the work of the Lord are comparatively powerless without your assistance.

Among the many beautiful pictures in the ever-beautiful life of the "Crucified One," few are more touching than one recorded in the fourteenth chapter of the Gospel according to St. Mark. The scene is Bethany, the village so often honored by the presence of the Prince of the kings of the earth. In the house of one Simon a leper, the Savior sat at meat. There came in a woman having an alabaster-box of very precious ointment, and she poured its odoriferous contents upon his sacred head, and the house became fragrant with perfume. Mark the result! He who passed no eulogy upon Cæsar for his bravery, or Hector for his valor, or Homer for his Iliad, said of this poor woman, "SHE HATH DONE WHAT SHE COULD." Said one, "I am not ambitious to have a rich mausoleum when I am dead, a stately sepulcher, or a beautiful urn, or a name engraven in brass or marble, but a little stone to cover me, with this epitaph, 'HE HATH DONE WHAT HE COULD.'"

"THE CONSOLATION OF ISRAEL," Luke ii, 25.-In Simeon's day the ancient people of God had need of "consolation;" for the scepter had departed from Judah. It was very unlikely that a humble babe of Bethlehem should be the consolation of a ransomed world, yet now were about to be fulfilled to "the true Israel" the divine words, "Comfort ye, comfort ye, my people, saith your God!" Misled by a false interpretation of the glorious prophecies of the Old Testament Scriptures, the Jews were even now expecting as their Messiah a temporal prince, who by his achievements should win back for them their ancient renown, and whose external pomp and magnificence should exceed even those of Solomon; but the venerable Simeon, gifted with faith's discerning eye, saw through the vail of infant humanity, "God manifest in the flesh." Having thus beheld the Consolation of Israel, his great object in life was attained; and, "Lord, now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace," fell from his adoring lips.

There is something very soothing in the word "consolation!"

At present Jesus is the consolation of his people, chiefly through the agency of the Holy Ghost, "the Comforter." "I will not," he says, "leave you comfortless." Leave them he must, in order to receive his mediatorial glory; but they shall not be alone, or "comfortless." "Are the consolations of God small with thee?" Emphatic question! even though uttered by a human and a miserable comforter!

It may be that to the eyes of the reader tears are no strangers. Well! Though earthly cisterns of comfort be broken, Christ abideth ever, a perennial source of consolation; and the most afflicted Christian may say,

"O, tell me, Lord, that thou art mine,
What can I wish beside?

My soul shall at the fountain live,
When all the streams are dried."

"The God of all consolation" can, indeed, if it so please him, cause refreshing streams to abound in the most barren of earthly wildernesses. Hagar found it thus. When she was a desert-wanderer, "God opened her eyes, and she saw a well of water." But whether the secondary comforts which he may see fit to afford them be many or few, the Savior is himself essentially "the consolation" of his people; and he is especially so at the hour of death. In that awful hour, and in the judgment which must follow, there will be no consolation

but in Christ. He only can despoil death of its sting, the grave of its victory. It is when heart and flesh are failing that the Savior is found to be pre-eminently the believer's consolation. Then is he "who was dead and is alive again" a stay indeed! With the eye of faith fixed on him, the dying Christian "falls asleep;" and in his likeness he shall awake, and shall be eternally satisfied.

"THE CAPTAIN OF SALVATION," Hebrews ii, 10.—This brave title links itself with that in the Book of Canticles, "Chief," or standard-bearer, "among ten thousand." Now the mighty Warrior is exalted upon his triumphal throne. Once it was otherwise. Isaiah saw him in the battle-field, though even then he was glorious in his apparel, "traveling in the greatness of his strength." The history of his temptation in the desert exhibits another phase of the long conflict; and again, the conflict being ended, he is shown to us in the revelation of St. John in his kingdom of glory; but still a warrior, and bearing the marks of slaughter. He is the Captain of his people, leading them on to conquest. Each member of his army was once a rebel, but is now a true and loyal-hearted soldier. The charge of our divine Commander is, "Be of good cheer, I have overcome the world." Faith is victory. Confidence in the sustaining power of the great Captain nerves each arm in the thickest of the fight. The martyr Stephen found it so; so did the missionary Williams in the solitudes amid which he died. The laurels gathered by his militant ones are gathered in the strength of their exalted chief. There is a dark and narrow defile through which the whole army must pass. Many have already passed through; others are now in the act of passing; the rest are marching up, some in sunshine, some in gloom; but all shall pass through safely; each shall receive the victor's palm, and all shall share in their Captain's glory.

