died. Seth lived nine hundred and twelve years; and what then? And he died. Enoch lived nine hundred and five years, Jared nine hundred and sixty-two, Mathusala nine hundred and sixty-nine years; and what then? They all died; one sooner, another later, but all of them had to pay the debt of nature. Now I am certain that I shall not reach such an age; and even if I could hope to do so, I should still have to die at last, and in fact I am now actually going to my death. What, then, is the good of my becoming attached to a few earthly things for a few miserable years, and plaguing myself on account of them, and seeking after pleasures, while I neglect the one only necessary business of my immortal soul? Where do you go? I must ask myself: where am I going to? To the grave, to death; and whether the way is longer or shorter makes little difference to me.
And we know not when. But what have I said? That we are all like the criminals led to death? We are rather worse off, if anything; for they know at least for certain how far off their death is; they know the way which they are going; they can count the steps they still have to take, and hence they can say how long they still have to live. Not one of us can know that much. The Lord has said to us that we must die; we know that we are going to the grave, but not a whit more. How long we still have to journey; how far off death is from us; let him who can guess that. "You know not the day nor the hour," says Our Lord.[1] And there is another thing we have from the infallible lips of God Himself, that He will come like a thief unawares, at a time when we least expect Him: "At what hour you think not, the Son of man will come."[2]
We find death when we least expect it. Shown by an example. Æsop, the celebrated writer of fables, was one day sent by his master to see if the bath was ready, and as he was going along the street he met a judge who asked him where he was going to. What a curious fellow, thought AEsop; what is that to him? And he answered: "I do not know where I am going to." The judge, offended at the impudent reply, ordered his servants to bring Æsop to prison. The latter went on a few steps, and then, stopping, turned round to the judge, and said to him: "You see now, sir, that I did not know where I was going; I had intended to go to the bath where my master sent me; but I had no idea that I should be sent to prison to-day." Ah, my dear brethren, how many there are who go and know not where! How many dying persons who, if they were asked, where are you going to? should
