Perhaps they came from the countries north of Judea, and had there heard of our Lord's miracles in Galilee : but however this may be, they now came to Philip, who was of Bethsaida in Galilee, and begged him to help them to obtain an interview with Jesus.

E. I am sure I hope he did, Mamma.

M. Philip, mentioned it to Andrew; and they both told our Lord how much these strangers wished to see Him; pleased, I dare say, to bring to their Master a sample of that Gentile harvest of which He had often spoken to them. And Jesus told them that the time was indeed at length come, when the Son of man should thus be glorified. The seed, it is true, was not yet actually sown; the Saviour of the world had not yet given up His life for the sins of men: not yet; but the hour was come, as He now told them plainly, when His sacred body, that precious seed! should be sown in the grave, to spring up again in a little while more glorious, and to become the seed as it were of a boundless harvest, even as a grain of wheat is buried in the ground, and dies for a time, but afterwards brings forth much fruit.

How strange must such language have sounded to these Greeks! They came to see a King, one who had just permitted Himself to be received as such in the capital of Judea, in the very temple of Jerusalem, with acclamations and hosannahs. But when they had succeeded in seeing him, He talked to them only of dying; and expressed Himself full of trouble, as if He were on the eve of some suffering, such as had never been known before: as the prophet says, "Behold and see, was there any sorrow like unto my sorrow?" or as He himself at this moment exclaimed, " Now is my

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soul troubled; and what shall I say? Father, save me from this hour?"

E. What then, Mamma, did Jesus wish to give up dying for us?

M. Ah! my child, if He had, what would have become of us? But, no! this was His human nature speaking, and, as human, shrinking from suffering ; but only for a moment. Immediately He corrects Himself, and says, "But for this cause came I unto this hour:" and then, instead of praying to be saved from it, He says, "Father, glorify thy name." You see He forgot His own sorrows in thinking how His Father would be glorified in the salvation of a lost world.

"Father, glorify thy name." But the glory of God should be His glory too, and that not only when His great work should be finished, but now, even now, in the midst of His humiliation. At that very moment came there a voice from heaven, saying, I have both glorified it, and I will glorify it again.”

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E. That voice had been heard twice before: once, you know, when Jesus was baptized, and once when He raised Lazarus from the dead.

M. And again on the mount of Transfiguration. And now it is heard once more bearing witness to the Lamb of God who was about to take away the sins of the world—mysteriously foretelling the triumphs of the cross, by which, as our Lord declared He would destroy the power of Satan, and draw the hearts of all men, both Jews and Gentiles, to Himself. Do you understand me?

E. I think I do: you mean that people of all countries should be brought to love our Lord Jesus Christ by hearing what He had done for them on the

cross. And is this what was meant when the voice from heaven said, I will glorify my name again?

M. Yes; God the Father had been already glorified by His Son's life and doctrine and miracles; and He would still more be glorified by His obedience unto death, even the death of a cross, by His resurrection and ascension, and then by the glorious outpouring of the Holy Ghost, by which His Gospel should be preached, and Gentiles converted to the uttermost parts of the earth. And the hour when this display of mercy and power was to commence, the hour of Christ's death, was close at hand: it was in effect come.

Though our Lord had not told the people in plain words that He was to die, they seem to have gathered this from what He said, and they were much perplexed in their minds about it. They did not understand at all the idea of a suffering Messiah, and they began to question our Lord about it; saying, "We have heard out of the law that Christ abideth for ever, and how sayest thou that the Son of man must be lifted up? Who is this Son of man?" But our Lord did not see fit at this time to satisfy their inquiries; He only exhored them to make the best use of His presence among them while it continued, assuring them that they would only have Him "yet a little while." And but a little while it truly was, before He, who was the light and the life of men, should be taken from them. It was already the passion week. It was already the Monday before that awful Friday when the great sacrifice was to be offered up. Our Lord knew it well; He knew how and when He should die : the scene on Calvary was continually before Him; and so great were its terrors, that even He could not

think of them without amazement and trouble; nor without, as we have seen, almost uttering a prayer that He might be saved from that hour.

E. And yet, Mamma, He was thinking of the people around Him still, and hoping that they would be the better for every moment that He spent among them!

M. Yes; as if no trouble nor trial were approaching, as if there were no Golgotha nor Calvary at hand, as if no such dreadful scene presented itself continually to his thoughts, our Lord continued to the last to instruct mankind: whilst He was in the world, He was the light of the world still. And these last days in Jerusalem seem to have been more especially spent in teaching the multitudes with which Jerusalem was now filled; as the sun is often brightest at its setting.

But the day of our Lord's public entry into Jerusalem was hastening to a close: and, escaping from the people, Jesus withdrew out of the city unobserved, and went with his disciples to the peaceful village of Bethany, and lodged there.

E. How wearied He must have been, Mamma, after such a day! I hope Mary and Martha were there to take care of Him and attend to His wants.

M. No doubt they would have been glad to have done so; and yet the night at Bethany does not seem to have been given to the Saviour's own refreshment. Perhaps the whole of it was spent in prayer, to prepare Himself for that awful hour which was now so fast approaching.

But be this as it may, we are told that, on the following morning, when our Lord was returning to Jerusalem, "he was hungry:" yes, so hungry, that seeing

a fig-tree afar off, having leaves, he came, if haply he might find any thing thereon. This tree stood, you see, by the way side, and was no doubt fair to look upon; covered with its beautiful leaves, and appearing to promise that refreshing fruit which they were wont to conceal. For the fig-tree of Judea was never quite without fruit, unless it was altogether a barren and unfruitful tree. Indeed like many other trees in warm countries, it had generally fruit of every growth upon its branches at once-some green, and some completely ripe. But on this occasion, when its fruit might have refreshed the Son of God, there was nothing to be found thereon but leaves only; and "Jesus said unto it, Let no fruit grow upon thee henceforth for ever. And presently the fig-tree withered away." The breath of Christ destroyed, in a few moments, that unfruitful tree. It withered and died under His sentence.

E. But was not that very strange, Mamma? The fig-tree was not to blame, I think: it could not help it?

M. No, Edward; the fig-tree could not help it; neither could the fig-tree suffer. The sentence was not a punishment of the tree; but it was a forcible method of instructing the disciples, and all who should see what was done, in many important lessons. It was not only a miracle, but a parable;—a parable performed instead of spoken. It pointed out, most strongly, the danger of being without fruit towards God. Are not the people of God continually compared in Scripture to trees and pleasant plants? and are they not expected to bring forth fruits of holiness and love? But if they bear leaves only, however beautiful; if they make ever so fair promises and [Second Series.]

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