"Gird on thy sword upon thy thigh, O most mighty! In thy majesty ride prosperously forth;" and let the whole earth be filled with thy glory.

But although now "strong to deliver" and mighty to save, "Christ will not manifest himself always as the Captain of salvation." His "right hand" shall one day teach him "terrible things." His words in reference to that time are, "Behold, ye despisers, and wonder, and perish." He will break his enemies in pieces, as with a rod of iron.

Art thou, reader, at peace with him? If not, his voice to thee is, "Kiss the Son, lest he be angry, and ye perish from the way when his wrath be kindled but a little;" for verily "blessed are they," and they only, "that put their trust in him."

THE ONE THING NEEDFUL-Reader! see that you neglect not "the one thing needful." In a few years the business and speculations in which you are engaged, will be to you as "a tale that is told." What matters it, comparatively speaking, what your outward condition in this life may be? If you are poor, it is only for a moment; if you are afflicted, the period of suffering will soon expire. The journey of life is short, and who knows how near he may be to its termination? Why, then, be overanxious about the accommodation by the way? The future-ETERNITY-should be the grand concern of an immortal being. To be happy then were easily purchased by being miserable now. It is not a desirable thing to be destitute of all the comforts of life, and to have nothing more than is absolutely necessary for the support of existence; still it were better to be thus

destitute and be saved, than spend a life exactly opposite, and yet perish. To be immortal is a solemn thought to be eternally miserable, as he whose soul is lost must be, is more awful than can be conceived. "Now, therefore," says Wisdom, "hearken unto me, O ye children; for blessed are they that keep my ways. Hear instruction and be wise, and refuse it not. Blessed is the man that heareth me, watching daily at my gates, waiting at the posts of my doors. For whoso findeth me findeth life, and shall obtain favor of the Lord. But he that sinneth against me wrongeth his own soul: all they that hate me love death."

THE CHANGING of our Vile BODY.-“Who shall change our vile body, that it may be fashioned like unto his glorious body."— Philippians iii, 21.

Afflicted believer! that fast-decaying frame of thine, racked with pain, marred with disease, shall one day be made like unto thy Savior's glorious body. The dust of his saints is dear to him. They fall asleep "in Jesus," and when they shall awake "death shall be swallowed up in victory." At that glorious consummation there shall be marvelous metamorphoses, surpassing the fabled wonders of the poet of old. "Sown in corruption!" "Raised in glory!" "Sown a natural body!" "Raised a spiritual body!" Well may our German brethren call their church-yard "God's Acre." There is sown that precious grain, not an atom of which shall perish; for it is registered in the Lamb's Book of Life.

"The saints who now in Jesus sleep,
His own almighty power shall keep,
Till dawns the bright illustrious day,
When death itself shall die away.
When Jesus they in glory meet,
Their utmost joys will be complete;
Once landed on that heavenly shore,
Death and the curse shall be no more."

CHRIST AS REDEEMER.-It seems to me that in the present day the doctrine of redemption would have been received more effectively had men viewed the sun as a sun, as one glorious luminary, instead of singling out for contemplation individual rays, which thus isolated will be all but extinct. They acknowledge Christ as a Redeemer; but they have so restricted the notion as to deprive it of all vitality. At the mention of the word nothing else occurs to their thoughts but-what is confessedly of prime importance, yet only in connection with all beside the blood which was shed on Golgotha. For all within you which sighs after a redemption, is Christ come as a Redeemer, he has redeemed your heart and your reason; he has redeemed your spirit and your body; he has redeemed yourself and nature which surrounds you. He has redeemed you not only by his death, but by his resurrection; not only by his life on earth, but by his intercession on the right hand of God; not only by his actions, but by his word; not only by his humanity, but by his divinity; not only by what he was in time, but by what he is throughout eternity.-Tholuck.

THE EASY YOKE AND ITS ANALOGIES.-"Take my yoke upon you, for my yoke is easy and my burden is light." Truth, Lord! a light burden, indeed, which supports him who bears it. I have looked abroad through nature to see if I could find any thing that could bear some analogy to this; but I can not find it, unless it be the wings of a bird, which, while borne of the creature, bear him aloft. In truth, to bear the Lord's burden is to be permitted to cast it, together with ourselves, into the arms of Omnipotence and Grace.

