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I. THE WORTH OF THE SOUL. The soul is precious to God, for it is His own workmanship — the end of creation, for which all earthly things were made, which received His blessing and obtained dominion over everything below. It is precious to the angels, for "there is joy in heaven over one sinner that repenteth." It is precious to all Christians upon earth. How fervently and with what an undying flame did the love of it burn in the hearts of the apostles; and in how many forms did it show itself — in preaching, in writing, in continual prayer. And are not our souls precious to ourselves? If we find the soul to be precious, let us act as if it were so: if we discover that it is valueless, let us snatch the pleasures of life while they last. But the soul is precious. It must be so —

1. From the statements of God's Word;

2. From its nature;

3. From the value of that which has been given for it;

4. From the means used to save it.

II. THE IMPOSSIBILITY OF RECOVERING THE SOUL WHEN IT IS LOST. Our conduct in this world will determine our fate in the next.

1. The soul may be lost.

2. The soul must be lost, unless it be redeemed.

3. When once lost, the soul can never be regained.

4. The soul may be soon lost. It well becomes us, then, to improve our brief existence by endeavouring to secure the salvation of our souls; for in the future all is uncertainty but this one thing, that "the wicked are driven away in their wickedness, but the righteous hath hope in his death."

(W. Dickson.)

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KJV: (For the redemption of their soul is precious, and it ceaseth for ever:)

WEB: For the redemption of their life is costly, no payment is ever enough,