and thereby saved himself and family. So likewise was the command to Abram, Separate thyself from thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father's house, and go into a land I will show thee, and I will make of thee a great nation. All of which Abram did in full confidence and trust that God would do as he said, and this history of Abraham is a history of faith and obedience. And to show the strength of that faith, and the fidelity and integrity with which he acted, the sacrifice of his beloved Isaac, as it was made in the father's heart, is proof that in all things within the comprehension of the father of the faithful, he had given to his God his whole heart. If he failed in anything to do his whole duty, it was not for want of purpose, but for lack of knowledge.

Such was likewise the character of Moses. He tried faithfully to do his whole duty to Israel, and to keep them faithful to their covenant obligations. His trials were of the severest character; and nothing but the most unbounded trust in Jehovah, as One able and willing to do all that he had promised, to keep his covenant with Abraham, would have sustained him in his most difficult undertaking. And at every step he took in the exercise of his office, as the leader of, and lawgiver to, Israel, he looked to Jehovah for instruction, for guidance and support. His characteristics, as the servant of the Most High, were faith, trust, love, reverence and obedience, exercised with a fidelity and integrity of soul which does not admit of question. He obeyed with all his heart; and failed only in that which was not yet made known to him, in representing the character and requirements of Jehovah.

This same principle of fidelity and integrity is manifest in Jephthah, judge of Israel. When he went forth to deliver Israel from the children of Ammon, he felt his dependence upon a higher power than he possessed; and he looked to Jehovah for assistance, and according to his highest conception of what was necessary to secure it, he vowed a vow to Him, that if He would, without fail, deliver the enemy into his hands, he would make a burnt offering to Him of that which first came from the doors of his house. The result of which was, that when he returned in triumph to his own family, his only child, the idol of his heart, came out to meet him with timbrels and dances, to signify her love and rejoicings for her beloved father. And he rent his clothes and cried out, O, my daughter, thou hast brought me very low-I have opened my mouth to the Lord and I cannot go back! Here is an exhibition of fidelity and integrity of soul, with foundations so deep, that rains may descend, and floods may come, and winds may blow, and beat upon that which is built thereon, and it will stand, for it is founded on the rock of absolute fidelity and integrity. Its language is, I have opened my mouth unto Jehovah, and I cannot go back.

CHAPTER XV.

THE HEART AND THE UNDERSTANDING.

A PERUSAL of the history of the rise and progress of the spiritual in man, as set forth and illustrated in the Bible, makes apparent the distinction which exists between what is denominated the heart, and what the understanding. By the term heart is meant, that condition which becomes the seat or fountain of the purposes and intentions of the soul. It is seen in the character of the desires and the motives which control the actions of the individual. It is that spiritual state from which the issues of life proceed. It is that in the soul which is represented under the figure of a tree, producing fruit.

The understanding belongs to that department of the soul, which perceives existence in its form, its condition, relation and use. It is that into which the divine significance of every fact, truth, condition, relation and law, is to be translated, so as to give a just comprehension of the Divine Presence in all natural and spiritual phenomena. It is that department of the soul, into whieh all truth is to be received, digested, and assimilated, so that it may find its place in the proper growth and development of the spirit, as the food is digested, assimilated, and transmuted into the vital elements of the organism which it nourishes. It is

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the business of the understanding to ascertain what is good, and true, and just, and pure, and holy, and righteous; and it is the business of the heart to accept, and love and cherish, and be faithful to these divine qualities and attributes, when they have been discovered by the understanding; and the union of the heart or affections with the understanding in obeying the requirements of the Divine, as manifest in these perfect attributes, constitutes true wisdom, and tends to bring the soul forward in the straight and narrow way leading to its high destiny.

Affection, love, fidelity, integrity, etc., belong to the heart. Perception, apprehension, conception of ideas, comprehension, etc., belong to the understanding. The action of the heart gives character; that of the understanding gives quality. The heart impels; the understanding directs; and when the best understanding is exercised under an honest purpose, so that the individual is doing what he thinks is in accordance with the Divine will, he is not a sinner in a spiritual sense, before God. Thus, Paul, while persecuting the Christian believers to prison and to death, verily thought he was doing God service; and hence, up to the time of his conversion, he lived in all good conscience before God. In heart, he was faithful to his highest convictions; in purpose, he was pursuing the highest good, according to his best understanding; and when arrested in his career, his cry was, Lord, what wilt thou have me to do? His heart was right, he only lacked understanding to know what to do.

When the divine Being is known as He is, when His attributes are clearly understood, the faithful heart will

conform the life and actions thereto; and the perpetual inquiry will be, Lord, what wilt thou have me to do? But when the heart is selfish, sensual, perverse, set upon self-gratification, seeking pleasure as its chief end, then, knowing its duty, knowing what is right, and just, and pure, and holy and good, it will sacrifice everything for its own gratification. This is denominated the carnal heart, and is what gives character to the wicked, as distinguished from the righteous. Therefore, the great leading command of the Bible is, GIVE ME THY HEART-Which, being interpreted, is: Be faithful to your highest convictions of what is right, and just, and true and good. And the record of individuals who are represented as having the divine approbation, from Adam to Jesus, includes only those who were faithful to their highest convictions. Where the heart is loyal in the spirit of fidelity and integrity, the requirement being known, it will be obeyed at whatever sacrifice. But when love of self prevails, and selfish advantage or enjoyment demands recognition, then truth, purity, holiness and goodness go to the cross.

We have seen many examples of this loyalty to God, this fidelity and integrity of soul, in Noah, in Abraham, in Joseph, in Moses, and Joshua, in Jephtha, in David, Jeremiah and Daniel; in Jesus and Paul, and all those who stood for the right at whatever cost. They were alike in integrity of character, while they differed widely in their comprehension of the divine character and requirements.

It is a part of divine revelation, that the mind cannot perceive a truth, principle or condition which