and receive your spirit in the mansions of felicity, * where no tear shall again start from your eye, but where you shall see him as he is, full of love and glory, and where, with a glorified body like his own, you will sing his praises for ever and ever.

Did Christ o'er sinners weep!
And shall our cheeks be dry?
Let floods of penitential grief
Burst forth from every eye.

The Son of God in tears,
Angels with wonder see!
Be thou astonished, O my soul!
He shed those tears for thee.

He wept that we might weep,
Each sin demands a tear:
In heav'n alone no sin is found,
And there's no weeping there.

Joy beams in every eye,

And fills each holy heart;

All join to sound the triumph high,

In praise to bear their part.

BARZILLAI AND DAVID.

Who hopes a friend should have a heart
Himself, well furnish'd for the part,
And ready on occasion,

To show the virtues that he seeks;
For 'tis an union that bespeaks,
A just reciprocation.

Cowper.

THERE is something in the history of an old man which seldom fails to afford lessons of instruction. Of Barzillai we have no information, except his generous attention to David when in a state of exile, and which is recorded in the nineteenth chapter of the second book of Samuel. Driven from his throne by the usurpation and unnatural rebellion of his son Absalom, David, with a few of his friends, fled to the land of Gilead, and made a sort of encampment at Mahanaim, which happened to be the very place where, many years before, Jacob was succoured by angels, at the time when he fled from the angry face of his brother Esau. Near this place, at Rogelim, lived Barzillai, who, with others of his rich neighbours, supplied David and his men with

necessaries for their support; and on the event of his restoration, accompanied him over Jordan, and then returned. I purpose to make the account we have of this venerable old man the subject of a few reflections, under an impression that it may contribute to the instruction and pleasure of the reader.

I. We are informed that Barzillai was a very great man. In worldly possessions he must have been so, or he could not have so liberally supplied the wants of David and his companions. The endowments of his mind, and the experience he had gained in so long a life, must have been very great; and whether he had sustained public offices as a magistrate or judge, the public opinion of him was that of a very great man. His very advanced age, ten years beyond the usual age of man, with his venerable appearance, must have added much to the greatness of his character. But if his kindness to David and his men in distress be received as an expression of the general texture of his heart, we may certainly say, that he was a very great man in acts of benevolence, kindness, charity, and love to his afflicted fellow creatures. Whether by influence or not, it appears from the seventeenth chapter, that Shobi and Machir, two of his rich neighbours, mutually supplied the wants of the exiles. And as a copy of the bill of fare, if I may so call it, or list of articles with which they supplied the people, is recorded in the two last verses, with the reason which excited their kindness, I will trans

cribe it. They brought beds, and basons, and earthen vessels, and wheat, and barley, and flour, and parched corn, and beans, and lentiles, and parched pulse, and honey, and butter, and sheep, and cheese of kine, for David, and for the people that were with him, to eat: for they said, The people is hungry, and weary, and thirsty, in the wilderness. How good and honourable it is, when persons of opulence and age in a neighbourhood are equally possessed of benevolence, to relieve the wants of the needy! But after all, may we not say, that old Barzillai was great in the fear of the Lord? for this alone, according to the language of Scripture, constitutes a great man; nor do we ever apply it to a bad man, whatever may be his situation in society. The whole of his conduct to David and his afflicted people was strongly marked with all that seriousness, solidity of judgment, and kindness of heart, which could be the effect of nothing else than the fear and reverence of the God of Israel; and certainly this forms the just character of every great and good old man, find him where you may.

II. The conduct of Barzillai to David, when God, by his providence, called him back again to possess his throne in Jerusalem, is peculiarly honourable to his character. Absalom, while pursuing his father, was put to death, his army routed, and David is welcomed to return to Jerusalem. Old Barzillai partook of the joy, and offered to accompany the king over Jordan. This was certainly an expression of his attachment to David, and his wish to pay him the

greatest, as well as the last expression of his friendship, notwithstanding the greatness of his age, and the natural infirmities which he may have had; and surely he is justly entitled to our admiration for the noble and generous spirit which he possessed. And the king said unto Barzillai, Come thou over with me, and I will feed thee with me in Jerusalem. This is a fine expression of David's grateful heart, for the favours he had received from this good old friend. Barzillai had fed him in the wilderness, and in return David invites him to partake of the hospitalities of his court. By the hand of Barzillai he had been refreshed in his gloomy exile; now he invites him to Jerusalem, to share in the triumph on his re-ascending the throne of Israel, and there to spend the remainder of his days. I know not which to admire most, the attachment of this good old man to David, or the grateful, generous effusions of David's heart in return! Both of them acted their part in the fear and presence of the God of Israel, and both of them shared in the smiles of Providence in producing the restoration of the exiled king. The reply of Barzillai to David's invitation is so highly interesting, and must especially be so to every aged person, that we will make it the subject of another paragraph.

III. And Barzillai said unto the king, How long have I to live, that I should go up with the king unto Jerusalem? I am this day fourscore years old: and can I discern between good and evil? can thy servant taste what I eat or what I drink? can