off, indulging in fruitless lamentations, will not the disciples of Christ, having boldness to enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus, draw nigh with one accord, and plead for these abject ones? Whilst the Jews are weeping for themselves, will not the tear of Christian pity and love be shed for them? Whilst they ignorantly seek for pardon without reference to the Saviour, shall not we plead his name and his merits on their behalf?"

We trust that from many a closet, from many a family altar, from many a social meeting, will ascend, on Saturday, October 7th, the incense of prayer and intercession for Israel. Christians, remember the words of your Master, “If two of you shall agree on earth as touching anything that they shall ask, it shall be done for them of my Father who is in heaven." Matt. xviii. 19. Remember the encouragement afforded you by the God of Jacob, "Before they call, I will answer: and while they are yet speaking, I will hear," Isaiah lxv. 24. Remember the promises yet unfulfilled, which are waiting to be borne by you before the mercy-seat, "Israel shall cry unto me, My God, I know thee." Hos. viii. 2. "Israel shall blossom and bud, and fill the face of the world with fruit," Isa. xxvii. 6. "Now, if the fall of them be the riches of the world, and the diminishing of them the riches of the Gentiles; how much more their fulness! For, if the casting away of them be the reconciling of the world, what shall the receiving of them be but life from the dead?" Rom. xi. 12— 15. "And the Lord shall be king over all the earth; in that day shall there be one Lord, and his name one," Zech. xiv. 9.

CORRESPONDENCE, EXTRACTS, ETC.

ASPECT OF MODERN JUDAISM.

"THE present religious condition of the Jews," says Mr. Bernheim, an American missionary, "belongs to the remarkable appearances of our age. Till lately, the Jews formed, not only through their statutes, customs, and laws, but also through their relation with their neighbours, an entirely separate community; and although some of them had gained great riches, yet not the general respect of the people. The last Jewish generation perceived the chasm which separated them from the moral element of Christianity, and believed that a reform of their condition only could fill it up. And thus began, consciously and unconsciously, the intellectual fermentation within Judaism. They began to lay aside old customs and ceremonies, and accommodate

themselves to the ways and customs of the Christians among whom they lived, without giving up entirely the rabbinical statutes. The Jew remained a Jew; only, in place of being in collision with Christianity alone, he came into conflict with Judaism also, and his condition became more and more entangled.

"There were two ways of escape, either to return to orthodox Judaism, or to embrace Christianity. The first was a burden to them, which they were unwilling to bear; and as for the second, although many embraced Christianity, yet the greater part could not encounter and overcome the obstacles which are generally in the way of proselytes. Expelled from their fathers' house, persecuted by their brethren, distrusted by the Christians, and despised by the children of the world, they looked out for some other way to escape these evils. At first, they became indifferent to religion in general; then, disbelieving the Bible, and reading the works of infidels and rationalists, they imbibed their sentiments; and as they found, even among Christian divines and professors, those who cried, with the Jews of old, 'Away with this man!' they united with them and cried even louder than these, Away, away with the old and new; we believe nothing but what reason teaches us to believe!' And such is the creed of their reformers, and of the majority of Jews. One violent schism after another has sundered their communities; the rituals of their synagogues are changed; the Talmud is a fable, the word of God nothing more; circumcision an oriental custom, and Jerusalem an ancient ruin, of which nothing is to be expected.

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"Shall we then, as Christians, leave the Jews in their miserable condition, without making an effort to relieve them, when we are convinced that nothing else can or will save them, except the Gospel? Shall we leave them to perish in their infidelity and sin? Did Christ not command, Go and teach all nations?' Did not this make it the duty of the primitive Christians, even under much persecution, to proclaim to the Jews the glad tidings of a Redeemer; and should we. who have nothing to fear, neglect this important duty? You know their bitterness and enmity against Christianity; you are acquainted with the fact, that some of the most eminent fathers of rationalism and infidelity, were Jews-(Philo, Spinoza, and Mendelsohn). If this poison would remain within the walls of the synagogue, it would be sufficient reason to labour with all might to save this ancient and interesting race; but with shameless face and reckless hand, they spread it through states and countries. Think of their deplorable condition; think what responsibility rests upon you, if you let them starve a spiritual death, whilst the means are in your hands to save them; think what you have received through them-mercy. Even so have these also now not believed, that through your mercy they also may obtain mercy.' If one spark of gratitude is left in your bosom, it must burn with sympathy and commiseration to save this interesting race from eternal ruin. Now is the day of grace-now the day of salvation.' Now is the time to labour among the covenant people, -now they must learn to see their lost condition,-now they are in a state of mind to listen to the truth of Christianity,—now or never! Go to work, relying on the promises of the eternal Jehovah, defy the scorn of the devil and his emissaries, let your light shine, and you will gain friends, even those who are now opposed to your Society and

operations. Send missionaries to our ports and cities filled with Jews, in which, in some measure, your missionaries have gained already access. Let them preach Christ, the atonement for our sins, holding forth the truth which is in Christ Jesus; proving by Moses and the prophets, that he is the promised seed to bruise the serpent's head,— convincing by history, that Christianity is the only religion which makes the nations happy, and secures their welfare,-helping those inquirers who ask, 'What must we do?' and strengthening those who have confessed the Lord."

JEWISH OBSERVANCE OF THE SABBATH.

EVIDENCE BEFORE THE HOUSE OF COMMONS.

THE North British Review, in an interesting article on Sabbath observance, says "Of all the evidence, (adduced before the recent committee of the House of Commons,) none has been, to us, so novel and impressive as that of Mr. Isaac, an intelligent Israelite, in part proprietor of a mart in Houndsditch." We supply the reader with a specimen.

1145. "What is the kind of obligation which seems to press upon them (the Jews,) so much, for I must say, to your credit, that you observe the Sabbath much more conscientiously than the Christians do; what kind of obligation is it which seems to have so much greater force with you than with Christian men in our own country?” "I can answer you in one way only; I think that the Jews, generally, from infancy, are taught their prayers, and that in a very solemn manner. There are few Jews but who can read the Hebrew, and understand it, though he knows not a single letter in the English alphabet; he is taught, every meal he goes to, to say his prayer, and to say a prayer after he has eaten his meal; and I do not suppose you will find one out of every twenty Jews-I will say only twenty-one out of every twenty in London, let him be of what disposition he will in other ways, that ever forgets a prayer night and morning. It is part and parcel of his living. I do not say that they are anything better in disposition for it in other ways, but really, that it is part and parcel of parents' duty to their children; and, if they do not go in the right way, the parents cannot help it."

1146. "You attribute the observance of the Sabbath on the part of the Jew to the force of early education ?" "I am satisfied it is so."

1193. "If Christians were as strict in the observance of their Sabbath as you are of yours, there would be no necessity for legislative interference?" "That is a decided fact. They are only isolated cases where the Jews break through their trading practices on Saturday."

1213.-"With regard to butchers' meat; I believe that you have peculiar butchers, that it is killed in a peculiar manner, and that very great care is taken that no diseased meat, or no meat that can be considered so, shall be sold; are there any retail butchers belonging to the Jewish persuasion ? "A great number of them."

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1214.- -"Do they get meat from those who are licensed by the rabbi ?" They must be licensed by the rabbi before they can sell. The inspectors are paid by the congregation, and the killers too."

1215.-" With regard to the retail butchers, how do they manage on the Sabbath day; do they keep their own shops open ?" "No; if you were to pay £20 for an ounce you could not get it; nor yet is a baker open; no business whatever. It matters not what it is, they do not open. In fact, the bakers and the butchers are under the surveillance of the rabbi and the elders; for instance, if a butcher did anything wrong, the rabbi would not allow the congregation, at least, he would admonish them and say, 'You are not allowed to eat or drink with that man; I do not consider that he is what is called

'clean according to the faith."

1219.-"Is it within your knowledge that they do not sell on the Saturday?" "There are certain instances. I dare say many of them do. As I said before, you cannot compel a man not to sell."

1220.-"You are inclined to believe that the sellers of fruit and vegetables do, in some or many instances; perhaps you will say, if there are many sell on the Saturday?" "There are one or two shops in Covent Garden, fruiterers, which sell on Saturday. I do not know one that sells vegetables."

