ger, and ye took me in; naked, and ye clothed me; I was sick, and ye visited me; I was in prison, and ye came unto me. Then shall he say also to them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, &c. - For I was an hungered and ye gave me no meat; I was thirsty and ye gave me no drink; I was a stranger, and ye took me not in; naked, and ye clothed me not; sick and in prison, and ye visited me not."

In many respects the righteous and the wicked resemble each other. They are often alike as to their natural powers and abil ities. In this view, Absalom, Joab and Ahithophel resembled Moses, David and Solomon. There is also a resemblance in their natural tempers and dispositions. Absalom and the young man in the gospel were perhaps in this respect as amiable as Moses, or the beloved disciple who leaned on Jesus' breast. These, and many other circumstances which arise from birth, rank, fortune, religious denominations, &c. are common both to the righteous and the wicked, and will not characterize mankind at the last day. But there is a difference in the hearts of men, which forms a capital distinction in their characters, and will finally place some on the right, and some on the left hand of their Judge. And this is the distinction which our Lord here mentions and describes. He represents the righteous as possessed of that divine love and charity, by which they sought the glory of God and the good of their fellow creatures in all their actions. But he represents the wicked as actuated by a low, mean, mercenary, contracted disposition, which confined all their views and pursuits to their own good. Both these dispositions are described by the apostle Paul. His description of charity or divine love is in these words. "Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, and have not charity, I am become as sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal. And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries, and all knowledge; and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains; and have not charity, I am nothing. And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, and have not charity, it profiteth me nothing." So says our Lord in the text. But the description continues. "Charity suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up, doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own," &c. Whereas the contrary disposition, the apostle says, makes men" lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, without natural affection, truce breakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good, traitors, heady, high minded, lovers of pleasure more than lovers of God." Heat and cold, light and darkness cannot

be more diametrically opposite in their nature and effects, than these two dispositions are. And since all mankind are governed by one or the other of these two principles of action, so there is an essential distinction in their characters, which justly denominates them all either righteous or wicked. Accordingly we find the scripture every where takes notice of this capital distinction in the characters of men, and marks it by such discriminating epithets as these the godly and the ungodly-the holy and the unholy-the just and the unjust-saints and sinners-the friends of God and the enemies of God-the children of light and the children of darkness the children of God and the children of the devil.

As this distinction is of great importance, and closely connected with the subject before us, we shall consider it a little more particularly.

The Supreme Being, in the course of providence, hath acknowledged and paid a visible regard to this distinction between the righteous and the wicked. In describing the character of Noah, he represents him as essentially different from the rest of mankind at that day. "God looked upon the earth, and behold it was corrupt; for all flesh had corrupted his way upon the earth: And the Lord said unto Noah, Come thou, and all thy house into the ark; for thee have I seen righteous before me in this generation." Here God distinguished the righteous from the wicked, and, to exhibit a public and visible regard to this distinction, he saved the righteous and destroyed the wicked.

He likewise asserted and vindicated the distinguishing character of Job. "The Lord said unto Satan, Hast thou considered my servant Job, that there is none like him in the earth, a perfect and upright man, one that feareth God and escheweth evil?" The great accuser of the brethren disputed the truth of this divine declaration. "Then Satan answered the Lord, and said, Doth Job fear God for nought? Hast thou not made an hedge about him, and about his house, and about all he hath on every side? Thou hast blessed the work of his hands; and his substance is increased in the land. But put forth thine hand now, and touch all that he hath, and he will curse thee to thy face." As if he had said, 'There is nothing singular in the character of Job. He conducts no otherwise than any other person would in the same situation. Let any other man receive equal tokens of thy love and favor, and he will make equal returns of gratitude and obedience. Sinners love those that love them. He is, like all other men, entirely governed by mercenary motives. Therefore only touch his interest, and strip him of those peculiar favors thou hast lavished upon him,

and he will drop the mask, discover his hypocrisy, and curse thee to thy face. To wipe off these aspersions from Job's character, and to convince Satan that he acted from truly noble, disinterested motives, God gives him leave to try him with any afflictions or calamities short of death. Satan with pleasure makes the experiment. He brings a train of evils upon Job in thick succession. He strips him of his wealth. He slays his servants. And to close the scene, he rends from his heart the dear objects of his affections, in the sudden and surprising death of his children. Thus he tumbles him, in a moment, from the summit of human glory into the depths of human wo. Here is a fair trial. And what is the effect? Does he curse God as Satan predicted, and as an unholy, unsubmissive heart would naturally prompt him to do under such a severe, corrective stroke? Nothing more remote. "Then Job arose, and rent his mantle, and shaved his head, and fell down upon the ground, and worshipped, and said, Naked came I out of my mother's womb, and naked shall I return thither. The Lord gave, and the Lord hath taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord." Here is, as far as can be, a visible demonstration of the essential difference between nature and grace, between a saint and a sinner.

