But as their condition improved, they recurred to the original re. quisition, and the half shekel con. tinued to be paid to the temple, until after the fall of Jerusalem, when the emperor decreed that the ranson-money, which had been given to the sanctuary, should be paid to the capitol. "He," Cæsar, "laid a tribute upon the Jews wheresoever they were, and enjoined every one of them to bring two drachmæ every year into the capitol, as they used to pay the same to the temple at Jerusalem."* 2. The value of the half shekel is now to be ascertained. The Jewish historian, a good authority in this case, informs us that the "shekel is a Hebrew coin, and is equal to four Athenian drachmæ."† The Attic drachm was but half the value of the Alexandrian coin of that name, and is generally estimated at something less than fourteen cents of U. States currency. The she kel being in value equal to four of these drachms, may be esti. mated at about 56 cents, and the half shekel at about 28 cents. 3. What was the value of the sum demanded, and of the money actually paid on this occasion? The question proposed to Peter was, "Doth not your Master pay -not tribute-but τα διδραχμα, the double drachms? Does he pay the double drachms, the didrachmon required of him from year to year? Those who proposed the question to Peter were the per. sons that received-not the tribute-money-but τα διδραχμα, the double drachms. The proper Joseph. Wars, B. vii. ch. 6. † Joseph. Art. 13. iii. ch. 8. terms for tribute, used by our Lord himself, ver. 25, are τέλος and κηνδος; the latter term is that employed in Mat. xxii. 17, when speaking of Cæsar's tribute; and by Paul, Rom. xiii. 7, in reference to civil tribute, due to the minister of God, who beareth not the sword in vain. The διδραχμον, or double drachm of Attica, it seems, then, was equal to the half shekel, the ransom-money de. manded for the temple service. What was the money actually paid at the order of our Lord? Hear the record: Go to the sea, cast the hook, take the fish that first cometh up, open his mouth; "thou shalt find a piece of money, ney, -gr -στατηρα, a stater; that take, and give unto them for me and thee;" ver. 27. The sτατης was a Grecian silver coin, precisely of the same value as the shekel, four Athenian drachms. Both the terms, in their original import, signify weight. The verb שקלto weigh, gives orgin to the noun shekel, and from ἑστημι, το weigh, is derived the sτατης, weight. Both terms were, at first, employed to designate certain weights, which, at Jerusalem and Athens, were the respective standards. The name, as society advanced, was transferred to coins. The shekel and the stater, we see, originated in a similar manner; the terms are of the same import, and the coins of the same value. The half of the stater was equal to the διδρακμον, the double drachm, demanded upon this occasion. The stater paid for our Lord and Peter. There is no reason to believe that this was the amount of the capitation tax, imposed by Cæsar. We have seen, from Josephus, that this very tax was transferred, by the decree of Vespasian, to the Roman treasury; but not till after the demolition of the temple, and the fall of the Jewish state, by the Roman arms, about forty years after this event. 4. Our Lord's reasoning upon the subject with Peter, sets the matter at rest: "Of whom do the kings of the earth take custom or tribute? of their own children, or of others, axό των αλλυτρίων ?" Peter replied, Of others. Jesus saith unto him, Then are the children free. Nevertheless, lest we should offend them, go thou to the sea, &c. In the whole of this reasoning, it is obvious, that our Lord argued for his right of exemption from this tax. The principle upon which he proceeds is analogy, taken from the practice of the kings of the earth. They tax not their sons or their daughters, but others. Jesus of Nazareth is then free. How? Is he the son of Cæsar? Such must be the fact, if he plead, on this ground, for exemp. tion from the obligation to pay tribute to Cæsar. But this idea is absurd. Jesus of Nazareth is free, because he is the Son of God, whose is the temple, its service, and the tribute paid for its support. Thus it appears, that the tax demanded and paid at Capernaum, was for the support of the temple at Jerusalem, and not for the maintenance of Cæsar at Rome. The sum of the argument is this: a tax of half a shekel had been imposed, by divine author. ity, upon every Israelite from twenty years old and upward, for the service of religion; those who received the tax at Capernaum demanded a sum of money, the double drachm, exactly corresponding in value with the half shekel; by a miracle our Lord furnished a piece of coin, in value equal to the shekel, which answered for both himself and Peter, thus furnishing the two half shekels. There is no example of that precise amount of tax having been imposed by the Roman power, till nearly forty years after this period, and that by turning this very tribute to the capitol; and, lastly, from our Lord's reasoning for exemption, he being the Son of God, and which, from the analogy of the kings of the earth, had great point, if the tribute demanded was for the service of the temple, the house of his Father; but which is inconclusive and un. meaning, if exacted for Cæsar. We proceed to notice, II. Some points of practical instruction, suggested by this interesting portion of the sacred narrative of the doctrines and doings of the Savior of man, while he sojourned upon earth. And 1st. By the example of Jesus of Nazareth, we are admonished not to lay stumbling blocks need. lessly before men. He might, as the Son of God, have refused to pay the ransom exacted from others; but the refusal might have been misunderstood; upon his example, others might have stumbled, fallen, injured them. selves, and dishonored their God. From it, too, occasion might have been taken to draw conclusions against his religion, his people, and his claims. He guards his own reputation, is tender of the cause with which he is identified, and no less so of the moral interests and spiritual welfare of men. He that knows not, practically, the doctrine of self-denial, for social and individual interests, is a stranger to the spirit of the Redeemer's example. He who will push, upon all occasions, his rights to their utmost verge, may be a righteous man; but a good man he is not. Offend not, scandalize not, O Christian, those men of the world with whom you are called to transact the busi ness of life, by a narrow, selfish, course of conduct, because it may be, toward yourself, in ac. cordance with strict justice. Your Creator has placed some things at your own disposal; fear not to yield a portion of them to generous purposes. 2d. In our Redeemer's intercourse with society, we find him uniformly, in all that was innocent, acting in correspondence with its common order. In his deportment we find no affectation of singularity, neither for the pur. pose of seeking distinction, nor for that of a momentary effect. He frowned upon prudery, and he damned hypocrisy in all its forms. He comes eating and drinking, mingling in the associations of life, bearing its burdens, and participating in its enjoyments. 3d. The Son of God, in our nature, exemplified a dutiful attendance upon, and a ready sup. port of, the ordinances of religious worship. He abandons neither the house nor the insti. tutions of his Father, because bad men attended upon them. He refused not the requisite contributions, because imperfect, nay bad men applied, and sometimes misapplied them. He pointed out the way of truth, and reproved every departure from the paths of rectitude; but acted toward and with men as he found them, that he might make them better and leave them happier. And when destitute of funds to meet the demand made upon him for the support of the ordinances of public worship, he puts the sea, and the fish of the sea, in requisition, and makes them his tributaries. In many a form has the Son of man taught us the worthlessness of physical, except as it subserves the interests of moral nature. 4th. This passage of the sacred record calls upon us to adore Immanuel, as God over all, and to confide in him for all that pertains to life and godliness. If his subjection, as Mediator, be indicated by the demand of tribute made upon him, his DEITY is manifested in the meeting of that demand. His omniscient eye sees the stater at the bottom of the sea, or, perhaps, his omnipotence at once extracts the silver from the distant ore, gives it form, and stamps upon it the figures of the current coin. His wisdom and his power unite in guiding, by an invisible agency, the unconscious fish to the hidden treasure, and, at the proper moment, directs it to Peter's hook. The whole transaction was before his eye; in the perfection of dignified simplicity, he gives the order to his disciple, and the result corresponded with his direction. The sea and its finny tribes, the mines of the dry land and their rich ores, as well as the holy and exalted inhabitants of heaven, are the subjects of his will. Shall man, man redeemed by his blood, alone dispute his claim, and refuse to bow to his empire? The ox knoweth his owner, and the ass his master's crib, but Israel doth not know, my people doth not consider. Shall the playful, thoughtless occupant of the deep rebuke immortal man, refusing to confess Messiah Lord of all? Be it our care to do him homage, knowing that his throne is established in the heavens, and his kingdom ruleth over all. And whilst bowing before his throne, in the devotions of homage, let our hearts be assured that he will give us all things pertaining to life and godliness. He will give grace and he will give glory, and will withhold no good from them that walk uprightly. Such is the tenor of his promise. His boundless resources of goodness, the immutability of his truth, and the omnipotence of his arm, unite in assuring us that his promise shall not fail. May our faith be strong, as his word of grace is sure. I hear that there be divisions among you; and I partly believe it. For there must be also heresies among you, that they which are approved may be made manifest among you. 1 Cor. xi. 18, 19. Divisions and heresies are nearly allied in every age and among all people. They were so connected in the apostolic age; and they both abound in Christendom during at least the current part of the nineteenth century. The tendency of these evils in the church of God is nevertheless divinely overruled for the good of Zion, and the intention is specified in the text placed at the head of this article. Those who cause divisions do not always, indeed, either avow or intend heresy; and yet it is the fact, that the one generally leads to the other. Σχισματα and αιρέσει are intimately connected in the history of the visible church. They are both the productions of error. us, therefore, cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armor of light." "Let In furnishingaid to an inquiring people for securing to themselves this armor, we would recommend the patient and prayerful study of the holy scriptures, and the careful revision of the ecclesiastical symbols of the churches of the reformation. There is much need of attention to those stand. ards which declare our sentiments, and direct our forms and our practice. These may have. been read and forgotten; and many of the old and of the young members may derive improve. ment from a reperusal of them. There is, of course, no impropriety in bringing before the rea. ders of the Expositor that form of church government which in ac. cordance with the word of God has been provided for us by the wisdom of our fathers; and constitute a part of the covenanted reformation which we affectionately maintain. A judicious writer in that excellent periodical called the PRESBYTERIAN makes the fol. lowing remark, August 31st, 1831: "The violation of one article of our form of government, or rejection of one article of our Confession of Faith, must, from the very structure of human nature, have much the same effect on the church, that the commission of the first flagrant offense has upon the youthful church, is that exhibited by the Westminster assembly. To this as a statement of principles and bend of union, the great body of Protestants in England, Scotland, and Ireland once agreed." sinner. The barrier once broken down, Presbyterian Church Govern. who shall predict the issue? The mountain torrent once let loose, who shall calculate the desolation? The history of many a ruined youth, and the history of the church, conspire to lift their warning voice, especially at this time." It is one of the pleasant signs of the times, that notwithstanding the prevalence of a disposition for innovation, many are found among the churches who lift up their voices in favor of the good old way, and seek to walk therein. We quote from a work respectable in itself, and supported by those who are peculiarly remarkable as tenacious of past attainments while recommending scriptural unanimity in the visible church: THE RELIGIOUS MONITOR, "devoted to the principles of the reformation as set forth in the formularies of the Westminster divines, and of the churches in Holland," vol. vii. p. 410. "It was thus, by testing every sentiment and doctrine, by the rule of God's word, that the churches of the reformation, the reformed churches of Holland, the church of Scotland, and the Westminster assembly of England, came to such a remarkable degree of unanimity. By this rule, the church in all countries, and all ages, would come to speak the same things, and mind the same things. For agreeing to the same rule, they inust necessarily agree with one another. In Great Britain, a remarkable unanimity was attained by that branch of the church, from which most of the Presbyterian denominations in this country have descended. The evidence of which unanimity has been handed down to us, in their confessions of faith, directions for worship, books of discipline, &c. Of which the most remarkable, and the last that was judicially approved by the ment, as practiced by the old Covenanters. THE FORM OF PRESBYTERIAL CHURCH GOVERNMENT, AGREED UPON BY THE ASSEMBLY OF DIVINES AT WESTMINSTER; WITH THE ASSISTANCE OF COMMISSIONERS FROM THE CHURCH OF SCOTLAND, As part of the covenanted uniformity in religion betwixt the churches of CHRIST in the kingdoms of Scotland, England, and Ireland: WITH An act of the general assembly, Anno 1645, approving the same. EZEX. xliii. 11. And if they be ashamed of all that they have done, shew them the form of the house, and the fashion thereof, and the goings out thereof, and the comings in thereof, and all the forms thereof, and all the laws thereof; and write it in their sight, that they may keep the whole form thereof, and all the ordinances thereof, and do them. ASSEMBLY AT EDINBURGH, FEB. 10, 1645. SESS. 16. ACT of the General Assembly of the Kirk of SCOTLAND, approving the Propositions concerning Kirk-government, and Ordination of Ministers. The General Assembly being most desirous and solicitous, not only of the establishment and |