NEAR THE GOAL.-To the privileged one who is surely near the goal, the noise and turmoil of life have passed away. The hopes it once inspired have long since departed. He looks on infancy and childhood with a placid smile, and says, "I shall soon know what the childhood of a new existence is;" on youth, and says, "I shall soon put on immortal youth;" on manhood, and says, "I shall soon attain to the stature of a perfect man in Christ Jesus. O, to Him who hath loved me, and hath given himself for me, to him be glory now and evermore !" "Only waiting till the angels

Open wide the mystic gate,

At whose foot I long have lingered,
Weary, poor, and desolate.

Even now I hear the footsteps,
And their voices far away;
If they call me I am waiting,

Only waiting to obey."

CHRIST AND CHRIST ONLY.-He who will not believe in Christ must discover, if possible, some expedient to supply the need of his assistance. This neither you nor I can attempt; we require one who can raise and support us while we live, and lay his hands under our heads when we come to die. This he can do abundantly, according to what is written of him; and we know none whom we can or ought to prefer. Never was love like his; nor has any thing so good and great as the Bible testifies of him ever come into the heart of man; it infinitely transcends his utmost desert. There is a holy form which rises for the poor pilgrim as a star in the night, and satisfies his inmost need, his most secret anticipations and wishes.

QUESTIONS FOR SELF-EXAMINATION.-Do I believe that my body will soon die, but that my soul will live forever? Do I believe that my conduet here will fix my condition hereafter?

What are my prospects for eternity?

Do I daily seek the enlightening, guiding, and sanctifying influences of the Holy Ghost?

Do I trust in the atonement of Christ exclusively for present and eternal salvation?

Do I now know my sins forgiven? if not, what is the cause or hinderance?

What induced me to join the Wesleyan Church? Do I value Church membership as a privilege? Do I recommend or dishonor Christianity by my conduct?

Do I pray regularly for my ministers, my class-leader, the members of the class, and the whole Church of God?

Do I make every effort to attend both Sunday and week-day services, the table of the Lord, the class meeting, and the prayer meeting?

Do I show piety at home, by my solicitude for the welfare of all around me, delight in family and private prayer, searching the Scriptures, and religious conversation?

Do I support the cause of God as the Lord hath prospered me?

Am I anxious for a revival of religion?

Have I been the means of bringing one stranger to the house of God, recovering one backslider from the error of his ways, or adding one member to the classes during the present year?

Am I willing to give prayerful diligence to induce one or more persons to seek the salvation of their souls, and to unite themselves with ns this quarter?

BY CHARLES NORDHOFF.

Or the circumstances of the fall of a portion of the angelic host, or of their state or condition previous to the fall, we are allowed to know but little. From a perusal of all the passages of Scripture relating to the fallen angels, we are led to the conclusion that their band consists of one chief ruler and head, and a great number of subordinates. Throughout the Bible-in the original-there is a careful distinction preserved between one chief ruler of the fallen hordes, who is styled "Devil," or "Satan," or "Prince of Darkness," and a great host of subordinates, who are styled "Demons"a distinction of terms which unfortunately is not kept up in our English translations. From the general description given in Scripture of this one chief "Prince of Darkness," and of his wickedness, as well as from the sharply drawn distinction between one devil and many subordinate dæmons, we gather that hostility to God and his commands in heaven originated with this "Prince of Darkness," who probably occupied, previous to the fall, a rank superior to that of the great majority of the angelic hosts. But if the revolt against Heaven originated in a single member of that race, we are not therefrom to infer that the balance fell through the temptation of this evil one, thereby making their fall analogous to that of man. For this would scarcely be reconcilable with the positive and absolute hostility to God, which, according to Scripture, is pre-eminently a quality of the fallen angels; nor with the unredeemable condition in which the Bible pronounces them to be. For a fall through temptation seems to argue a disposition to do well, but a lack of strength or power to resist the evil. Such a spirit can not be pronounced entirely and absolutely hostile to God, or unredeemable. The angelic hosts were placed upon their trial or probation, and were at liberty at any time-previous to the revolt of Satanto decide, individually, for or against the good. But when Satan fell from his allegiance, and, revolting, sought to establish in heaven a power rival to that of the Creator, it at once becomes evident that all impassiveness must cease. Neutrality in such a strife was out of the question. The revolt of Satan created a division, and the necessity for an immediate decision, by each individual, by which each one bound himself either to support the Creator, or to unite with Satan in opposition to him. "He that is not with me is against me." And so, out of their own hearts, and without any temptation, a portion of the angelic host seceded from their high allegiance.

