became very large, so that in a single persecution, by the empress Theodora, 100,000 of them were killed.

They increased till the Greek emperors were roused, and persecuted them with great severity.' 'An officer, named Simeon, was sent to Colonia, who took Sylvanus, or Constantine, and a number of the members of his church. Stones were put into their hands, and with them, they were required to kill their pastor, as the price of their own lives. One of them,' a traitor, named Justus, stoned to death the father of the Paulicians, after he had labored diligently for the salvation of souls, twenty-seven years'.— Justus joined in the persecution against his brethren. But Simeon was struck with the evidences of divine grace in the sufferers, and embraced the faith which he came to destroy. He gave up the world, preached the gospel, and died a martyr!'

SABBATH SCHOOL VISITER.

VOL. II.

OCTOBER, 1834.

NO. 10.

For the Sabbath School Visiter.

BENEVOLENCE OF GOD. NO. III.

I PROCEED, agreeable to promise, to show that God is disposed to make you happy. But I wish you to remember that his being disposed or willing does not imply that he will actually make you happy, except on certain conditions.

The Apostle John says, 'God is Love.' He is loveliness itself. He is so kind, so good, that he delights in mercy. He takes no pleasure in afflicting his creatures, or in the death of the sinner. A good man never takes pleasure in giving pain to any one. When you are sick, your parents feel sorry, and are afflicted on account of it. They dislike to give you nauseous medicines; but to save your life, they do it. Now God is infinitely more kind and tender than any earthly parent. He says he never afflicts willingly, that is, without it is necessary. It gives him no pleasure to punish you; it does him no good. He is perfect; he is as happy as he can be, and therefore he never will punish any one for the sake of inflicting pain. But as kind parents have to do things, frequently, which they dislike to do, so God, your Heavenly Eather, will punish you, if you do not repent of your sins. But more on this point hereafter.

If we had no Bible we might know that God is good. The objects around us would teach us this. The benevolence of God is so clearly seen in the works of nature, that a heathen, without the instruction of the Bible, said, 'God is love and heavenly.' And an inspired Apostle has said that the glorious character of God is so evident from the works of Creation, that the heathen were guilty, and punishable for their ignorance, and hatred of him. See Rom. 1: 20, 21. The goodness of God, as seen in the works of Creation, is frequently brought to view in the VOL. II. 20

scriptures. The civ. Psalm is a full, and most delightful exhibition of God's goodness in the constituton, and operations of nature. Now, my young friends, if God is not kind, and disposed to do you good, why is it that we find every thing around us fitted to make us happy?

But the Bible often asserts expressly the goodness of God. God is Love; God is good; the Lord is good; and his tender mercies are over all his works. Thou, O Lord, art a God full of compassion, and gracious, long suffering, and plenteous in mercy and truth. He is more ready to bestow blessings on those who ask him than parents are to give good things to their children.' And in what a delightful view is his compassion presented in the parable of the Prodigal Son.

There is one more proof of the benevolence of God which I shall briefly exhibit.

You, my friends, have broken God's law,-you are sinners, and God might justly punish you forever. He might not only deprive you of health and all your comforts, but might justly banish you at once to hopeless misery. But He has not dealt with you as your sins deserve. He so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son to die that sinners might live. He so loved the world. What a strong expression! He did not love the sins of the world; but the souls of men.

Jesus Christ died for you; He has invited you to come unto him; He has promised eternal life to you if you will believe on him; God has warned you to cease from sin, and threatened to punish you if you do not, just as a kind parent threatens a child who is disobedient. God has given you the Bible, the privileges of the Sabbath school, and all the means of grace. Now would he do all this if he was not disposed to make you happy? Think how good and kind God has been to you, and how sinful and ungrateful you have been. Repent, and God will forgive you, and love you, and finally save you.

In my next number I shall attend to the other part of the description which I gave of God's goodness. In closing I will ask you one question: If you do not repent, will not God's very benevolence require him to exclude you from Heaven?

C.

For the Sabbath School Visiter.

AN OCCURRENCE IN THE TORRID ZONE.

A SLAVE girl, named Betsey, was on her death-bed on the island of Antigua, in the West Indies. She was but 10 years old. At the age of six she could read her Bible. Soon after, she became unable to walk, and continued so till she died. For some time she had been preparing for death. She now sent for her Sabbath school teacher. When she came, the child said to her, 'Good bye.' She asked, 'Where are you going, Betsey?' 'I am going home.' 'What home do you mean?' 'Heaven.' But don't you feel unworthy to go to such a place?' Yes, I know I am a sinner, but Jesus has pardoned me.'—' Betsey, shall I sing? Yes.' What?'

'This,'

'Behold the Savior of mankind.'

They sung and then prayed. A Mr. T― visited her. She told him she had no fear of death, and gave him a pleasing account of her feelings. He asked, Betsey,

don't you murmur when you see other children running about, while you are confined so long?' She said, 'No, sir, except when I see all the children going down to the Sabbath school on Sundays. I look after them till they are gone and then I cannot help crying.'

The night she died, they proposed to anoint her chest. She said, 'It's of no use. I am going home, so get some rest.'

She prevailed on them to desist a short time; and during this repose her spirit fled to God her Savior.

O! happy African girl! and now she is at home with her Savior. And when she there meets the faithful teacher whom she loved so much, how will her heart beat with joy! Children! do you wish to join her in heaven? Then you must here on earth love to sing about the Savior of mankind. He died for you as well as for Betsey Cameron, the poor heathen slave. O! shall heathen children go to heaven, and you sink down to hell? Seek the Saviorlove him-trust in him. E. HI

Every person might be made more useful and happy than he is, if he would be contented to be employed about one thing,

MISSIONARY SPIRIT AMONG CHILDREN.

[Report of New-Haven S. S. Missionary Association.]

A LITTLE girl having received some money to spend on a holiday, carried it to her teacher and handed her half of it, saying that the rest was enough for her to spend. After turning to go, she came back and gave her the rest. Being asked if she did it willingly, she replied, "Yes,-she would rather it should all go to the heathen."

A lad brought all he had laid up for some time, amounting to 50 or 60 cents. Being asked if he preferred that way of disposing of it to spending it for toys, "Yes," he said, "for if I spend it for things to eat, it will only do good for a little while, but now I hope it will do good forever.

A teacher tells of one in his class who earns his cent a week for the Missionary Association, by making fires; another lad gains his by picking up and selling old scraps of iron. Several have spent the afternoons of Saturdays in working so that they may give something of their own earnings, on the following day. One lad acquired $2 by selling almanacs. When asked by his teacher if he did not wish to take some of it back, he replied, "No-he had no right to it-it was God's money.'

A little girl long detained from Sabbath school by lameness, regularly sends in her contribution, which she earns by knitting. Another, prevented from attending during the winter, solicited the privilege of being considered as belonging to the class, that she might contribute her quarter of a dollar a month. This she received of the family in which she lived, in consideration of her denying herself several indulgences.

A lad having heard a person in addressing the Association, urge the duty of prayer for the heathen, went home to his father, earnestly inquiring what the man meant; "did he wish us, little children, to pray?" Being told, "Yes," he asked how he should pray, &c. and being satisfied in his inquiries he continued from that time, to offer up in his morning and evening devotions, most fervent prayer for the conversion of the heathen.

A girl of the age of 10 years, is represented by her mother to have taken a deeper interest in religion since the two last missionary meetings than ever before, and to delight in conversing about the heathen and missionaries more than ever. She submits to great self-denial and very laborious exertion, for something to contribute to the association.

Says a teacher, in speaking of a lad only seven years old, "He makes many inquiries respecting the heathen, and is very anxious to do all in his power to send them the gospel, and teach the poor heathen children to read the word of God. He has contributed this month $2,25, which, with the aid of his pa