(2) THE FISH-GATE. This the sons of Hassenaah built (chap. 3:3), "who also laid the beams
thereof, and set up the doors thereof, the locks thereof, and the bars thereof." Discrimination
appears to be the leading thought in) this gate. In Deut. 14:9 and 10 we see that certain fish are
called clean, and others unclean. In Matt. 13, in the parable of the net, every kind is gathered into
the net, but the good are gathered into vessels, while the bad are rejected. This takes place at the
end of the age; but we are to be in the spirit of that even now. "Do ye not know that the saints
shall judge the world? Know ye not that we shall judge angels? how much more things that pertain
to this life?" (I Cor. 6:2,3). The present time is the opportunity for practice in these things, for
learning to use "strong meat", becoming "those who by reason of use have their senses exercised
to discern both good and evil". (Heb. 5:14).

But fish as a symbol has another application which must not be passed over, and that is, ministry.
Fish is often used in symbolic language to suggest ministry. (See Matt 7:10). Our Lord fed the
multitude partly with fishes (Matt. 14:19; 15:36; cf. also 17:27). Even He Himself was so
ministered to (Luke 24:42).

The fish-gate then most beautifully fill its numerical place as the second gate, the number two
speaking of difference, hence of discrimination, as also of ministry, aid, help; the two thoughts
being brought together in the verse just quoted from Heb. 5, vers. 12 to 14, placing those
requiring milk, needing to be taught first principles, the unskillful in the word of righteousness,
on the one hand; whilst the full grown, feeding upon strong meat, those who by reason of habit
are able to distinguish both good and evil, are placed on the other.

What qualities are suggested as called into play by those who would "sit in the gate" here! Skill,
patience, vigilance, tenderness in handling_all the qualities of a bishop, in fact. And "the sons
of Hassenaah built" this gate. Hassenaah means "the thorn-bush". Having the article, it is definite,
and must refer to "the bush" of Ex. 3:2-6; of. Acts 7:30-34. The thorn is the badge of God’s curse
because of man’s sin. But here is a thorn-bush burning but not consumed because occupied by One
who has heard the cry of His people, and has come down to deliver them; and because of what
He is, they are not consumed. "I am Jehovah, I change not; therefore ye sons of Jacob are not
consumed". (Mal. 3:6).

"The thorn-bush", then, reminds us of what we were, of what He is (He must consume what will
consume), and of what we are by His grace_deeply fundamental lessons; and it is eminently
fitting that the sons of "the thorn-bush" should repair this gate.

(3) THE OLD GATE. What an atmosphere of rest seems to envelop one as we think of the "old
gate"_the One who said, "I am the door:by Me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall
go in and out, and find pasture"; and He changes not; He is "the same yesterday, and today, and
forever".

"Thus saith the Lord, Stand ye in the ways, and see, and ask for the old paths, where is the good
way, and walk therein, and ye shall find rest for your souls". (Jer. 8:16).

Jehoiada repairs this gate, his name meaning, "Jehovah knows"; the son of Paseah, whose name
means "halting", or "vacillating".

When we first entered, we entered as sinners. He opened His arms and took us in, "knowing" us
through and through; He picked us up for blessing, and He is able to accomplish His purpose. He
has not wearied, has not been disappointed in us, although we may have been disappointed in
ourselves and in one another at our "baitings" and "vacillations"; but "Jehovah knows", knows
the end from the beginning, and He had not changed; so we can repair the "old gate"; but for this
we need the assistance of Meshullam, whose name means, "reconciled"; the son of Besodeiah, "in
Jah’s secret". "Reconciled" and "in Jah’s secret"! Surely to attempt to repair the "old gate"
without these would be building with bricks_instead of living stones_and untempered mortar.
Again, we say, what an atmosphere of rest surrounds the old gate!

Is the reader of these lines reconciled to God?_ "A sinner reconciled through blood:This, this
indeed is peace."

"The secret of Jehovah is with them that fear Him."

