mind was oppressed in the contemplation of it. But he was waiting upon God. And though the picture presented to his mind is one of utter desolation, so strong is his assurance of the divine protection-so rich the communication of divine influence received in answer to prayer,that he is enabled to affirm in the sublime and extatic language of the text " Although the fig-tree shall not blossom, neither shall fruit be in the vines; the labour of the olive shall fail, and the fields shall yield no meat; the flock shall be cut off from the fold, and there shall be no herd in the stalls; yet," in the midst of all, though the judgments of God are abroad, though much suffering must be endured, I will not only be patient, but, "I will rejoice in the Lord, I will joy in the God of my salvation." We purpose to consider our text.

I. IN REFERENCE TO THE PROSPECT BEFORE THE MIND OF THE PROPHET.

II. HIS HOLY RESOLUTION CONCERNING IT.

I. THE PROSPECT

PHET.

BEFORE THE MIND OF THE PRO

1.-It was one of great public calamity.

Taking all the circumstances of the case into the account nothing could be more discouraging. To every true patriot, the anticipation of reverses, the bare probability that the prosperity of his country may be diminished, her splendour tarnished, her glory eclipsed, is enough to damp his pleasures and cause emotions of sadness and sorrow to occupy his mind. But with the prophet the case was still worse. It was not probability, but certainty. A certainty too, not the result of his own speculation upon the aspect of things around him, nor of any human wisdom or foresight, but a certainty arising from a direct revelation from God himself. It was the Deity unfolding his purposes to his servant, and declaring that he was about

to visit his people in anger,—to pour upon them the vial of his indignation. It was revealed to him that the land of his affection was about to become tributary to a foreign power, to bear upon its soil the tread of hostile forces, to be subjected to those who had no fear of God before their eyes. It would, indeed, have appeared preferable if pestilence rather than the sword had been the messenger of vengeance, and, doubtless the prophet, as every true patriot, had the alternative been submitted to him would gladly have made such choice, and with David have said, "let me fall into the hands of the Lord, and not into the hands of man."

When he remembered the character of those Chaldean bands about to be let loose upon his country,-fierce and implacable, jealous of the prosperity and greatness of the Jewish people, and the long course of Almighty protection they had enjoyed, he could not expect that they would be at all lenient in executing their commission against Israel. A prospect of public calamity such as this, necessarily involved much private suffering. The body politic like the animal body is composed of members, and in suffering inflicted upon the whole, every individual must expect to share. The prophet, therefore, could not but expect to have his own powers of endurance taxed to the utmost; and as a public character, and one who from his office must have been extremely obnoxious to the enemies of Israel, he might reasonably expect to be a special object of their resentment. While putting aside every selfish consideration, the anticipation of the vast amount of suffering to be inflicted, the horrors consequent upon a successful invasion, must have awakened the softest sympathies of a benevolent heart, and caused the prospect to appear still darker and more discouraging.

2. The prospect was one of Religious Retribution.

That national calamities are very frequently the penalty of national sins, is a principle so clearly laid down in holy writ, and so forcibly illustrated by history and observation as to be undeniable. That gross departures from God on the part of nations are often followed by the withdrawal of temporal advantages, and of national prosperity and glory, the history of the world in general, and of the Jewish people in particular, fully demonstrate. Where calamity is the result of misfortune, not of crime, where the strong oppress the weak and the suffering party is conscious of his own integrity-there is ground at once for comfort and hope. But where such is not the case-where the suffering party is verily guilty, there is no room for consolation. Such was the case in the prospect before the prophet. God had, as usual, warned and threatened and entreated, exhibited his patience by delaying the final stroke, but all in vain. Hardness and impenitency marked their conduct. The judgments of God not being "executed speedily," their hearts appear to have been "set in them to do evil." Instead of accounting the long suffering of God as salvation, they appear to have regarded it as indicative of indifference; thus rendering the execution of the sentence needful to vindicate his character and put a stop to their iniquities. And although the prophet knew, that, while as yet the sentence was not executed, the anger of God, might, as in the case of Nineveh, be turned aside by the timely repentance and humiliation of the people; yet he was too well acquainted with the spirit and temper of his countrymen, to have any hope from that source. They had not only the warnings addressed to themselves, but the record of their fathers' past history to guide them. They knew the frequency with which they had been given into their enemies' hands in consequence of unfaithfulness to God. And the prophet knew that if all this proved

ineffectual, there was no probability that anything less than the terrible inflictions he predicted, would open their eyes, and bring them back to their allegiance.

Well indeed might such reflections deepen the shade that hung upon the prophet's spirit, and lend intense blackness to the cloud that overshadowed him. In national visitations those are not always exempt from suffering who are no partakers of the national sin. Many a good man whose spirit has been stirred within him with holy indignation against the abominations his eyes have witnessed, but which his arm had not power to prevent, has been overwhelmed in the temporal calamity that has befallen an ungodly nation. Such doubtless was the view of probabili ties taken in this case by the prophet. A view, certainly, not calculated to brighten the prospect, or afford consolation. The permission of suffering, however, in such cases, by no means infringes upon the goodness of the Deity. For although in the individual instance it may have been undeserved; it may not, it cannot be without its use, fitting the sufferer for glory, and obtaining for him a better resurrection.

3. The prospect was one of utter desolation. The language employed is exceedingly strong; embracing as it does the privation of all things needful for subsistence. It would almost appear that, this was to be the consequence of the terrible invasion to which they were to be subjected. The march of a victorious army is generally marked by the desolation it spreads arouud it. Vegetation disappears from the districts which it visits; and that which lately presented the beautiful aspect of fertility and order, now exhibits the features of a vast wilderness of ruin and confusion. Dismal indeed must be the condition of the land reduced from fulness of bread, to a state of actual and positive destitution. Yet, such is exactly the scene the

prophet is describing. Not only the luxuries, but also the necessaries of life are gone, and the impoverished population is left to want and wretchedness. The iron yoke of their oppressors is upon them. The ravages of their destroyers have prevented the tillage of the land; "the fields yield no meat." While their insatiable rapacity had made a prey of the flocks and herds, in which the chief property of the orientals consisted and which were equally needful for their sustenance.

To describe the picture of desolation presented to the prophetic mind of Habakkuk is impossible. We may, however, by an exercise of the imagination call up to our minds a scene somewhat analogous. Suppose this our own land to become the prey of the spoiler; its fair fields laid waste by fire and sword, and when the sword of cruelty is glutted with the blood of its victims,-the miserable survivors awake to a consciousness of horrors yet more dreadful, because more lingering, and without any immediate prospect of relief. Our starving population calling loudly in our streets for bread which none could supply. Think to what scenes of wretchedness such a visitation would give birth! Behold the hungry infant calling upon those who gave him being to supply him with bread, which they were unable to procure, and what a sinking of spirit is experienced in the contemplation. It was such a prospect as this that made the prophet tremble, that led him to the throne of grace, from whence he returned uttering the joyful language of the latter clause of the text.

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But is it possible in human experience to parallel this description of wretchedness? Perhaps in every particular may not. And yet, the page of history does record some instances of national suffering where whole communities were subjected to calamities the bare recital of