning sin of man. To reject him is to ".refuse to return" to Jehovah. It is to ::>ppose the clearest light, and to despise the dearest love. It is to elect to serve Satan rather than God. This sin of sins does not render it necessary that sentence be pro- nounced against those who are guilty of it: the sinner's unbelief is of itself his sentence. "He that believcth not hath been judged already" (John iii. 18). If we neglect the great salvation, there can be no escape for us from eternal shame and ruin. Sins against law do not exclude the possibility of the exercise of mercy, but the pernistent rejection of mercy must close the door of hope against the soul for ever (Prov. i. 24-33).-C. J.
Vera. 8-11.-" Mercy seasons j'Uotice." Jehovah's love for Israel had been con• spicuous during the infancy of the nation (vers. 1--4); but it seems even more wonderful now, in the time ot Ephraim's moral decrepitude and premature decay. '!'here is no more exquisitely pathetic passage in Holy Scripture than the one before us. It is of a piece with Jeremiah's prophecy respecting the restoration of the ten tribes (Jer. xxxi. 20). The denunciation of punishment contained in vers. 5-7 suddenly dissolves into an ecstasy of tenderness, which is followed by a promise of blessing. I. THE LORD'S MERCY TO EPHRAIM. (Vers. 8, 9.) Moses had predicted (Deut. xxix. 23) that the lapse of the nation into confirmed idolatry would be punished with a curse upon" the whole land," like that which overtook tho cities of the plain (Gen. xix.). But just when we might expect the lawgiver's words to be at once fulfilled, there is an outburst of Divine compassion. Here the Lord is: 1. .Apparently changeful. It often seems as if, instead of there beinii: one centre of thought in this book, there were rather two foci. In Hosea's mesHage threats and promises alternate, anu. sometimes commingle. In ver. 8 the Lord, speaking alter the manner of ruen, appears as if in doubt as to his course of action. Is justice to have its way to tho end, or is any place to be found for 34-6 THE BOOK OF HOSEA. [on. :u, 1-12.