(4) THE VALLEY GATE. We have been on the mountain top with Him whom "we have known
from the beginning". Now we must come down into the valley of practical experience in the
world. The low place becomes us as we think of what we are naturally, and as we consider what
our ways have been since we knew the Lord.

Nehemiah, as he went out by night to view the dilapidated wall, went out "by the gate of the
valley", and returned by the same gate. (chap. 2:13,15). This is as it should be. As he surveyed
the ruin, and remembered that the people had brought it upon themselves by their ungodly ways,
the valley gate would naturally be the gate at which he would begin and end his survey.

But Hanun repairs this gate, and his name means, "favored" (i.e., "shown grace"); assisted by
"the inhabitants of Zanoah"_"to cast off’.

What serious lessons are for us here!

On the one hand, "by the grace of God I am what I am"; and on the other, we see the cross, as
that which alone gives capacity to walk through this valley of death’s shadow; the cross, as the
mark of what the world thinks of us, and what the world is to us. (Gal. 6:14).

(5) THE DUNG GATE. This appears to be lower still than the valley gate. "He raiseth up the
poor out of the dust, and lifteth the needy out of the dunghill; that He may set him with princes".
(Ps. 113:7,8). How often we fancy that we have learned our lesson of humility, and are walking
softly, when suddenly some trial confronts us and knocks us down. One cannot be knocked down
when he is down.

How hardly is this low level reached! perhaps because the "thousand cubits on the wall unto the
dung gate" (ver. 13) is so seldom repaired.

The number of the gate is instructive, imparting a deuteronomic character to it, i.e., a backward
look, in His presence, at our origin and course, and a forward look at the time when He will "set
us among His princes".

Only in His presence do we get a proper estimate of ourselves. Job got a true estimate of himself
when he said, "But now mine eye seeth Thee:wherefore I abhor myself’. (Job 42:5,6).

Isaiah got a true estimate of himself when he exclaimed, "Mine eyes have seen the King, Jehovah
of hosts". (Isa. 6:5).

John the same, in Rev. 1:17:"And when I saw Him, I fell at His feet as dead".

To see ourselves as under the searchlight of God, we should class ourselves with the malefactors
crucified with our Lord in Matt. 27:44. "The thieves also, which were crucified with Him, cast
the same in His teeth"; and again, with one of them, in Luke 23:40-43:"Dost not thou fear God,
seeing thou art in the same condemnation? and we indeed justly; for we receive the due reward
of our deeds:but this Man hath done nothing amiss. And he said unto Jesus, Lord, remember me
when Thou contest into Thy kingdom. And Jesus said unto him, Verily, I say unto thee, Today
shalt thou be with Me in paradise." The beggar is raised from the dunghill, and set among princes.

The dung gate is the gate by which we entered, any way, however feebly it may be realized by
us. May we plod on diligently, with sword and trowel, upon the thousand cubits, until it is
reached, remembering that it is here God finds His princes, working under the name Malchiah,
"my King is Jab", son of Rechab, "a charioteer". The latter suggests the warrior-spirit, as well
as the racer, while "the ruler of part of Beth-haccerem" suggests the rest and joy soon coming;
Beth-haccerem meaning, "the house of the vineyard". (To be continued D.V.)

When our Lord Jesus appears as Melchisedek by and by, then will be the day for our glory with
Him; and the various traits here prefigured will coalesce in Him, not merely the sole dignity of
the priest but the exercise of the priesthood in its character of blessing. Then will be the answer
to Abram’s putting down of the victorious powers of the world, the deliverance of the poor though
faulty people of the Lord (shown by Lot), and finally the bringing out of the symbol of what God
gives not only for the sustenance of His people but for their joy_the bread and the wine of that
day.

So it is that the Lord will then act; for this will be one of the wonderful differences between the
Lord Jesus as the priest on His throne and all others that have ever governed in this world. It is
the sorrowful necessity of those that govern now, that they must take the means of maintaining
their dignity and grandeur from the people whom they govern; that even the poorest contribute
to that which the world owns as greatness and majesty. It must be so; it is the necessity of earthly
glory which can never rise above its source; for the haughtiest monarchy of the world is after all
founded, whatever the sovereign gift and ordinance of God, on the least contributions of the least
people on the earth.

But when creation is arranged according to the mind of God, and when His kingdom comes in its
proper power and majesty, how different! It will be His prerogative to supply all. The instinctive
sense of this was what made the people wish the Lord Jesus to be king when He was here below.
When He miraculously fed the multitudes win bread, they as it were said, That is the kind of King
we want_a king that will give us plenty of food without our working for it. (See John
6:15,28,27).

And doubtless the day is coming when-the kingdom will be so ordered. That which the corrupt
heart of man would like very well now, to avoid toiling in the sweat of his face, the Lord will
give, according to His own goodness, when man is bowed down as well as broken, and the riches
of God’s grace are no longer made the cloak of man’s selfishness to His dishonor. This is one of
the great distinctive features of that future kingdom, and Melchisedek shows it here. It is not only
that there is food for the hungry, but He brings out bread and wine for the conquerors.

(From "Lectures on Abram".)

FRAGMENT
"He shall confess that he hath sinned in that thing." Leviticus 5:5

"Against Thee, Thee only have I sinned, and done evil to Thy sight." Psalm 51:4.

How difficult it is to give expression in words to the sorrow of our hearts for sin; they are upon
our lips as burning coals; and the sound of them fills us with shame. Yet, so it must be; and it is
well that it should be so, until we are shamed out of our sinning. Definite sin must be definitely
confessed; a general, or summary confession is not enough.

"Throw light into the darkened cells,
Where passion reigns within;
Quicken my conscience till it feels .
The loathsomeness of sin."

Upon reading this preceding sentence, I was taken back, in memory, to several times when I was
going through the woods on a sunny day, walking up a hill beside a brook, and listening to the
water rushing down among the rocks. What a peaceful scene, with the sun shining down through
the trees, the song of the brook, and I alone with my thoughts.

As I recalled this experience, there came to mind a close comparison with spiritual things. The
water running down the brook brought to life, the Word of God coming down from Heaven, by
the Spirit of God. "For the prophecy came not in old timed by the will of man but holy men of
God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost" (II Peter 1:21). Jeremiah speaks in Jer. 17:13
of "the Lord, the fountain of Living Waters". In Ezekiel 36:25 is the verse, "Then will I sprinkle
clean water upon you and ye shall be clean; from all your filthiness, and from all your idols, will
I cleanse you." This brings to mind John 4:13-14 "Jesus answered and said unto her, Whosoever
drinketh of this water shall thirst again. But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him
shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up
unto everlasting life." So we see the brook running down the hill, in a sense, resembles our
blessed Lord leaving His glory and being born as Son of Man, that He might meet man’s need,
yet truly be the Son of God.

We might liken the brook to the Bible that God the Father has given to all to read, having
preserved it down through the years. It tells us of the love of God; our Father who desired
worshipers and also desired to share all the joys of heaven with them. As Jesus said to the woman
of Samaria (John 4) "The hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshipers shall worship the
Father in spirit and, in truth:for the Father seeketh such to worship Him". The only way this
could be brought about was by the sacrifice of our blessed Lord on Calvary’s cross, as the Lamb
of God, which took away the sin of the world. "For all have sinned and come short of the glory
of God" (Romans 3:23). Because of this finished work, the grace of God is now! offering the
water of life freely, without money and without price, to whosoever will. (Isa. 55:1; Rev. 22:17).

