seek ye first the Kingdom of God and
his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. Take
therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take
thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil
thereof" (Mat. 6. 19, etc.).[3]

The principal points to be attended to, in the above passage,
are,--The importance attached to a "single eye" and the clear
declaration of our Saviour, that riches disturb the clearness and
simplicity of its vision;--God's care of the lowest of his creatures,
and his provision for those which have neither storehouse nor
barn;--the inference thence deduced by our Saviour, that he will much
more care and provide for those who singly and earnestly seek the
Kingdom of God and his righteousness, though they have neither
store-house nor barn;--and the source of all our distrust and doubt,
clearly intimated in the expression--"O ye of little faith." The
parallel passage in St. Luke is almost verbally the same. It is,
however, more striking, as it is introduced by a practical warning
derived from the conduct of the "rich man",[4] who cries out, on the
contemplation of his security from want,--"Soul, thou hast much goods
laid up for many years", and to whom God replies...--"Thou fool, this
night shall thy soul be required of thee; then whose shall those
things be which thou hast provided" (Luke 12. 13-14). It also
concludes with an exhortation somewhat different from that in St.
Matthew. In the latter it is said--"Lay not up"; whereas in St. Luke
it is said,--"Sell all that thou hast, and give alms; provide
yourselves bags which wax not old, a treasure in the heavens that
faileth not."

To all arguments drawn from passages of this description, the usual
answer is, That the exhortations contained in them are not to be
taken literally, but are to be considered merely as loose general
statements, strongly, and only in appearance absolutely, made, with a
view of producing greater effect. In endeavouring, therefore, to
ascertain their true meaning, let us examine the evidence supplied by
the remarks and conduct of our Blessed Lord and his Apostles, in
those cases which bear upon the point in question.

When the young man came to enquire what good thing he could do to
inherit eternal life, after having mentioned several duties, our Lord
says,--"Yet lackest thou one thing: sell all that thou hast, and
distribute to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: