1 208 The NEW and COMPLETE LIFE of our BLESSED LORD though great in refpe& ofhers, were but a fmall part of their ePates, whereas, her offering was her whole flock. And from this paliage of the gofpel, we fhould learn, that the poor, who in appearance are de- nied the means of doing charitable offices, are encouraged to do all they can ; for how fmall foever the gift may be, the Al- mighty, who beholds the heart, values it, not according to what it is in itfelf, but according to the difpofition with which it is given. On the other hand, we fhould learn from hence, that it is not enough for the rich, that they exceed the poor in their gifts ofcharity, they fhould bellow inpro- portion to their fortune ; and they would do well to remember, that a little given, where a little only is poffeffed, appears a much nobler offering in the fight of the Almightÿ; äild difcovers a more benevo- lent and humane temper of mind, than a greater fum out of the abundance of the rich. Our Lord having declared, at the con- clufion of his pathetic lamentation over Jerufalem, that the temple fhould not any more be favoured with his pretence, till they fhould fay, Blued is he that corneal in the name of the Lord: which declaration greatly furprifed his difciples; and, there- fore, as he was departing from that facred Rru&ure, they defired him to obferve the beauty of the building, infinuating, that they thought it grange he fhould intimate an intention of leaving it defolate ; that fo gloriousa fabric, celebrated in every corner of the earth, was not to be deferted ra(hly; and that they fhould think themfelves fu- premely happy, when he, as the Meffiah, and defcendant of David, fhould take pof- feffion of it, and ere& his throne in the midft of Jerufalem : And as he wentout of the temile, one of his difciplesfaith unto hint, Mailer, fee what manner ofhones, and what buildings are here ! The eastern wall of the temple, which fronted the Mount of Olives, whither the disciples, with their Matter, were then retiring, was built from the bottom of the valley to a 2 prodigious height, with !tones of an in- credible bulk, firmly compa&ed together, and, therefore, made a very grand appear- ance at a diftance. This eaftern wall is fuppofed to have been the only remains of Solomon's temple, and had efcaped when the Chaldeansburnt it : but this building, however early or Rrong it appeared, our Saviour told them fhould be totally de- flroyed : See thou, Paid he, thefe great buildings? There Jhall not be left one ftone upon another, that(hall not be thrown down, Mark xüi. 2. This venerable Rru&ure which you be- hold with wonder, adorned with huge ('cones of amazing beauty, (hall be razed to the very foundation. The difciples, therefore, when they heard their Mailer affirm, that not fo much as one of thefe enormous Rones, which had mocked the fury of Nebuchadnezzar's army, and fur- vived the deltru&ive hand oftime, was to be left one upon another, they perceived that thewhole temple was to be demoli(hed, but did not fufpe& that the facrifices were . to be taken away, and a new religion in- troduced, which rendered the temple un- neceffary. They, therefore, flatteredthem- felves, that the fabric then Banding, how- ever glorious it might appear, was too fmall for the numerous worfhippers who would frequent it, whenall the nations of the world were fubje& to the Meffiah's kingdom, and was; therefore, tobe pulled down, in order to be ere&ed on a more magnificent plan, fuitable to the idea they had conceivedofhis future empire. Filled with thefe pleafing imaginations, they re- ceived the news with pleafure, meditating, as they walked to the mountain, on the glorious things which were fhortly to come to pats. As foon as they arrived at the Mount of Olives, and their Mailer had taken his feat on fome eminence, from whence they had a profpe& of the temple and part of the city, his difciples drew near, to know when the demolition of the old ftru&ure was to happen, and what were to be the figns
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