The rocks in the brook would remind us of Simon Peter’s answer to our Lord’s question, "Whom
say ye that I am?" Peter answered, "Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God" (Matt. 16).
Jesus’ answer was, "Thou art Peter and upon this rock I will build my Church." His Church is
composed of all who have been convicted of their sin by the Holy Ghost, trusted in Christ, and
are building on the firm foundation_that the Lord Jesus suffered, bled, and was judged by the
holy, righteous God for their sins. He laid down His life as a recompense for their sins and was
raised again for their justification. (Romans 4:25). All who believe in this, fact are part of His
Church, and are also true worshipers of God the Father. They, being blessed with the assurance
that the sin question has been settled once and for all, cannot help but have their hearts overflow
with worship and songs of praise to God the Father for the gift of His Son; also to the Son who
loved them and gave Himself a ransom for their sins.

To go back to our comparison, we have the Bible, with Christ the Rock portrayed in all its 66
books. As the believer reads of Him in any one of these books his heart overflows with a song.
If Christ were not pictured in the word of God there would be no song. Just so, if we take the

rocks out of the brook there is no song.

This earthly scene can never begin to measure up to the vast store of wealth for the child of God.
There is an immeasurable amount of peace and satisfaction to all who will avail themselves of it.
These are the conditions:(1) There must be the desire to know more of the blessed truth, a Tim.
2:4). (2) We have to let our desire be made known to God the Father in the name of our Lord and
Saviour. (John 15:16). (3) We must believe that God will answer our prayer. (James 1:5-7). (4)
We must not be discouraged if this does not come as quickly as we think it should. (Isa. 28:9,
10). We must learn to leave all our cares and worries with a loving Father who knows all our
needs even before we ask Him. As we grow in this knowledge and grace then we win witness
more of the peace which passeth all understanding. (Phil. 4:7).

May the grace of God cause each one of His own to enjoy this peace more fully.

FRAGMENT
0 Lamb of God, still keep me
Close to Thy pierced side;
"Tis only there in safety
And peace I can abide.
J. G. Deck

Some time ago I purchased some stamps, and seeing a new "Special Issue" in the drawer I asked
the postal clerk for some. He courteously obliged and then remarked that the battle of Shiloh,
which the stamps commemorated, was fought during the Civil war in a peach orchard, so the
government printers had used peach-colored paper in printing them.

Similarly, as with "Shiloh", we find that in many places the early settlers of this country used
Bible names for their new localities, likely evidencing that some of them, at least, believed in the
precious truths of the Scriptures and the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ of whom it so clearly
speaks as its central theme and figure.

These Bible names, so often found used for various cities, towns, and villages, all have a
scriptural meaning which prove very profitable for meditation. The scriptural meaning of these
names, which God has given to them, can be found in various Bible Dictionaries of Proper
Names.

The meaning of Shiloh is very precious and interesting, as it means, first, "Peace-bringer:bringer
of prosperity", and second, "His peace:his prosperity:" or same as preceding, (this form in
Judges 21:21 and Jer. 7:12).

Isaiah 9:6 tells us that our Saviour’s name was to be called "Wonderful, Counselor, The Mighty
God, The everlasting Father, THE PRINCE OF PEACE", while Eph. 2:14 assures those who
have been "made nigh by the blood of Christ" (verse 13) that "He is our PEACE", and further that
He "hath broken down the middle wall of partition between us (Jews and Gentiles), having
abolished in His flesh the enmity, even the law of commandments contained in ordinances; for to
make in Himself of twain (Jew and Gentile) one new man, so making PEACE; and that He might
reconcile both unto God in one body (the Church or Assembly) by the cross, having slain the
enmity thereby; and came and preached PEACE to you (Gentiles) which were afar off, and to
them (Jews) that were nigh". (Eph. 2:13-17).

Thus our Saviour is our "Peace-bringer" and whispers to each one of us who know Him and love
Him as our Saviour and Lord, "Peace I leave with you, My peace I give unto you:not as the
world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid". (John
14:27)
.
But He also wants us to share the blessed Peace, that He is to our souls, with others; so exhorts
us, along with the other armor of God we are to put on, in Ephesians 6, to have our "feet shod
with the preparation of the gospel of PEACE", so that we might show forth in our daily walk that
there is a Saviour for "all that call upon Him" from the least to the greatest sinner, "For
whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved." And also may we have a deep
longing, manifested by our prayers, for the Lord to thrust forth laborers into His harvest, for
"How shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in Him
of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher? And how shall they
preach except they be sent? as it is written, How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the

gospel of PEACE, and bring glad tidings of good things!" (Read Romans 10:9-15).

