spoken in their nation generally at the time the translations were made. In consequence of the conquests made by Alexander and his successors, the Greek language was spoken over a great part of the world during many generations before the incarnation of Christ. Hence the first translators belonged to a nation which spoke two languages. They knew the Hebrew, for they were educated in it, and a dialect of it was spoken by their nation; and they knew the Greek also, for it was commonly spoken by the people; and in the time of Christ even the Latin language was also spoken by some, it having been introduced by the Romans, and spoken by the soldiers, who then lived in Judea; and hence it was that the inscription on the cross of our Lord was written in three languages, because all three were understood:-" And a superscription also was written over him in letters of Greek, and Latin, and Hebrew, This is the King of the Jews" (Luke xxiii. 38.) Such being the case, it would be no difficult matter to translate both the Old Testament into Greek and Latin, and the New Testament into Syriac and Latin; and accordingly we find that these were the first translations that were made. and those translations have come down to our own times. Thus the way was prepared for other translations to follow, as the various nations required them. In no work has the Church of God been more diligent from age to age, than in the work of translating the Scriptures; and thus it is that there are now so many translations, and these so well and faithfully done, that the great bulk of mankind may read in their own tongue the wonderful works of God, and the glorious Gospel of Salvation by Jesus Christ. Blessed be God for the unspeakable gift of the Holy Scriptures.

QUERY 2.-ON OUR LORD DESTROYING THE BARREN FIG-TREE

DEAR SIR,-Would you kindly favour me with your opinion in the JUVENILE INSTRUCTOR, on Christ's cursing the fig-tree, in Mark xi. 13, 14. You will see what my meaning is when it is considered, that the time of figs was not yet. It would hardly be considered wise if I were to pull up some gooseberry-trees in March, because they had no fruit. You will please to pardon the illustration; I do not wish to be thought daring, but cannot express myself in any other way. I am sometimes requested to take a class at the Sunday-school here, but I feel myself incapable of answering such a question to my own satisfaction. Yours truly,

SAMUEL MILLS. ANSWER.-The difficulty of our young friend is one felt by many

other persons on reading this passage; but it arises from an erroneous view of the meaning of these words-“For the time of figs was not yet." The meaning is not, as our young friend supposes, that the time was then too early for figs to be growing, but too early for the figs to have been gathered in. This makes all the difference.* For if the season had not been sufficiently advanced for figs to be growing, it would have been unreasonable to expect to find them; and if the season had been so far advanced, that the time for gathering figs had passed, it would have been almost equally unreasonable to expect any upon the tree. But the season was neither thus too early, nor too late; nor does the text intimate that the time was unseasonable. The words seem to mean just this: "For the season of gathering in of figs had not yet arrived;" and, therefore, figs should have been there, and would have been there, had the tree been a fruitful one. Now this is still further evident, both from that time of the year, and from the luxuriant foliage of the tree. What was the time of the year? It was close to the Jewish Passover, which was held in April; and, therefore before, yet not long before, the time of the Jewish harvest; for in Syria, where the season is much earlier than with us, the harvest is not in August, but April and May. Thus the harvest in that land comes before the summer; and hence the harvest is rightly placed before the summer, when the prophet says, "The harvest is past, the summer is ended, and we are not saved" (Jeremiah viii. 20.) Therefore the season was the right one for figs to be growing, but not for figs to have been already gathered in. The same fact is evident from the flourishing foliage of the tree, for it then abounded with leaves. Now on fig-trees the fruit comes before the leaves, as we have often seen in our own garden. The fact then that the tree abounded with leaves shows that it was the time for it to have figs, and it would have had them, if the tree had been fruitful. But though it had plenty of leaves, it had no fruit, and therefore was barren; therefore our Lord in destroying it, destroyed that which was worthless, it was a cumberer of the ground. Nor was any one's private property interfered with by its destruction, for the tree grew by the wayside, and belonged to no one. But did not our Lord know that the tree had no figs upon it? and if He knew it was

* We must not perplex our young readers with Greek quotations, or we might show them that the Greek word in the text expresses the meaning we here give. But let any one who understands the Greek language compare the word κatpòç in verse 13 with the use of the same word in the Septuagint in Job v. 26; Psalm i. 3; and in Matthew xxi. 34, and Mark xii. 2; and he will have abundant evidence that our rendering is correct. The word kaipòç means season."

"

barren, why did He go to it at all? He did know it, for He was omniscient; but His act was symbolical, and so was the condition of the fig-tree. The fig-tree, like that in the parable, was an expressive type of the Jewish nation, which was luxuriant with the leaves of profession, but destitute of the fruits of holiness; and the sentence under which the fruitless tree withered away was a significant prophecy of the approaching visitation and judgment under which the guilty and unbelieving City of Jerusalem was soon to be destroyed. Reader, what is thy condition just now? Ponder and be wise ere it be too late. Compare this admonitory transaction with the solemn and impressive parable of our Lord. (See Luke xiii. 6—9.)

QUERY 3.-ON GIVING PLACE UNTO WRATH.

MR. EDITOR,-In Romans xii. 19, I read thus: "Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath." Will you please explain what is meant by "giving place unto wrath." The same apostle, in Ephesians iv. 27 says, "Neither give place unto the devil.” Now if we are not to give place unto the devil, why are we to "give place unto wrath;" for the indulgence of wrath seems very much like giving place to the devil? A CONSTANT READER.

