talned? When those perilous time& are a.t their height in which a.II the natural a.ft'ec- tions of men eeem to be blighted, and a.II the natural sa.feguarde against the !!l'owth or evil seem to be overborne by the floods or ungodliness, when a proud boasting°spirit, ae empty a.s it is pretentious, carries men into all kinds or unseemly action, and whPn religion itself, fa.r from guiding men in holy paths, degenerates into hypocrisy and faction and opposition to that which is good, how shall the man of Gud maintain his integrity, abide in the true doctrine of God, and hold his own against the teachers of lies, a.nd the seducers of weak a.nd silly souls? God has provided him with an all- ~nfficient weapon of attack and of defence. In those holy Scriptures which were given by inspiration of God, the man of God finds a. spiritual furniture suitable for every need. By the study of it he acquires fresh wisdom for his task, and by its spirit his own spirit is nourished and refreshed, In the light of its bright truth the pernicious errors of seducers are exposed; by its counsels waverers are established, the weak are strength- ened, the crooked are aet straight a.gain. Conversant with its heavenly doctrine, the man of God is never at a. los■ for a word of rebuke, of comfort, or exhortation. And while, on the one hand, he is able to refute every new heresy that arises, by reference to the uuchanging Word of God, on the other he daily acquires some ne'\V insight into the depths of revelation for his own edification and that of others. He finds that the manifold and many-sided wisdom of the Scriptures is as able to cope with the intellec- tual difficulties of the nineteenth century as it was with the Gnosticism of the East in the first centuries of Christianity. And so, while some turn away their ea.rs from the truth, and turn aside unto fables, the man of God finds his faith daily strengthenin~ and increased, and looks forward fearlessly to the time when the folly of tile sceptic shall be evident to all men, and the truth of Gud·s Word ,hall be vindicated before the whole creation at the appearing of Jesus Chrii1t in the glory of his kingdom.
HOMILIES BY VARIOUS AUTHORS. Ver. 1.-The perilOUIJ times of the apostasy. The apostle next proceeds to predict a further progress in error, with the view of putting Timothy on his guard and sharpen- ing his diligence. I. TBE PEBIOD OF TIDS APOSTASY. "This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come." 1. The "language does not point to the dosing days of the Christian dispensation, for it resembles the language of the Apostle John-" It is the last time" -where the present is undoubteilly referred to, and not the future. :!. The contextual injunction, "from such turn away," applies to the present rather than to a far-distant future. The Christian Church has in all ages shown a condition of things only tuo closely represented by the moral picture in the context. The apostle implies that there were "vessels of dishonour" in the "large house" in his own day, such as Hymenarns and Philetus, a.a well as" vessels unto honour." 3. The language has a wide latitude, C01leri'll!J the whole space q/ the Christian dispensation. The evil had begun to work in the age of Timothy, but the worst development of anti-Christian aeostasy will be in the closing days of the dispensation. The "days of the Messiah" are often alluded to in the Hebrew prophets as "in the last da.ys;" literally," the end of days" (Isa. ii. 2; Hos. iii. 5; Micah iv. 1). rr. 'l'HE DANGEltOUS OHARACTEB OF THIS APOSTASY. "Perilous times shall come." I. It will be a time of danger to the faith of God's people. 2. It will be a time q/ peril to their lives. 3. It will be a time of abounding wickedness as well as error.-T. C.
Vere. 2-5.-<Jharacteriatics of the apostasy. 'l'he doctrinal degeneracy i■ marked by a widespread moral decay. The apostle, after his usual manner, groups the cha111Ctere into classes for more distinct consideration. I. THE SELFIBH OLASS. "For men shall be lover■ ol aelf, lovers of money." Self- ishness heads the dreary liat. It is regarded by many theologians as the root-principle of all sin. As the opposite of love, however, is not selfishness, but hatred, this position ~annot be maintained. Yet selfishness is, a.hove all things, the ha.rd represser of 1ove. The "love of money" has been called "the daughter of selfishness." II. THE OLABB or ARROGANT BOASTERS. •• Boasters, arro~ant, railere." The first are 4-e THE SECOND EPISTLE TO TIMOTHY.
o~tentatioue in spercb; the second, full of pride and contempt for otben; the third are full of insults to men. rn. THE OLA88 WHICH I8 DEFIANTLY REGARDLESS OP RUMAN BELATI0NBRIPI. "Disobedient to parents, unthe.nkful, unholy, without natural affection, implacable." He wbn is regardless of filial duty will be ungrateful to others, and he that is ungrate- ful will have no regard for holinP.ss of character; for be will keep conne.nt with no 01111 who disreg:ar,ls his parent or his benefactor. IV. 'J'HE CLASS DISTINGUISHED BT RECKLESS A.ND PASSIONATE DEFIANCE OP GOOD, "Slanderers, without self-control, fierce, no lovers of good, traitors." The first term roints to the disposition to bring the good down to the level of tae base; the second, to t-he 11bsence of all restraint from law, human or Divine; the third, to the savage tempor I hat delil!hts in cruelty; the fourth, to the spirit that "loves darkness rather than light;" the fifth, to the class of men who could betray their Christian brethren to their pen-ecutors, or behave falsely in any of their existing relationships. V. THE CLASS OF HEADY AND CONCEITl!:D ACTORS. .. Headstrong, puffed up." Rash- ness and conceit are often allied. VI. THE CLASS OF PLEASURE-SEEKERS. "Loven of pleasure rather than lovers of God." It represents a dissipated class under a Christian profession, who have no seriou1 pursuits, and prefer the friendship of the world to the friendship of God. Thus, t.he long Clltalogue of moral enormity developed by the e.i,ostasy began with " the love of self," and ends with "the love of plea.sure," to the utter exclusion, first and last, of the" love of God."-T. C.