The desire, when evidenced in our lives, to be a "peace-maker" between God and the souls we
contact, will truly show forth our calling front on high, for Matt. 5:9 assures us that "Blessed are
the peace-makers; for they shall be called the children of God". That surely should be the
occupation of those who have found "peace with God" (Rom. 5:1) and it should be our occupation
"Till Shiloh, come". "Even so come, Lord Jesus."

Have you ever thought much of the exercise of meditation, and how frequently it is spoken of in
Scripture?

Perhaps it may be from want of this holy exercise, and really comprehending it, that the church
of the living God is wanting in unity of doctrine, and in spirituality of mind.

The study of God’s Word may be concentrated, deep, constant, like searching for a vein of gold;
and memory may marvelously retain and bring forth what study has discovered. But meditation
is not the discovery of more or new things, but a calm sitting down with God to enrich itself with
what study has discovered, and feeding with Him upon the stores which memory has laid up.

Study and memory make the ready and admired speaker; meditation, the sweet, living exhibition
of Jesus everywhere, whether speaking or silent (Joshua 1:8; Psalm 104:34; 119:15). Truths from
an infinite, all-wise God_they have in them more than the best meditative faculty has ever or can
ever digest.

May the Lord unfold to thee and me some of His own rich stores. They are so deep! But I am only
at the surface of them. They are "our inheritance:it shall be forever."

Don’t forget that you are more than a mass of breathing clay. (Gen. 2:7).

Don’t forget that there is something within you which the grave-digger cannot bury. (Eccl 12:7).

Don’t forget that your soul will outlast the hills that look eternal. (Matt. 10:28).

Don’t forget Heaven and Hell are realities. (Luke 16:22,23).

Don’t forget that those who reject the Lord Jesus Christ shall be lost forever. (John 8:21).

Don’t forget that you will be saved forever if, as a needy, guilty sinner you receive Christ by faith
as your personal Saviour. (John 3:16).

Don’t procrastinate, for it is one of Satan’s most successful ways of luring souls into perdition.
(Prov. 27:1).

Don’t forget that now is the accepted time; now is the day of salvation. (II Cor. 6:2).

Don’t, at the peril of your soul, allow wealth, honor, lust, pleasure, or anything under the sun to
keep you from coming to Christ now. (I John 2:17).

What will God do with a sinner in his sins? Beloved friend, what will He do with you, if you are
there? Mark_oh, mark it well!_you have to stand before God. You may defer it; you may put
it off; you may refuse to think about it now; you may refuse to take God’s sentence home. You
may say, "Oh well, I shall have plenty of company, if I am lost. There will be a good many lost
with me." That will not help you when you stand before God. You will find yourself an individual
soul_alone, and not in company_or I might say, only in company with Him whose eye will read
you through and through and expose you to yourself, naked and deformed, and In your own real
condition. There will be no talking about your company then. There will be no thought about your
neighbor. You will be a solitary sinner before God, with only His eye upon you. If you stand
before Him thus now, you will find there is mercy for you. If you stand before Him then, you will
find it everlasting destruction. This is the acceptable tune; behold, now is the day of salvation.
Now!_now, dear friend. And how long is that "now"? Every pulse-beat, every tick of the clock,
is a "now". You don’t know how many of them are left you. Friend, there is salvation for you to
take hold of as instantaneously as that, because God knows what your need is. There is a rope out
for souls that are drowning, that they may clutch on the instant. That is what you want. Blessed
be God, there is salvation for you now.

