JULY. 137 



unto Israel," said the prophet Hosea,* as he 

 foretold how the Spirit of God should again re- 

 vive the Avithei'ed graces of the erring Israelites, 

 ■who might well be compared to dying flowers. 

 And when the psalmist would liken to some 

 natural object, the sweetness, and blessedness, 

 and cheering influence of brotherly affection, no 

 more fitting image could have been presented 

 to his mind by the Holy Spirit, than the dew 

 of Hermon, and the dews which descended on 

 the mountain of Zion.f And while we look at 

 the dew on the flower, it Avould be well that we 

 remembered, that it has been likened to the 

 momentary feeling of goodness, which, though 

 lovely to look upon, Avas frail and transient; 

 leaving no trace of holiness iipon the character, 

 more permanent than the drop which glitters 

 on the rosebud ; and that the glow of devotion, 

 which is soon droAvned in the act and habit of 

 worldliness, is recorded by the angel of God, as 

 the morning cloud, or as the early dew, which 

 passeth away. 



The sweet lavender {Lavandula spica) is 

 fragrant in the garden, and the cottage dame 

 will soon gather it to lay in her drawers among 

 her store of linen. It was named from lavare, 

 to wash, because the ancients used it in baths, 

 and the fragrant perfume which it yields in dis- 

 tillation, is both pleasant and useful. The flower 

 is called, in Provence, Vespk, and hence the 

 foreign oil of lavender is often termed oil of 

 spike. The lavender is found on the deserts 



» Hos. xiv. 5. t Ps. cxxxiii. 3. 



e3 



