There it is evermore, and we hear it sounding on, giving foundation and law and life to all the parts and voices that roll and swell above it.

And conceiving of the divine writing under consideration as an anthem of God's truth, sounded forth for man's salvation, and an anthem of many voices, its undertone of recurrent, solemn warning, seems no less grand, and no less vital to the full force of the music. It is a blessed and majestic truth that our Saviour is the Son of God, clothed with all adorable perfections; and let that truth be proclaimed in song asa melody of music worthy of angelic lips. But if the Saviour be thus exalted, what dignity must attach itself to his work. How absolutely necessary must be his work in order to man's salvation, and what a glorious salvation must that be which his work provides, and how great must be the grace which prompted him to provide it—even by the tremendous sacrifice of himself, and then what loss and what guilt must be incurred by those who neglect or despise this salvation. And thus begins the undertone of this music. "O, what great salvation," sounds the delightful melody, "provided by the only and the beloved Son of God!" And the undertone is heard, deeply rolling its words of warning, "Ah, how shall we escape, how shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation?" And so continues the heavenly melody through this sacred writing; of Christ our merciful High Priest, able to succor every tempted soul; of Christ our Eternal High Priest, able to save to the uttermost all who come unto God by him; of the new and living way opened into the holiest of all by the blood of Jesus, through which we draw nigh to God; of a complete and glorious salvation for every humble soul, desiring and trusting in Jesus: thus sings the heavenly melody. Yet, at the same time, and all along, is heard the undertone, sounding louder as it sounds longer, proclaiming the truth that the greatness of God's grace lays man under increased weight of obligation, and that the rejection of his grace calls for a vengeance as sore as the grace is wonderful, and exhorting that we refuse not him that speaketh.

And is it not, we ask, this underlying truth that chiefly makes impressive the truth above it? Is it not the alternate truth which gives evident and deep significance to the princi

pal truth? Is it not the dark background which brings into light the figures on the foreground? We might revere and extol, with delighted heart, the blessed truth of God's tender compassion, of his forgiving mercy, of his long-suffering kindness, not willing that any should perish; but is it not when we see this truth in contrast with his awful holiness, his strict and eternal justice, his solemn purpose by no means to clear the guilty-is it not then that the former truth takes it firmest and fullest possession of our souls? And is it not when, in this Epistle, we see the God of our salvation, in all the glory of his adorable mercies, pouring out the treasures of his heart for our blessing, and longing for our salvation, and yet, at the same moment, hear this declaration, “It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God," and this, "For our God is a consuming fire "-is it not, then, that our souls become burdened with the truth of God's compassions? Is it not the undertone of warning, sounding its low thunder, that profoundly moves our souls with its reverberations?

No doubt the peculiar element of teaching in this Epistle referred to, had a special significance for those Jews, or Jewish Christians, to whom the Epistle was at first addressed. They had heard the gospel preached, and many of them had professedly embraced it; yet they were tempted to renounce their profession, or, if they had not professed Christ, they were tempted to disclaim any interest which they had once felt in the Christian religion. They were tempted to return to Judaism and rest there. That was a religion which, on many accounts, pleased them better than Christianity. So, while the writer of this Epistle endeavors to convince them that the Christian religion is true, that it is the reality of which Judaism was but the shadow, and that it is the only true religion; and while, arraying his matchless arguments for this end, he, at the same time and by the same act, exhibits with wonderful fulness and force the great truths of the gospel; he also interposes the warnings here found, because those exact warnings were specially needed by the persons to whom he wrote, and because the truths which he had exhibited were exactly adapted to enforce such warnings. In their careless preference of Judaism over Christianity, they did not

see how great a salvation that is which the gospel provides; and hence, when the apostle exhibits its greatness as seen in the dignity of Christ's person, he also warns them, “How shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation?" So again, the apostle declares that by rejecting Christianity and going back to Judaism, they would re-enact the tragedy of Christ's crucifixion. They would approve the murderous act of their countrymen, who thus declared, "We will not have this man to reign over us." And thus deliberately rejecting Christianity, after they had been enlightened to know its real character, thus crucifying to themselves the Son of God afresh and putting him to an open shame, it would be out of the question for them ever to be saved. Such apostacy would be final and hopeless. So, still further, the apostle shows that as the Old Testament rites had been done away by the sacrifice of Christ, and no longer had any force, those who went back from Christianity to Judaism. renounced a reality for a nothing; rejecting the sacrifice of Christ, which was a real atonement, and which turned away the wrath of God, there was for them no sacrifice whatever, there was nothing to come between them and the wrath of God, so that "there remained" only "a certain fearful looking-for of judgment and fiery indignation which should devour the adversaries;" and they were warned that "it is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God." Thus these admonitions had a special adaptation to those who were tempted to renounce Christianity for Judaism.