What was the particular cause of their revolt against the beneficent Hand which created and supported them, we are not informed-probably for the reason that it would not profit us to know, as well as that, knowing scarcely any thing at all of the nature, powers, and springs of action of the angels, we would have no proper conception of their motives in this instance. It seems, however, highly probable that their fall sprang originally from that pride which aspires to be without God, and as

*Concluded from page 567.

God-partly because this seems to be the root and groundwork of all sin, and partly because the devil, who had reason to know the power of this feeling, used it as a temptation for our first parents.

But not all the angels fell. On the contrary, the vast majority remained true to their allegiance. This we gather from the vastness of the expressions made use of in various parts of the Scriptures to denote their numbers. See Genesis xxxii, 1, 2; Daniel vii, 10; Psalm lxxxi, 18; Luke ii, 13; Matthew xxvi, 53. And we find further evidence of the same fact in this, that while but one of the first created spheres fell into a chaotic and shapeless void in consequence of the fall of the angels into whose charge it had been given, the countless multitude of the morning stars remained to sing the praises of his goodness and power.

The decision once made, sides taken for or against their God, and with the angels there was no possibility of after change. Repentance and final redemption was not for them. This condition, following so necessarily out of their state, is most plainly and explicitly taught in various parts of Scripture. And as the fall of the angels was absolute, allowing of no return or deliverance, so the decision of the great majority-for Godbrought their time of probation to a close, and did away with the possibility of any subsequent fall from the right. This also is taught by various texts of Scripture, where the angelic hosts are described as surrounding the throne of the Most High, and living in the constant praise and worship of his goodness and power. Matthew xviii, 10; Isaiah vi, 2, 3; Job xxxviii, 7; Psalm ciii, 20-22; Revelation v, 11, 12.

But the history of angels and of their worlds does not end with this momentous epoch in their existence. For to be a free and individually responsible creature is to have the privilege, not only to declare for or against any particular course, but also to follow out the course chosen to its final and complete development. Thus has God, in his infinite wisdom, ordained that the punishment of the wicked shall be brought upon himself as the result of his own evil deeds. Thus are the devil and his angels allowed, in the wisdom and justice of God, to follow out their wickedness, till out of the final stage of development of the evil principle the good shall arise triumphant. For in the development of the evil lies the means for its overthrow. Every apparent triumph is in reality a defeat. Satan still has claims upon this world, as the former "Prince of this world," and will continue to assert that power till the last day, when all his influence must cease, because of the entire destruction of all the impure and evil elements of this earth by the fire of God. Till that time comes the powers of evil are left in a state of suspense, to work out to the best of their power the evil principle which they have embraced. So the good angels, too, will not receive their final sentence of approval till that day when Jehovah shall sit in judgment upon the sins of the universe. Good and bad angels alike remain in a state of detention, awaiting the completion of the great battle between good and evil.

In the providence of God it was ordered that yet another manifestation of his power and goodness should

come upon the place which had witnessed the probation and fall of a band of angels. The earth, which, upon the revolt and condemnation of the angels to whose care it had been intrusted, had fallen into ruins, and become "without form and void," was recreated, and fitted for the abode of man, to whom it was assigned to "multiply, and replenish, and subdue it." The angels who had inhabited this sphere had, by their own free acts, earned a ruin from which for them there could be no redemption. The earth, given them for their birthright, was reduced to ruin with them, but by no fault of its own, and was not, therefore, given up to lasting perdition. To bring it back to its original perfection, to prepare it to become again a portion, and an equal portion, of the great harmonious universe of God, man was brought into being. And being made lord over the former possessions of Satan and his legions, it is at once seen how these last are his most bitter and persevering enemies. Expelled from earth, outlaws of heaven, they have no foothold any where. Yet they continue to assert and exercise a certain power. Satan is called the "Prince of the powers of the air," Ephesians ii, 2; and his subordinates are styled "the rulers of the darkness of this world-wicked spirits [in the original] in high places." Their interests upon earth, their fancied claims upon it, their desire to reconquer their former possessions, their natural enmity to the race, to whom has been given the lordship over that which they still regard as their own, and to whom it is given to sit in judgment upon them at the last day-1 Corinthians vi, 3-all appear here plainly. We can understand here how our globe, insignificant as it appears, when brought into comparison with the balance of God's creation-how this atom in the vast expanse of matter naturally becomes, in the mysterious course of events, the great battleground where is to be fought, and is now being fought, the final battle between right and wrong-the scene of some of the most sublime and awful spectacles which the universe has ever witnessed. We can understand without difficulty how this point must absorb the attention and interests of all the hosts of heaven; and how here all the powers of evil have gathered together to make their final struggle, their last vain stand against Omnipotence. We see here how the creation and fall of man, and his redemption by means of the incarnation of a Son of the living God, were matters which affected not only us, but all the universe-how on the sufferings and the triumph of the Redeemer hung the fate of worlds beside our own.

