unto Thy servant; for with my staff I passed over this Jordan; and now I am become two bands. Deliver me, I pray Thee, from the hand of my brother, from the hand of Esau: for I fear him, lest he will come and smite me, and the mother with the children. And Thou saidst, I will surely do thee good, and make thy seed as the sand of the sea, which cannot be numbered for multitude.-And Jacob was left alone; and there wrestled a man with him until the breaking of the day. And when He saw that He prevailed not against him, He touched the hollow of his thigh; and the hollow of Jacob's thigh was out of joint, as he wrestled with Him. And He said, Let me go, for the day breaketh: And he said, I will not let Thee go, except Thou bless me. And He said unto him, What is thy name? And he said, Jacob. And He said, Thy name shall be called no more Jacob, but Israel: for as a prince hast thou power with God and with men, and hast prevailed. And Jacob asked Him, and said, Tell me, I pray Thee, Thy name. And He said, Wherefore is it that thou dost ask after My name? And He blessed him there. And Jacob called the name of the place Peniel: for I have seen God face to face, and my life is preserved." Gen. xxxii. 7-12, 24―30. "He took his brother by the heel in the womb, and by his strength he had power with God. Yea, he had power over the Angel, and prevailed he wept and made supplication, unto Him: he found Him in Bethel, and there He spake with us; even the Lord God of hosts; the Lord is His memorial. Therefore turn thou to thy God: keep mercy and judgement, and wait on thy God continually." Hosea xii. 3-6. [It is a very sweet proof of Jacob's Christian spirit that, in this his time of distress, he begins not with complaint and deprecation, but with praise and thanksgiving ; as one whose heart was overflowing with the sense of God's undeserved goodness and mercy. We should keep this in remembrance, and especially in times of affliction; should begin our devotions with a thankful acknowledgement of the unmerited mercies which are yet abundantly pouring upon us. Observe in the passage, Gen. xxxii. 24-30. the true nature of prayer. Do we know any thing of this holy wrestling? When we pray, are all the powers and faculties of our minds, all the feelings and affections of our hearts, engaged in the exercise? and this not in our own strength, but in the power of the Spirit, who helpeth our infirmities? Observe, too, that from this wrestling, Jacob had the name of Israel. And the Church is the Israel of God, only so far as it is characterized by such wrestlings with the Lord for spiritual blessings. We do not belong to that Israel, unless by such earnest striving in prayer we have gotten to ourselves that name, which belongs to none but those, who have both wrestled and gained the victory. The passage from Hosea is important, as it ascertains beyond a question the true force and meaning of the passage in Genesis, and this, not upon the dubious ground of human interpretation, but on the indisputable authority of the Holy Ghost, explaining in one place what He had spoken in another. If pain afflict, or wrongs oppress, The remedy's before thee: pray. Lay me low, and keep me there.] Have my afflictions taught me sympathy? "Blessed be God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies, and the God of all comfort; Who comforteth us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God. For as the sufferings of Christ abound in us, so our consolation also aboundeth by Christ. And whether we be afflicted, it is for your consolation and salvation, which is effectual in the enduring of the same sufferings which we also suffer: or whether we be comforted, it is for your consolation and salvation." 2 Cor. i. 3-6. "Rejoice with them that do rejoice, and weep with them that weep." Rom. xii. 15. "And whether one member suffer, all the members suffer with it: or one member be honoured, all the members rejoice with it." 1 Cor. xii. 26. [The vast and special importance of Afflictions in this respect may be partly understood, from the cold and deaf ear which those who are in trouble and affliction are so apt to turn to all exhortations and consolations, addressed to them by persons whom they suppose to have had little or no experience of similar trials and afflictions. How readily do they then say, I have heard many such things: miserable comforters are ye all. Shall vain words have an end? or what emboldeneth thee that thou answerest? I also could speak as you do, if my soul were in your soul's stead." (Job xvi. 2—4.) But let any one sit down by your side and take your hand and say, 'Ah, my friend! I know what sorrow is. I have tasted of the same bitter cup,-yea drained it to the dregs,-of |