11l!iancr. Or from the times of Malachi, when formalist nnd careless Le\'ites were cnrrupting the religious sentimentl! of the people. Or fl'om the state of the Jewish m1tion in the time or our Lord, when the fountains of religious and secular 11uthority were corrupt, nnd the crucifixion of ideal virtue was a possibility. Show in what an e,il c!U'e good people, who feared the Lord, were placed at such times. See the suffer- ing,; of Jeremi11h and of our Divine Lord. So thero arc national times now when ovil 1<entiment prevails, and the 8ervants of God have to "keep silence," because it iN nn "e"il time." 2. The infellecttud. The deistic age of our grandfathers was an evil time for devout believers. This critical age of ours is a time of sore strain for those who wnuld preser"l'e the simplicity of faith. The same truth may be illustrated in the i;maller spheres of family, or school, or business. Whenever self-indulgence, bad senti- ~ents, or e,il chamcters hnve power, those who would live godly, sober, and righteous hves are sorely put to it. 'l'hough for them this need be but culturing discipline the treading on the camomile plant that makes it yield freely its fragrnnce. • I!. THE ILL ESTATE OF THE WICKF.D WHEN THE GOOD, _OR GOD-FEARING, TRIUMPH. This can be treat.ed without any unworthy glorying over the diSRbilities of others. 'l'he point may be illustrated in every sphere, national, political, social, intellectual, or in the smaller spheres of the family, the school, the business, the Church. Tbe point to dwell on is the distress of the wicked, not from personal suffering, but from their inability to do mischief. We may rejoice that the wicked are made helpless by the triumph of goodness.-R. T. Ver. '±.-Loyalty to God's revealed will. It was cbarncteristic of the restored exiles that they endeavoured exactly to reproduce the old Mosaic system; but there was a. grave danger involved in their effort. 'l'hey could not precisely reproduce everything. There must be some adjustment to the very different social and religious sentiments and relations. But those who c!Bimed the authority to make the adjustments would be almost sure to carry their authority too far, and claim to alter and amend the very laws and rule~. Under the guise of translation, adaptation, and amplifica.tion, the new law of the rabbis became established; and the mischief that it had become in the time of our Lord is evident in its actually overlaying the revealed Law of God, and making the J ehITT"ah-religion a burden beyond bearing. Malachi seems to foresee the mischievous gro\Tth of an e,il which had already begun in his time, and in this closing passage of his work solemnly calls the people back to the unquestionable and unrivalled authority of the Horeb-revelation given to Moses. It is the great recall that has been again and again found necessary in the course of the ages. It is the recall needed to-day. "To the Law and to the testimony; if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them" (Isa. viii 20). I. THE SIGN OF GOODh-XSS IN Goo's PEOPLE. Practical interest in God's revealed Wora. The old Jew had none of the difficulties which modern infidelity and modern criticism have put in our fathers' way and in ours. Our fathers were troubled by being assurec that a book-revelation was impossible. 'l'hey might have confidently, , yet meekly replied," But here it is." We are troubled by being told that the Bible is not at all what we think it to be, and is not trustworthy. We may quietly reply, "Whatever it is, it is 'a !Bmp to our feet and a light unto our path.'" Treatment of the Word is the best test of the godly life. II. Goo's REVEALED WoRD SHOULD BE KEPT IN MIND. It is designed to replenish our life at its fountains of thought, knowledge, and feeling. 'l'herefore the prophet says, "Beme1n"ber ye the Law of Moses." Keep it in mind; freshen the memory continually. I II. Gon's REVEALED w ORD IS BEST KEPT IN HIND BY KEEPING IT IN THE LIFE. "If any will do his will, be shall know of the doctrine." Practical obedience is (1) the best teacher; and (2) our best and constant revealer of the need of teaching.-R. 'I'.
Ver. 5.-Tlie, missi= of the second Elijah. There is no rea~on for doubting that JuLn u.e Baptist is referred to. Our Lord'~ allusions to John as fulfilling this prophecy should Bllffice to eettle the question (see Mark ix. 11-13, Revised Version). There nterl he no difficulty in admitting John to be the second Elijah, if we apprehend the £;,;uratiVf: and poetical character of the prophetical Scripture~. One who would do for en. IV. 1-6.) THE BOOK OF MALACHI. 67