Shall we accept the sacrifice he made
And enter in the Shepherd's sheltering fold?
Or, like the Judas who his Lord betrayed,
Sell soul and hope of Heaven for miser's gold?
Say, which is best, true piety or gold?
This metal worship or the living God?
Ye cannot have them both, so we are told,
See to it then which pathway shall be trod.
Array your idol in his robes of state!
Set up his image on his golden throne!
Throw open wide the temple's gilded gate,
And thus proclaim that gold is God alone!
Or else array yourselves in plain attire;
Set up the love of Christ in every heart
Let each affection feel its fervent fire,
And in this money-worship bear no part.
Now make your choice between your gold and heaven;
Buy all the sinful pleasures wealth can bring;
Increase them through the years to mortals given
And die, at last—a beggar—not a king.
Yes, make your choice between your gold and heaven;
Find peace and pardon in a Saviour's blood;
Freely bestow what, free to you, is given,
And meet, at last, the welcoming smile of God.
THE DOUBLE NIGHT.
BY MORRISON HEADY,
Of the Kentucky Institution for the Blind.
To the shades of Milton and Beethoven.
"Silence and Darkness, solemn sisters, twins
From ancient Night, who nursed the tender thought
To reason, and on reason build resolve—
That column—of true majesty in man—
Assist me—I will thank you in the grave."—