"The fool rageth."--PROV. xiv. 16. "Let patience have her perfect work."-JAMES i. 4. PASSION AND PATIENCE. Behold here! Paffion, ftamping, mad with rage; He twifts and twirls, and fumes and frets in vain, See! there is gold! that Providence has fent : His foul a tempeft-storms around him rise; But mark the contraft! Patience, much at ease, No bags of gold has he. But what is more, Two very different characters are here prefented to our view: Paffion, ftorming, wild with rage-Patience, calm and tranquil. For fome time Paffion has been endeavouring to unravel a hank of entangled twine or cord. In his great hurry, he entangles it more and more. It is full of knots; he grows hot with rage; his face is mifcreated; he wears the aspect of a fury. Stamping with anger, he tramples upon fome toys that lay near him, and breaks them into pieces. A bag of gold is seen standing at his fide. This only feeds his pride; it makes him more outrageous to think that he fhould have fuch work affigned him. A tempeft is seen to arise behind him; the clouds gather blackness; thunders roll fearful lightnings glare around. This is to show the state of his mind-wild, fiery, and tempeftuous. He is alfo fully reprefented by the troubled fea, seen in the back ground. Tumultuous, it toffes its foaming billows; its restless ; water cafts up mire and dirt. So his troubled spirit, agitated by the tumult of his paffions, gives utterance to oaths, blafphemies, and imprecations. Miferable youth! The fire of hell is enkindled within him! Patience, on the other hand, fits with unruffled compofure. He too has had the fame work affigned him. He has the knotted cord to unravel; but he goes about it in the spirit of duty; patiently he unties knot after knot, overcomes difficulty after difficulty, until the whole is cleared. He has finished his tafk; he is seen looking upward, to fhow that he seeks help and counsel from on high. A heavenly light descends and sheds its luftre round about him. Help is afforded. In the back ground is feen a placid lake; this denotes the composure of his mind. Not a wave of perplexity dashes across his peaceful breast. He has not riches; no gold is seen fhining by his fide; he is, however, contented with his condition; nor is he without hope of future good. The Bow of Promife, glittering in the diftant sky, intimates to us that he looks forward to a future recompenfe. Paffion represents a man of the world; one who has his portion in this life. The Almighty Father has appointed a work to all men; yea, everything living, moving, creeping, fwimming, flying, has its work to do. Duty is incumbent upon all. It is a condition of existence; it is also a condition of happiness. Man is under this univerfal law. The man of the world, lacking the proper qualifications for duty, fails in difcharging it aright. He works from wrong motives, and for wrong ends: he does all to the glory of self. No wonder he makes such bungling work of it. By the knotted cord, may be understood those difficult paffages of life through which man, as fuch, has to pass-afflictions, disappointments, &c. These are more than the worldly-minded man can bear. The reason feems clear enough. He has fet his heart upon earthly objects; hence the removal of these objects from him affects him very fenfibly. These are thy gods, O man of the world! When trouble comes, of course he does not look upward; he has no business there. looks He down-down-continually. "He leans to his own understanding," instead of waiting for further developments. He becomes impatient, fretful, peevish, angry, and paffionate. He would curfe God and die, if he was not afraid to die. He is "Inftantly, with wild demoniac rage, For breaking all the chains of Providence, His Providence may have lavished wealth upon him; he fpurns the giver, he abuses his gifts. pride becomes more inflamed; his table becomes a fnare unto him; his riches add to his discontent. What he needs, though he may not know it, is a hope beyond the grave. He has title-deeds enough on parchment, but none to the kingdom of heaven-houses and lands, but no "hidingplace" in which to enter when the great day of His wrath fhall come. He has no anchor to enable his vessel to ride out the gales of adverfity. Clouds and darkness furround him; a tempeft is in his path; he is a cloud carried with the tempeft, to whom is reserved the mift of darkness for ever; a troubled fea, which cannot reft, whose waters caft up mire and dirt. Patience represents the man of God-him who has chofen God and the world to come for his portion. In this world, he, too, has prefented to him the knotted cord-trials, perplexities, and afflictions. Man is born to trouble. He endures all things as seeing him who is invisible; in patience he poffeffeth his foul. He looks at the difficulty calmly; he confiders what is beft to be done, and which is the best way to do it. If it is beyond his power or skill, he looks to God for affiftance. The compofed ftate of his mind gives him a great advantage over the impatient one; but if he finds his own arm too fhort, he is intimate with One who is mighty to fave, and who is a very prefent help in times of trouble. Soon the knot is untied, the difficulty is overcome, and the victory is gained. Hence a holy calm pervades him; he knows that all things are working together for his good. His foul is like a placid lake, reflecting the rofy light of heaven. Earth to him may be a tempeftuous ocean; but the eye of faith ever fees the beacon of truth gleaming across its dark blue wave, pointing him |