On another very memorable occasion, God explicitly acknowledged the reality and importance of this distinction. He had resolved to destroy Sodom. But previously to the execution of this design, he revealed his purpose to Abraham, who immediately breaks forth into the most fervent intercession for those miserable objects. And this is the language in which he addresses the Most High. "Wilt thou destroy the righteous with the wicked? That be far from thee to do after this manner, to slay the righteous with the wicked; and that the righteous should be as the wicked; that be far from thee. Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?" God graciously replies to this and his repeated importunity, that if he found fifty, or forty-five, or forty, or thirty, or twenty, or even ten righteous persons in the city, he would spare the whole place for their sakes. And when neither of these numbers could be found, he delivered just Lot, as a standing monument that the Judge of all the earth would do right. Such are the public, visible, striking testimonies, which God himself hath borne to the distinction between the righteous and the wicked.

David mentions and describes this distinction in almost every Psalm. It may suffice to quote the first, as a specimen of the "Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful. But his delight is in the law of the

rest.

Lord, and in his law doth he meditate day and night. And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither, and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper. The ungodly are not so; but are like the chaff which the wind driveth away. Therefore the ungodly shall not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous;-but the way of the ungodly shall perish." If it be said this Psalm refers to Christ, it is sufficient to observe, that there is no evidence of it from any description of his person or character, nor from any part of it being applied to him in the New Testament.

The book of Proverbs is, in a manner, one continued contrast between the righteous and the wicked.

The declarations of Christ on this head, deserve special attention and regard. His sermon on the mount contains a beautiful description of the discriminating characters of the righteous. "Blessed are the poor in spirit; for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are they that mourn; for they shall be comforted. Blessed are the meek; for they shall inherit the earth. Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness; for they shall be filled. Blessed are the merciful; for they shall obtain mercy. Blessed are the pure in heart; for they shall see God." That Christ here intends to distinguish saints from sinners, in respect to the inward motions and affections of their hearts, is not only evident from the description itself, but from the observation which he immediately subjoins. "For I say unto you, That except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the Scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven." And in the conclusion of this chapter, he more particularly describes the nature and essence of the distinction which he had before been speaking of. "Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbor, and hate thine enemy; But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them that despitefully use you, and persecute you; that ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven; for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust. For if ye love them that love you, what reward have ye e? do not even the publicans the same? And if ye salute your brethren only; what do ye more than others? do not even the publicans so? Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect." Our Lord here represents the children of God as bearing his divine image, and possessing his divine spirit, which distinguishes them from the rest of mankind, who are utterly destitute of such a holy and

heavenly temper. And in his conference with Nicodemus, he points out the source from whence they derive this special grace, and who it is that makes them to differ. "Verily, verily, I say unto thee, except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God." "That which is born of the flesh, is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit, is spirit; marvel not that I said unto thee, ye must be born again."

We have only to add the testimonies of the apostles to this important distinction. St. Paul declares, "If any man have not the spirit of Christ, he is none of his." Again, "If any man be in Christ, he is a new creature; old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new." And he represents saints as distinguished not only from sinners, but from themselves whilst in a state of nature, by the special influence of the divine Spirit. "And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins; wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience; among whom also we all had our conversation in times past, in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh, and of the mind: and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others." And in another place, after mentioning a catalogue of the blackest characters, he reminds the saints: "such were some of you; but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God." The apostle John, in the first chapter of his gospel, says, "As many as received Christ, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name; which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God." And in the third chapter of his first epistle, he insists on the same distinction as a matter of high importance. "Little children, let no man deceive you," (by pretending there is no difference between saints and sinners, for) "he that doth righteousness is righteous, even as he," that is Christ, "is righteous; he that committeth sin is of the devil; for the devil sinneth from the beginning." "Whosoever is born of God, doth not commit sin; for his seed remaineth in him; and he cannot sin, because he is born of God. In this the children of God are manifest, and the children of the devil; whosoever doth not righteousness is not of God, neither he that loveth not his brother." Thus the essential distinction between the righteous and the wicked appears to be perfectly consonant to the whole tenor of the sacred oracles.

III. Christ farther asserts, that the righteous and the wicked. shall be separated from each other, and respectively rewarded

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