Man was placed upon the earth "to subdue it and replenish it." Upon him and his descendants was imposed the guardianship of what was originally intrusted to a portion of the angels. But he also must undergo a trial. Created a free moral agent, it was his privilege to chose for himself a course. The symbols of good and evil were placed before him in the garden-the one typified by the tree of life, the other by the tree of knowledge of good and evil. Before coming to this choice of a course, God created woman from the body of man; thus putting the finishing stroke to his work of creation, and preparing the way for his blessing: "Be ye fruitful, multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it." But in the bestowal of this blessing the human race, its recipient, assumes at once a peculiar characteristic, which must control its entire position and development. For Adam thus represents the entire race of man-with him all his descendants must stand or fall. But as the tie

of blood, which unites our race, imposes upon all of Adam's descendants the consequences of his sin, so also does it make possible, being once fallen, our redemption by ONE Redeemer.

While from the free moral agency of man arose the necessity of a trial, from his peculiar position and relations to the powers in whose care the earth formerly was arose the necessity that that trial should assume the form of a temptation. For the more important the relation in which man stands to the fallen angels, the greater would be the efforts of the latter to bring him down to a level with themselves. The greater the future power and authority of man over the powers of darkness, the more strenuous and determined would naturally be the efforts of Satan and his legions to cast down and render nugatory that power, by reducing man to a state on a par with their own; and the less could God, in his justice, prevent the Satanic host from putting forth their utmost endeavors to the purpose of leading their intended judge away from his original destination.

The temptation was unavoidable then, but not the fall. That was only possible. But the possibility became a reality. Man fell, and what the tempter had placed before his eyes as a lure came to pass. He became "as God"-his eyes were opened, but he saw naught except his own lamentable nakedness. He arrived at the knowledge of good and evil; but only to find in himself a sorrowful lack of good, and a painful experience of evil, and liability to its consequences. He became “as God,” independent, self-acting; but not happy as God-on the contrary, most miserably, lamentably deficient in all the elements of happiness.

When man thus fell before the temptation of Satan, and made his choice adverse to the will of his Creator, he at once became liable to the penalty of disobedience. Death, the reward of sin, entered into the world. And having once embraced sin, man plainly could not recede, but was entirely powerless to save himself from its con sequences.

As at the fall of the angels the earth, their abiding place, fell with them into ruin and destruction, through the connection which exists between matter and spirit, so in this instance also the fall of man, which brought sin and sorrow into his generation, imposed upon the earth, his abode, a curse from its Maker, under which it yet groans. Genesis iii, 17-19; Romans viii, 19-21.

Man's fall, not coming of his own innate wickedness, but brought on by the temptation of Satan, did not seal his fate as irredeemable. He chose not evil in his own heart, but was led by one more cunning than he, under the power and control of evil. Though his whole being is prostrate under the power of sin, there is yet in the bosom of every man a warning voice, calling back, restraining from evil, impelling to good, never giving rest to our spirit, till that has turned back to its God. There is a longing after a better state, after a happiness not attainable on earth, after a good which our weak nature finds it impossible to reach. True, this longing may be weakened by sin-it is so-the fire is ofttimes hid for awhile, but it is never entirely extinguished. And so long as a single spark of this divine portion of our nature exists, man may be brought back to God, his Savior. The earth, too, groaneth in her captivity to evil, as is said by the apostle Paul, "For the earnest expectation of the creature waiteth for the manifestation of the sons of God. For the creature was made subject to vanity not willingly, but by reason of him who hath subjected

the same in hope, . . . for we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now," Romans viii, 19-22.

