172 BRITISH BIRDS. 



punishment : he shall be cast into the valley of the 

 dead, and shall be a prey to the voracious raven. Death 

 was the punishment of this offence under the Mosaic 

 law, and it always must be chargeable with great guilt, 

 and attended by the Divine displeasure. 



And yet, however repulsive the raven may sometimes 

 appear, it is described as an object of care to the Maker 

 and Preserver of all things, "\\nien the voice of the 

 Most High addressed Job out of the whirlwind, it in- 

 quired, " Who provideth for the raven his food ? when 

 his young ones cry unto God, they wander for lack of 

 meat." For while God " giveth to the beast his food,'' 

 he ministereth also " to the young ravens which cry." 

 " Consider the ravens," said our Lord : " for they neither 

 sow nor reap ; which neither have storehouse nor bam ; 

 and God feedeth them." For these creatures are the 

 work of infinite wisdom and power ; they have their 

 proper sphere of action, and they usefully employ their 

 qualities and instinct both for themselves and the other 

 parts of the lower creation. With what force and point 

 then does the argument of the gracious Redeemer come 

 to us : — If your heavenly Father listen to the cry of the 

 young raven, will he not much more make you his 

 care ? He is too great for any thing to be little in his 

 estimation. 