Yet this special adaptation relates to the form, rather than to the substance of these warnings. As the principal teachings of this Epistle concerning the person and work of Christ are of universal and perpetual interest, so the warnings which answer to these teachings have a full application wherever men, for any reasons whatever, are disposed to neglect or reject the gospel. And knowing how prone men are to prefer religions of their own to that of the Bible, knowing how ready they often are to go back from the doctrine of Christ the Son of God sacrificed for our sins, and faith in him as the only way of salvation, and to take up the idea of God's general mercy, or of man's goodness, or of the merit of human penances and sacrifices, or of what not?-knowing

this, it is no doubt the duty of the minister of the word frequently to repeat these same warnings, and to urge them as Paul did, by the consideration of the great and gracious things of the gospel. It is the duty of every Christian minister to make these warnings the undertone of all his preaching, even as Paul did of all this Epistle.

The truth needs perpetually to be brought before the minds of all who hear the gospel, that just in proportion to the magnitude of God's mercies to us in Christ Jesus, is the guilt of our neglect, or unbelief, or apostacy. If God had done little or nothing for human salvation, then the guilt had been less which refused his proposals. If men thought they saw better grounds of hope elsewhere, and hence looked elsewhere, it would not have been quite so strange, or sad, or wicked. But how stands the matter in regard to the religion of Christ? How intense the interest which God evinces in this religion! This seems to have the very highest place in his heart. It is not, apparently, so much the happiness of the angelic world, and the worship which angelic hosts continually offer, that engages and delights him, as it is the salvation of perishing men, and the worship of the penitent and brokenhearted of earth.

We look to God's word, and we see that God is everywhere interested there. How clearly he reveals, how fully he explains, how urgently he remonstrates, how tenderly he persuades, plying men at every point with the most powerful motives. There is nowhere in the world a book so much in earnest as the Bible; and all its earnestness has direct relation to the matter of man's salvation. This end-this-by every holy or innocent means, God would compass.

We look further, and we learn the same lesson in seeing what God has actually done for men in his gospel; at what a sacrifice on his part the foundations of human pardon are laid, and the channel for his saving mercy is opened. The declaration may have a familiar sound, but we do not know its full meaning, and we never shall, though we ponder it to eternity, that "God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him might not perish, but have everlasting life." Here were all gifts which even God could bestow, summed up in one. God had but

one Son, and he did not give him for angels, but sacrificed him for men. In the one gift and sacrifice he poured out all the treasures of his merciful heart, and expended for our salvation all that even God could possibly give, for any object or for all objects combined.

And if this is not enough to illustrate the urgency of the claims of religion, we may look further to the Son of God, and see him coming forth from the Father and veiling himself in flesh, and wearing out and giving up his life in bearing our sins and carrying our sorrows; we may see him as the ever-living Priest of his people, perpetually interceding for them in heaven; we may see him exalted to be head over all things unto his church, and as king over the universe, ordering all things for the progress of his cause, and satisfied only when he sees of the travail of his soul in the justification of many.

And if this is not enough, we may still further look to the Holy Spirit of God, and see him descending from heaven and dwelling in our world of sin; see him engaged continually in his work of moving upon the hearts of men to bring them to the Saviour, enlightening their darkness, humbling their pride, renewing their wills, strengthening their weakness, striving unweariedly in them against sin, and helping them on to God.

And if even all this is not enough, we may consider still further that complicated apparatus which God has instituted and set in motion for extending and perpetuating his religion. What mean our sabbaths, our sanctuaries, the living ministry, the circulating Bible, the sacraments, the company of God's people-and all these in constant and full employment-what mean they all, if God is not intent upon the salvation of men through the gospel of his Son?

And the question comes, can it be that what thus lies so near the heart of God, and thus employs so fully the energies of God, and thus involves so largely the glory of God,-can it be that this is a matter which men may innocently disregard, or lightly let go for rival interests and claims? Or, rather, do we not perceive again and more clearly, that all the stupendous truths of our religion unite and sing, even on