People argue that you must do all you can to be a Christian, and so be saved. You take yourself
out of God’s loving hands of mercy, which are longing to take hold of you:that is all. You make
Him act in righteousness against you instead of in righteousness for you. God does not save in that
way. God does not justify people as Christians, church members, and all that. He "justifies the
ungodly"_the people who do NOT work for it- "To him that WORKETH NOT, but believeth on
Him that justifieth the UNGODLY, his faith is counted for righteousness" (Rom. 4:5).

Do you think God means what He says? Do you think God does what He says? God "justifies the
ungodly." Do you believe that? "Oh, yes," people say, "we believe that." Well, what are you
going to do? "Going to do the best we can." Is not that it?_the best we can! Have we to do the
best we can to be ungodly? If God justifies the ungodly, must not you be the sort of person that
God justifies? Ah, if you look at yourself aright, you will find you are ungodly enough
already_ungodly enough to be justified. If you believe that, what do you do? Nothing!_because
you believe. If you want to do something, you do not believe He "justifies the ungodly. If you do
believe He justifies the ungodly, you do nothing. Christ died for sinners, nobody else. He did not
die for good sinners, or for the better class of sinners. He found one man who was the very chief
of sinners, and He could not leave him unsaved. He took up that man, the chief of sinners as he
was. He could not let him go. Because, if He let the chief of sinners go unsaved, people might
have said that there was a limit to the power of the blood of Christ, and that there was one man,
at any rate, that the blood of Christ was not sufficient to save. So God took up the chief of sinners,
and made an apostle of him. He wanted him to speak in men’s ears and hearts:"There! that is the
sort of sinners I am saving." Those are the sort of sin that the blood of Christ washes off. Come
now, and put in your claim as a sinner to the precious blood of Christ, and you will receive the
remission of your sins.

I wish to notice in this beautiful chapter, chiefly, the footsteps of our adorable Lord, as the
Shepherd going before His sheep, part of that blessed example which He has left us, that we
should follow His steps.

First, then, there are seven distinct petitions in this chapter. Another thing in connection with these
seven, which we will go over briefly, there are four different ways in which our Lord addressed
His Father. Is it not then, at least, suggestive for our hearts, who often, doubtless, as His disciples
long ago, desire, "Lord, teach us to pray," that we may be led to address the Father similarly?

Taking the last point mentioned, first, the four ways are these:In the first and twenty-fourth
verses, when it is simply addressing the Father, prayer, asking for something, whether for Himself
or His beloved people He says "Father." Next, when pressing His claim, as it were, in
supplication. He says, "O Father," fifth verse. Then, in reference to His people committed to His
Father’s care, to be kept from the evil of the world, He puts His character hi contrast to it, and
says, "Holy Father," eleventh verse. And finally, when viewing in contrast the world and the men
given to Him out of it, He says, "O righteous Father," twenty-fifth verse. These are not
distinctions without a difference, we may rest assured, and while the Lord would not have us
under bondage as to the names we use when we pray, one name or another in different relations,
yet He would have us duly exercised that so we may "pray with the Spirit and the understanding
also."

Then there are these seven petitions to consider. First, however, let us note our Lord’s position
in prayer. How beautiful! He "lifted up His eyes to heaven," thus recognizing the One from whom
all blessing comes, who is also to be before our hearts thus too. He who came from heaven
recognizes that all good comes from there. He is thus before us in the fitting attitude of lifting up
His eyes to heaven. He takes the place of dependence He would lead His people into. Thus He
has left us an example that we should follow in His steps, as to its spirit at least. He has shown
us, therein, whence all good cometh, "that every good gift and every perfect gift cometh down
from above, from the Father of Lights," and our true place in dependence and reverence before
Him.

What, then, does He ask for first? His first petition is for glory. What for? That He may use it for
His Father. What a contrast in this with every man that went before Him, repetitions as we are,
of our common father, "The first man, Adam." He had glory as "set over the works of God’s
hands," yet grasping for the further glory of being as God, he lost both; here is One who had
glory and left it to take the path of lowly obedience, and now claims glory at God’s hands and gets
it; claims it only that He may use it for another. "Father .. . glorify Thy Son, that Thy Son also
may glorify thee."

The second petition, at first sight, looks like the same, but it is not in a most important respect.
First verse, He is asking for glory in which He may give His people, at least in a measure, to
share with Him. Fifth, verse, He is praying for glory into which He cannot lift His beloved
people, glory that was His ere He came in grace, the glory which He had with the Father before

the world was, and to which, in virtue of who He is, He is now about to return. The first is a
glory that He has earned as man, that He can lift His people up to share with Him, acquired glory,
fruit of His work upon the cross; but there is also a glory which He had as the eternal Son of God,
which He can share with none, but which, through grace, we shall behold and adore Him in, and
shall enjoy seeing Him in exclusively and forever. The first petition is for glory, and the second
for glory also; the first that He may glorify His Father in it; the second, that He asks the Father
that He may go back into. He will not even take what is His by right and title as One who is
Divine, we can see, except the Father gives Him it. What a blessed example for us! Then, His
next petition is for the Father’s care of us amid the evil of the world. First, He asks for glory,
earned as the fruit of His obedience here, that He may glorify His Father in it. Second, He asks
for the glory that He had with the Father to be given Him again.

And now third, He looks at the little struggling band around Him, "the men given Him out of the
world," and commits them to His Father’s care, saying, "Holy Father, keep through Thine own
name those whom Thou hast given Me, that they may be one, as We are." This is for the Father’s
care that we may be kept one. But He desires us to be kept too in a double way, kept one with
each other as He was with the Father and the Father with Him, kept also from th» evil of the
world we pass through, both positive and negative separation, we may say. The fifteenth verse
at first sight looks like a repetition of the third request, but it is not, but another phase of it, first
kept in unity, then kept from the evil of the world, and then the seventeenth verse shows the
means of it and a further result. In the eleventh verse thus it is our relation to each other; fifteenth,
our relation to the world; and, seventeenth, our relation to God. Mark the points:we are to be
kept on, kept from the evil, and kept for God. Kept one as His people, kept from surrounding
evil, and kept for the exclusive will of God.

The eleventh verse is now widened out in the sixth petition, twentieth verse to all that believe, so
that we in later days were also part of the burden upon our Saviour’s heart in that sad hour. He
looked on to the end, and contemplated all the way, and all that would be called to walk in it, and
thus made His gracious provision for us all. Adored be His holy name for such tender pitying
grace! But these verses might seem to us not to have their fulfillment; they no doubt present to us
what we should practically be, to convince the world around us, and what we practically have not
been. Of all this, however, we get a glimpse at Pentecost, but how soon it faded out of sight! But
thank God, that all that is lost by the way is kept for the end. We will yet be displayed as one in
glory, entirely free from the world’s last soil, and "His servants shall serve Him," however feeble
or transient the pledge fulfillment here. Thus, if our Saviour’s cry has not yet had its fulfillment,
it will yet have, and the world will see the display of it, and then "shall know that the Father has
sent Him."

The seventh petition, twenty-fourth verse, is for His own again, but now for the end rather than
the way, that they may be with Him, sharers of His glory, and yet beholding Him too in what they
can never share, that in this, as "in all things He may have the preeminence."

Finally, as our gracious Lord takes His farewell look at the scene around Him, the last address
to His Father is not a petition but review, of the world that have not known the Father, Himself
the Son who has, and these that share it with Him, and His avowal that what He has done,
"declaring the Father’s name", that still would He do, until the Father’s love and Himself, the
object of it, were fully known to them.

Lord, help us then to learn of Thee how to pray aright, and in coming to "make known our
requests," to learn Thy way of praying, Father; when supplicating His grace, O Pettier; when we
think of ourselves in the midst of evil, Holy Father; and when in contrast with the world and in
our changeless connection with the Father and Thee His beloved Son, "righteous Father." Be it
so, for our blessing, and the glory of His worthy name!

FRAGMENT
"The Lord is righteous in all his ways, and holy in all his works."
Psalm 145:17