before the throne, and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes, and palms in their hands; And cried with a loud voice, saying, Salvation to our God which sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb. And one of the elders answered, saying unto me, What are these which are arrayed in white robes? and whence came they? And I said unto him, Sir, thou knowest. And he said to me, These are they which came out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. Therefore are they before the throne of God, and serve him day and night in his temple: and he that sitteth on the throne shall dwell among them. They shall hunger no more, neither thirst any more; neither shall the sun light on them, nor any heat. For the Lamb which is in the midst of the throne shall feed them, and shall lead them unto living fountains of waters: and God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes."

But what human pen can write, or tongue tell, or heart conceive, what all this means? And what when we are told of gates of pearls, foundations of precious stones, and streets of transparent gold-of living crowns, and rivers, and trees! Oh, wonderful region where all things live! This, then, is the possession purchased by the sufferings and death of the Son of God; and here, clothed in his righteousness, his humble followers shall take up their abode FOR EVER!

Yes they will be with Him where he is to behold his

glory; and with that glory he will invest them too. What a change from their former state!

"The body,' says the apostle, 'is sown in dishonour, it is raised in glory.' When sown, or committed to the dust, it bears the revolting marks of that degradation and infamy to which God's displeasure against sin had doomed it; it is stripped of all that excited admiration and love, and has grown so loathsome and offensive, that even the fondest friends are compelled to carry it away from the dwelling which it once delighted with its presence, and bury it up in the base earth, as unfit for the light of day. But when raised again, it shall be so transformed as not to have a single vestige nor the faintest trace of its former debasement. It will be so beautiful and so covered with splendour, as unspeakably to exceed all that is splendid and beautiful upon earth; and it will not dazzle the eyes that behold it, only because they are the eyes of holy angels, and of glorified saints."

EPITAPH FOR A MOTHER AND HER BABE.
TRANGER, beneath the sod thy wandering feet hast prest,
A mother lies, an infant on her breast!

Infant and mother in one silent sleep,

Though here a husband mourn and children weep.
But mark! a light from heaven, a beam of joy!

We know though death and worms this frame destroy,
He, the Redeemer, liveth, strong to save

The imperishable Christian from the grave!

And is He thy Redeemer, trust and stay?

Then fear not thou the blast that sweeps thy all away.

THEY ARE NOT LOST.

WHEREFORE do we weep and call them lost,
The good who early die;

Surely our heavenly Father loved them most,
And so he bade them lay their burdens by,
And pass into the sky.

Here on this border of the unseen land,
This dim and shadowy shore,

Like shipwrecked mariners we waiting stand,
While at our feet the sullen waters roar,
Which we must need pass o'er.

For just beyond a better country lies,

Whose wondrous glory beams

Upon us sometimes through the sunset skies,
But very far beyond our happiest dreams,

The golden city seems.

Yet those we mourn as lost have gained that shore,
And walk those streets of gold;

And there, with glory crowned for evermore,
They see what mortal eyes may ne'er behold,
Nor mortal tongue unfold.

O! faithless hearts, which call the blessed ones lost,
Because we miss them here-

Wanderers, and tempted, we ourselves are lost,
And well may mourn our fate with many a tear-
But they have done with fear.

Nothing that's good is lost, or e'er can be

Our hopes are all forecast,

Our joys are gathered in ete nity,

And we, though weary, burdened, hasten fast
Again to meet the past.

Let us be patient-death has made no breach
With those who've gone before,

And though no outward sign our senses reach,
We feel that from the far ethereal shore

They watch us evermore!

TO-DAY AND TO-MORROW.

O-DAY a lisping child, with hair sun-golden,
And blue of summer-morning in his eyes,

V. G. R.

And cheeks aglow with kisses of sweet loving,
Sees all things new with wondering surprise;
TO-MORROW and he knows the songs they sing in Paradise.
TO-DAY, a youth, in strength of early manhood,
With light of far-off hope upon his brow,

With eager expectation of the coming,

And wild impatience of the loitering now;

TO-MORROW, he hath touched the Throne at which the angels bow. TO-DAY, she stands beside the bridal altar;

All joy and promise round about her shine;

All truth is in the heart of him she loveth,

And her pure faith makes bright the flower-wreathed shrine; TO-MORROW, hark! a fairer Bridegroom, maiden, must be thine.

TO-DAY, an old man lingers in his sadness;

Great griefs have digged deep furrows in his cheeks:

A cold grave with the long-ago departed,

In stammering words, is all the boon he seeks :

TO-MORROW, with unfaltering lips the joy of heaven he speaks.