There was a redemption provided for fallen man. The powers of evil, though for a time permitted to exercise their authority as princes of the world, were to be finally overcome by the regeneration and redemption of man. This was intended from the beginning, and we find the earliest promise of such a consummation made to our first parents immediately after the fall, as we read in Genesis iii, 14, 15. In regard to the form of this curse and promise, it is evident that to the minds of Adam and Eve the subtile tempter, as a spirit, and the cunning beast whose shape he had assumed, were identical. And the sentence which was pronounced against Satan was spoken as a promise for the hearing of man, and its language had, therefore, to be accommodated to his understanding. Satan could understand the curse well enough. To man the serpent appeared to be the tempter, and, consequently, to pronounce a curse upon the serpent was equivalent to cursing the evil principle, the author of sin. This, by the way. "But when the fullness of time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law, to redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons," Galatians iv, 4, 5. "And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth," John i, 14. The first-born-he who was before all and is above all of created matter-the great original after whose likeness was shaped man, "created in the image of God," became man. The Lord of glory appeared in our midst, in all things like as we ourselves, yet without sin. And as at the recreation of the earth and the creation of man the heavenly hosts sang the praises of the Creator, and shouted for joy at the glorious work, so, when the Redeemer of man was born upon earth, the angelic choir announced his advent amid praises to God, saying, "Glory to God in the highest, on earth peace, and good will to men."

the one side we find hatred, persecution, and strife-a summoning of all the powers of darkness to destroy the holy One of God, and prevent the completion of his task. From the manger to the cross, the evidences of this Satanic strife against all goodness form an unbroken chain. The bloodthirsty jealousy of Herod, the temptation in the wilderness, the constant persecution of the Council, the sufferings in Gethsemane, the treason of Judas, the wild rage of the mob, the timidity of Pontius Pilate, all and each show the desperate efforts of the powers of evil to defeat the mission of the Savior. "For of a truth, against the holy child Jesus, whom thou hast anointed, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles, and the people of Israel, were gathered together," Acts iv, 27.

The first, most important, as well as most decisive, temptation of our Lord by the Prince of Darkness was that in the wilderness. It corresponded in every respect of form and purpose to the temptation before which fell the first Adam. By it the first Adam fell; through it the second Adam triumphed over the enemy of God and man, and established his supremacy over sin. As the false and fallen development of man commenced with the triumph of the tempted, even so was the new development, leading to the redemption and restoration of the human race, to begin with a decisive victory over the arch tempter.

After having been tempted with the power, and riches, and honors of this world, it was necessary that the weakness of the physical man should come against him to tempt him, in order that he might be "in all things tempted like as we are." The garden of Gethsemane was the scene of the last and most painful suffering. What agony he underwent, how he prayed, how he wept, and how he overcame the temptation, and, breaking through all the wiles of Satan, took the cup of suffering, we know. And then Satan, foiled in this last, most desperate effort, with the rage of despair, set his powers to aid in the work of preparing the death. He it was who put it into the heart of Judas to betray his Master. He it was who, entering into the traitorous disciple, when the latter had but just received the last morsel from the hands of the Savior, nerved him up to his hellish work. He it was who stirred up the hearts of the multitude against Christ-that multitude to save whom he had come down on earth-and moved them to cry out, "Crucify him! Crucify him!"

The earthly life of our Savior was a turning-point in the history of our race and of the earth which we inhabit. And, therefore, we find at this precise point congregated and exerted every power, hostile and friendly, devils and angels, the seed of the serpent and the seed of the woman, all that could have any bearing upon the great event, intent upon either hindering or furthering the accomplishment of the work of redemption. Upon

Upon the other hand, the heavenly hosts took the most lively interest in the various incidents of the Savior's earthly pilgrimage. They announced his advent with hymns of joy, and praise, and thanksgiving. When he had overcome the temptation in the wilderness, "behold angels came and ministered unto him." And when his agony was upon him, in the garden of Gethsemane, "there appeared an angel unto him from heaven, strength

proclaimed to his disciples the victory of life over death; and, finally, angels appeared to his disciples subsequent to the transfiguration, to announce to them his future advent in glory.

In the death and resurrection of Christ his earthly labors were brought to a close, and the work of redemption was finished, so far as it lays with God. It now only remained for man to accept the free-will offering of forgiveness made through the blood of atonement. As Satan was not able to hinder the completion of the work of redemption, he now goes about the earth, seeking