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but inspiration uniformly describes it as surpassing our utmost conception. Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, what joys God hath prepared for them that love him."

II. This gospel is a hidden treasure: "The kingdom of heaven is like unto treasure hid in a field."

It is a hidden treasure, not in its own nature; not by any decree of arbitrary authority; for God never published any code of laws which the most simple and ignorant could not comprehend; but various are the causes which render it to many obscure, or hidden. I shall mention three descriptions of men to whom this gospel is a hidden treasure.

1. To the superficial observer.

2. To those who are governed by strong prejudices and false philosophy.

3. To the men of the world.

1. To the superficial observer.

It is a remark, which I believe will be found in general to hold good, that superficiality is seldom united with excellence. Many of you know the remark of the poet Dryden; when speaking of human compositions, he says:

Errors, like straws, upon the surface flow;

He that would seek for pearls, must dive below."

The most barren surface usually covers the choicest treasures. Is it beneath the most beautiful verdure, or the most level ground, that we find the fuel, the lead, the iron, the silver, or the gold? The reverse is the case; and it is well known, that the richest mountains in this kingdom present an appearance the most barren and rugged. Thus it is with Christianity; simple in itself, it offers no attractions to those who will be at no pains to examine its pretensions; to a mere superficial observer it would present few charms. Its Founder, a person of mean origin, who, after a life of hardship and toil, at length suffered on a cross; its propagators a few fishermen, who, instead of being supported by worldly honours, lived in obscurity, and many of whom died as martyrs to the cause they espoused. These are humiliating circumstances; but, let them proceed in their inquiries, and they will discover, that all this was in exact conformity to the ancient prophecies; that miracles were wrought to prove its truth; and that his gospel, which they were at first inclined to despise, is "the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth."

2. It is hidden to those who have imbibed strong prejudices, or are infected with false philosophy.

St. Paul declared, that it was "to the Jews a stumbling block, and to the Greeks foolishness." The Jewish nation were rooted in prejudices. Strongly attached to the religion of their forefathers, they scrupulously attended to all the ceremonies of the Mosaic ritual; and rigorously treated every deviation from that law. They looked forward to the period when their expected Messiah should arrive, to deliver them from the Roman yoke, and to erect among them a temporal kingdom. With such views, can we wonder at their rejection of Christ, who came in the obscurity and meanness of poverty? Can we be surprised that they refused to acknowledge his claims, or that his cross was a stumbling block which they could not surmount? And with respect to the Greeks, the notions in which they had been educated were equally inimical to the reception of the gospel; the distinctions of the schools were now at an end; and were to give place to the plainest instructions, that all might learn the way to heaven. No questions were to be started, no difficulties brought forward; no objections discussed; but simple truths were to be delivered, which were of universal application.

And it is to be feared, that the gospel is equally hidden to many in our day, who are under the influence of a false philosophy. The profession of Christianity is not the road to fame; to be noticed, we must quit the beaten track, and strike out a new path. But, let the modern infidel and sceptic reflect a moment on those words of our Saviour,

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Father, I thank thee that thou hast hid these things from the wise and prudent, and hast revealed them unto babes." Humility is undoubtedly requisite, not only to receive the gospel, but properly to improve the truths it delivers. 66 Except ye be converted," says our Lord," and become as little children, ye cannot enter into the kingdom of heaven."

3. Once more. The gospel is hidden from the men of the world. The pleasures of the world hold out, perhaps, a greater obstacle to the profession of Christianity, than any I have yet mentioned. If any man love the world," says the Apostle John, "the love of the Father is not in him." An inordinate attachment to the pursuits, the business, or the pleasures of the world, is totally inconsistent with the profession of Christianity. Such engagements prevent our inquiries into the truths of the gospel, as we feel conscious that its precepts would be at variance with our con

duct: "Ye cannot serve God and mammon."

III. I now proceed, in the third place, to show, that the man of true wisdom discovers, values, and is ready to part with all his possessions to obtain this treasure. Hear the words of the text; "For the kingdom of heaven is like unto treasure hid in a field, the which, when a man has found, he hideth, and for joy thereof goeth and selleth all that he hath, and buyeth that field." We are to recollect, that this parable is a fictitious story; and we are not to suppose that our Lord intended to recommend the conduct of this man, in every particular, to our imitation; but merely the joy which he discovered, and the zeal by which he was animated, to secure the treasure he had found. The parable represents a man going forth, and accidentally discovering a treasure, of unspeakable value, hidden in a certain field. He immediately returns to the owner of the land, whom we may suppose to have been ignorant of the value of his property, and (concealing his knowledge of the treasure) treats with him for the purchase. Such a mode of proceeding was far from being just, and therefore we cannot suppose that our Lord intended to hold