GLEANINGS.

21.

"when

"THIRTY years ago," said a foreign Jew lately to Mr. Hoff, the English first sent their missionaries to the Jews, I said, Oh! the English! the English! what fools they are for their pains! But I now see that, like the drop of water that wears out the rock, you are getting the better of us by degrees; and as, since that time, God has been pleased to permit the gradual breaking up of the old ark of Talmudism by other hands than the missionaries, so I begin to fear that the time is not distant when the Jewish people will, in their extremity, throw themselves into the gates of the ark of Christianity, which are already yawning to receive them."

22.

A learned Jew, named Joseph, went to the house of Mr. Pieritz in Jerusalem, for conversation, and remained there from ten in the morning till five at night. As the result he declined to read his rabbinical books any more. Not long after, he went secretly every day, and they read over together most of Isaiah and all the gospel of Matthew critically. One day Joseph said that it had occurred to him, that, as Messiah should have come just at the time when Christ appeared, it might be the case that Christ knowing this, had taken advantage of it, and by the force of great genius had brought all the prophecies to meet in himself. Mr. Pieritz now gave him Isaiah liii. Dan. ix. and Zech. xii. for comparison and meditation. When he had read the first of these chapters he returned, saying, that he understood it; at the same time he applied it partly to the Jews and partly to the Messiah as one of the Jews. Mr. Pieritz now sent him to read all the three chapters. He sat very thoughtfully for a time, and then burst out into the exclamation, "How to understand is easy enough, but how not to understand is the difficulty!" From that time he became very anxious about spiritual things. One Friday

evening, talking of veracity toward God and man, one of the Talmudical prayers was adduced, which says, "I thank thee for commanding such and such things," although no command has been given for them in the Bible. He felt the force of this at once, and on going home and finding the table spread to usher in the Sabbath, he declined the service. His friends became suspicious of him; but his change became public in an unexpected way. A Mohammedan was in the room one day, to whom Mr. Pieritz said that the unbelief of the Jews was no objection to Christianity; as many of them did believe, appealing to Joseph, who boldly assented. The Mohammedan told this to the Jews, and Jerusalem was thrown into tumult. An excommunication was pronounced on Joseph, and so awful was it, that the whole synagogue were in tears. They then forced him to divorce his wife, and by repeated solicitations, to leave Jerusalem for Constantinople, whither he went seeking Christian baptism.

INTELLIGENCE.

BRITISH SOCIETY FOR THE PROPAGATION OF THE
GOSPEL AMONG THE JEWS.

MISSIONARIES' JOURNALS.

From Mr. S.'s Journal.

as

Bamheim.-Spoke with several Jews, who declared themselves to be free-thinkers, and argued that all positive religion, Christian well as Jewish, is a useless thing, and only a human invention, and no longer necessary in this enlightened century.

Frankfort.-Received a letter from the Missionary Hansmeister at Strasburg, telling me that the dear Jewess, Veronica, is baptized. She was born in Alsace, and is a poor orphan. Being very ignorant, her attention was turned to Christianity by a Roman Catholic friend; but she did not find satisfaction in the vain ceremonies of popery. Therefore she came to Mr. Hansmeister, as her heart was opened, and she felt herself to be a sinner. Through his instructions she found the Saviour, and expressed a desire for baptism. Her brother, and another young man at Strasburg, are receiving instruction.

I am rejoiced to discover that the seed which I sowed in hope some months since, in the heart of the young Mr. F., has fallen into good ground. This hopeful young man came back this month, firmly resolved to gain instruction in the doctrines of Christianity. As I was not here at the time, he carried his solicitudes to Mr. P., and begged instruction from him, which he now receives regularly. May the Lord, who has knocked at his heart, take up his habitation in it! May he quench his thirst, and lead him to the still waters!

From Mr. E.'s Journal.

One of the two Jews whom I mentioned several times, and who has lately been confined to a bed of sickness, called upon me, and thanked me for the trouble which I had taken with him when he was ill, particularly for the consolation I had given him regarding his immortal soul. And he told me that he has been thinking seriously