ANSWER. The same words "give place" are undoubtedly used in both passages, not only in our English version, but also in the original Greek; and, therefore, to understand their meaning in each case, we must not confine ourselves to the words themselves, but look at their connexion; and here the meaning becomes at once manifest; for, when we are exhorted "not to give place to the devil," the context shows that we are not to yield to him as a tempter to evil; for the exhortation comes between two passages, in which we are! admonished against various sins which Satan tempts men to commit. Therefore, when he tempts us to these sins, or to any other sins, we are not to give place to him; that is, we must not yield to him. But when the apostle exhorts us "to give place unto wrath," he is not speaking of wrath in our own bosoms, but of wrath excited in the bosom of some other persons against us. Now this is the wrath we

are to give place to; that is, we are not to resist it by cherishing a like spirit, and avenging ourselves against him; but, on the contrary, we are to yield to him who is angry, to give place rather than to contend with him, to concede to the demands of an unreasonable and angry man, rather than to irritate him by opposition. Hence the apostle immediately adds, "Vengeance is mine" (not thine), “I will repay,

saith the Lord. Therefore, if thine enemy hunger, feed him; if he thirst, give him drink: for in so doing thou shalt heap coals of fire on his head." That is, thy kindness shall subdue his iron heart, and melt him down into tenderness and love, just as fire melts down the hardest metals. It always takes two to make a quarrel, but when one gives place to the other, the quarrel cannot go on. It stops at the very beginning. Happy, indeed for families, for the Church, and for the world, if this meek and conciliatory spirit were always cherished and manifested. Angry feuds, fierce contentions, and bloody wars, would soon cease for ever.

QUERY 4.-HOW IS IT THAT IN SOME TEXTS THE WORLD IS SAID TO BE EVER-DURING, AND IN OTHERS TO BE DOOMED TO DESTRUCTION? DEAR SIR,-In Ecclesiastes i. iv., is the following :- One generation passeth away, and another generation cometh, but the earth abideth for ever." In turning to 2nd Epistle of Peter iii. 10, we find the following passage "But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat; the earth also and the works herein shall be burned up."

By making these passages agree with each other, you will oblige, Yours, &c., F. F.

ANSWER.-Things are regarded as changeable or durable in their nature, as being short or long in the period of their being, in a comparative sense; and just according to the comparison we make, we speak of a thing at one time as long in its duration, and at another time we speak of the same thing as short and transient in its duration; and the sacred Scriptures speak of these things in the same way that we do; for they use the language of common sense, and employ terms in their common use, and as understood by the common people. Now we very well know that the same thing cannot be in itself absolutely both transient and permanent in its nature, long and short in its duration, and to assert that it is so would be false; but it may be so comparatively, and to assert this is true-perfectly true. Thus the life of man, compared with the life of an ephemeral fly is long; but the life of man compared with the duration of the rocks and mountains is short; and again the duration of rocks and mountains, yea, of the earth itself, is short compared with the duration of eternity, or with the existence of God. Thus it is, that in Scripture language, mountains compared with the short life of man, are said to

"endure for ever;" that is, they continue to endure on and on, age after age, as if they were unchangeable, while successive generations of men come on and pass away. But the mountains, durable though they be, are slowly changing, and the granite rocks are slowly dissolving, and the earth itself, which has stood for so many thousands of years as the habitation of man, is destined to be hereafter destroyed by fire. Yet this destruction by fire will not be annihilation. As when destroyed before by the mighty deluge, it was again made fit to be inhabited, so undoubtedly after being destroyed by the great conflagration it will in due time be restored and beautified again, and again become inhabited; but by what creatures God only knoweth; perhaps by another class of beings distinct altogether from man, free from sin and all its consequences, permanently holy and eternally happy. Let us, however, seeing we are destined soon to perish as to our bodies, but to exist eternally as to our souls, take care always to be ready for our great change, so that eternal happiness and not eternal woe may be our portion.

Biography.

ROBERT ALCROFT, SHERIFF HILL, GATESHEAD CIRCUIT. OUR departed young brother was born April 11, 1843, at Hindley, near Stocksfield. His father (who was a pious man) dying, the widow, with her two children, removed to Sheriff Hill, Robert, the elder child, being but four years of age. Even then his mildness and docility were remarkable. First a scholar, then a teacher in the Sabbath-school, he became there the subject of deep re. ligious feeling, and found great delight in prayer-meetings and revival-services. During special services held by Messrs. Booth and Lynn in the neighbourhood-services blessed to great numbers there he decided for Christ. It will not soon be forgotten by his friends with what decision he rose from his knees-with what firm

ness of step he strode over the forms, making his way through the throng to the penitent altar; how intensely fervent were his cries for mercy, and how rapturous his language when relieved of his burden of guilt-“O Lord, I will praise Thee." This important event in his history took place in November, 1858.

Some short time afterwards he partially fell away, not into gross sin, but into trifling conduct, led astray by his former irreligious associates. To this temptation the very kindness of his nature made him the more susceptible. It was not, however, for long. He soon made his way back to the prayermeeting and the class. Previous to this happy return, he was frequently observed lingering about and listening at the door of the class-room, running away when