fall before the fire. Neither Sacerdotalism nor
Atheism can hold its ground before the celestial burnings. What the
enemies of Jesus have to fear is for the Church to fall upon its knees.
Those who bow before the Lord can stand upright in the presence of His
enemies. The man who, later on in this chapter, we are told cast himself
down upon the earth, and put his face between his knees when he prayed,
was wont to say, "As the Lord God liveth before whom I stand." Let us
only be mighty in prayer, and we shall be mighty enough to make wicked
men tremble. HE WHO CAN WIN FAVOUR IN PRAYER CAN WIN VICTORY IN BATTLE.

THE DEVIL IS A GOOD ANGLER,
HIS MOST CRUEL HOOKS ARE IN
HIS NICEST BAIT.

LVII. A PICTURE OF CONVERSION.
2 KINGS ii. 19-22.

Are not the stories of the Old Testament the parables of the Holy Ghost?
Jesus taught by parables; and the Holy Ghost, the Divine Teacher, who yet
leads into all truth, has stored doctrine in these tales. There is a
kernel inside the shell, if only we have the teeth to crack it.

I.--WE HAVE A PICTURE OF AN UNREGENERATE HEART.

"_The water is naught_," said the men of the city. Does not that
describe many a life? Naughty actions influence for evil; for wherever
these waters flowed they carried desolation. The fields through which
the river ran were useless to the farmer. Are there not some whom we
know who might be thus described--perhaps someone who reads these lines
among the number? First the schoolboy, then the youth, and now the man,
profitless and sour, so that all cultivation has been wasted. Is it so?

And, what makes the disappointment the greater, "the situation is
pleasant." It is just the place where men like to build. Everything
looks so promising. How true this of many in our midst! Have we not
heard some father say, when his boy's beauty has been praised, "_If he
were only as good as he looks_!" Is this so with those who are my
audience? Is there this combination of beauty and bitterness--men who
are courageous but proud, women that are beautiful but vain, workmen that
are industrious but covetous, others who are amiable but
intemperate--servant girls who are wonderfully clean and active but have
a dreadful temper?

Now, it is well for us to learn that we shall no more cure ourselves than
the land around Jericho could bring good crops so long as the water was
bad. Education and other appliances are sure to fail. I dare say the
people had